Healthy vegan chocolate shake

ANOTHER smoothie? Just a few days after posting one for, like, the first time ever? And with another edible item-rimmed glass?

Yep. The idea of a sprinkle rim intrigued me enough to whip out another smoothie recipe—well, actually, according to Rawsome Vegan Baking by Emily Von Euw (from which this recipe is taken), it is the ULTIMATE CHOCOLATE SHAKE. So it’s not quite a smoothie.

Not wanting to be melodramatic about what is actually a very healthy, breakfast-friendly beverage, I toned the title down from “ultimate” to “healthy”. But you can understand.

That reminds me—have you heard of that cookbook? Rawsome Vegan Baking, that is? It is the brainchild of the blogger at This Rawsome Vegan Life, a (mostly) raw foods blog that specializes in scrumptious-looking, plant-based desserts. Every single recipe is completely raw (meaning, no ingredient has intentionally reached a temperature above, like, 120 degrees F) and completely vegan. Not to mention they all look fucking delicious.

The cover is only the beginning. source

So I guess you could say it’s pretty hardcore. I’ll admit, I’ve been too much of a coward to try any of Emily’s desserts on her blog despite having occasional hankerings for raw carrot cake. But after seeing her book at the library, I really had no excuse not to.

Now, I’m pretty skeptical of most “raw food”-type diets. I’ll be the first person to cynically say “Don’t thank Mother Nature—thank mankind’s ability to selectively breed plants” and to bring up the theory that cooking our food kick-started human evolution. But you know what? Even a person like me, who prefers baked goods over pretty much everything else, can learn from raw foodists. The ability to take raw nuts, seeds, grains, fruits, and vegetables and turn them into wonderful desserts is pretty impressive, when you think about it.

Not to mention, no-bake desserts are fantastic for the summer.

SO. I saved a bunch of recipes from the cookbook, so you can expect I’ll be whipping out some raw cheesecakes and pies and tarts in the coming months. But for now, this simple chocolate shake.

Not exactly a triple-layer raw cream cake, but whatever.

My version isn’t one hundred percent raw simply because of ingredient restrictions. For one, I don’t have cacao powder or cacao nibs; so in lieu of cacao powder I just used regular cocoa, and I substituted cacao nibs for actual rainbow sprinkles, which are totally not raw. (In fact, sprinkles might not even be totally vegan, but we can overlook that for now.)

Because sprinkles.

Other than that, this shake is pretty all-natural. It uses frozen bananas for the thick, creamy texture and dates for some natural sweetness (in addition to some liquid sweetener, if you desire). My favorite part is the addition of cinnamon and cayenne, which give it just a little edge, just a little kick. SO GOOD. Cayenne in chocolate, man. You can’t top that.

And like most smoothies / shakes, it’s super easy. So you have no excuse not to try this.

Here’s the recipe.

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Healthy vegan chocolate shake

Adapted from Rawsome Vegan Baking by Emily Von Euw

Serves 2

Ingredients

354 grams • bananas, frozen • 3 medium

44 grams • pitted dates • ¼ cup

15 grams • cocoa powder • 2 tablespoons

20 grams • agave nectar (optional) • 1 tablespoon

488 grams • nondairy milk • 2 cups

2 grams • vanilla extract • ½ teaspoon

Pinch cinnamon

Pinch cayenne

Coconut whipped cream, for topping

Sprinkles and more agave nectar, for rim

Directions

Place bananas, dates, cocoa powder, agave nectar, milk, and vanilla in a blender and blend until smooth. Add cinnamon and cayenne to taste.

To make a sprinkle-rimmed glass, start by running a finger dipped in agave nectar around the rim of your selected glass. Pour some rainbow sprinkles on a plate and stick the cup in the sprinkles, pressing the little jimmies onto your glass.

Pour the smoothie into your prepared glass and top with coconut whipped cream. Imbibe.

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My sprinkle rim isn't as perfect as the ones you see on Pinterest, but I still think it's beautiful. *sniffs*

For some more delicious sprinkle-infused treats, check out these recipes.

Momofuku-inspired confetti cookies. One of my more popular recipes.

Birthday cake pancakes. But it doesn’t have to be your birthday to make these.

Gluten-free funfetti cupcakes with chocolate mousse frosting. Super healthy and super scrumptious.

Confetti biscotti. That reminds me...I ought to make another biscotti recipe!