Anna Sultana’s Pumpkin Smoothie

I got a few emails.

You’re absolutely right.

The Thanksgiving ads are all around us.

They’ll be followed by Christmas ads.

And each ad will have a pumpkin pie in it.

Oh, yeah... and topped with whipped cream.  For sure.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars and Pumpkin Pie are not a dieter’s best friends.

But to paraphrase an old saying…

The taste buds want what the taste buds want.

What’s a dieter to do?

Make a smoothie.

Really.

A smoothie is similar to a fruit milkshake.

They have been popular for quite a while around the world.

Smoothies are found in Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Indian cuisine.

Health food stores on the U. S. West Coast sold smoothies in the 1930s.

By the late 1960s smoothies were widely sold across the states by ice cream vendors as well as health food stores. 

From the early 1970s ice milk was sometimes added to create the fruit shake.

Smoothies are easy to make.

And, like any good Maltese recipe, open to lots of variations.

So what are you waiting for?

This smoothie is like a liquid pumpkin pie… with less calories!!

Hints:

If you have frozen bananas, you can use one in this recipe.

If not, a regular banana will be fine.

A frozen banana will give the smoothie a thicker texture. 

Chilling the pumpkin will help the smoothie stay cold when you blend it. 

Add more milk to thin it out, if it is too thick. 

Add more ice cubes for a thicker texture, if desired. 

Add more or less spices to taste.

Try adding nutmeg, cloves, ginger, allspice or cinnamon for more punch.

Use whatever milk or yogurt you prefer.

It’s your smoothie!

                        Pumpkin Smoothie

Place in a blender

1 banana

1/2 Cup vanilla or plain yogurt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/4 teaspoon vanilla (optional)

1/2 Cup milk

2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar

2/3 Cup pumpkin (canned or cooked and pureed)

1 Cup ice

Blend on high for 5 minutes or more until smooth.

Scrape down the sides of the blender as needed.

Garnish with

whipped cream and nutmeg (optional)