Recipes

Cherry Kumquat Smoothie with Schisandra

This is my new winter favorite, when kumquats are easier to find in stores.

The kumquats add a bright sweet-tart layer to the natural sweetness of the cherries, banana and dates. This smoothie, like so many of my recipes, includes flax seed.

This superfood does so many wonderful things in our bodies: it helps reduce blood pressure, and it can reduce risk for breast and prostate cancer. Amazing stuff, that flax seed!

Okay, now a few words about our optional superfood boost: schisandra berry powder. Schisandra is a medicinal berry that has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for thousands of years. In modern times, it is being studied for its positive effect on inflammation and free radical damage, detoxification processes in the liver, stress management, adrenal fatigue, and sexual/hormone health.

Important: please check with your healthcare provider before using supplements of any kind, especially if you’re on prescription medications.

This is my new winter favorite, when kumquats are easier to find in stores.

The kumquats add a bright sweet-tart layer to the natural sweetness of the cherries, banana and dates. This smoothie, like so many of my recipes, includes flax seed.

This superfood does so many wonderful things in our bodies: it helps reduce blood pressure, and it can reduce risk for breast and prostate cancer. Amazing stuff, that flax seed!

Okay, now a few words about our optional superfood boost: schisandra berry powder. Schisandra is a medicinal berry that has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for thousands of years. In modern times, it is being studied for its positive effect on inflammation and free radical damage, detoxification processes in the liver, stress management, adrenal fatigue, and sexual/hormone health.

Important: please check with your healthcare provider before using supplements of any kind, especially if you’re on prescription medications.

Schisandra can be found online at Mountain Rose Herbs. If you live in Portland, you can also find it at Fettle Botanic Supply & Counsel on SE Hawthorne.

 

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Serves 2.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unsweetened almond or hemp milk
  • 1 cup filtered water
  • 2 tablespoons ground flax seed
  • 2 tablespoons chia seed (whole)
  • 1-2 medjool dates (for sweetness) — be sure to remove pits!
  • 1 teaspoon grated ginger (I do this the night before and keep it covered in the fridge until morning)
  • 1 fresh banana (not frozen)
  • 2 cups frozen cherries
  • ½ cup fresh kumquats, peels and all! (if you can’t find kumquats, you can substitute 1 orange, peeled, seeded and chopped)
  • OPTIONAL — 1 drop of *edible* orange essential oil. Make sure your essential oil is food-grade. In other words, if you got a little crazy at a friend's DOterra party, now's the time to break out your oils!
  • OPTIONAL — 1 teaspoon schisandra powder

Directions

  • Step 1

    Place ingredients into blender, adding frozen fruit and ice last.

  • Step 2

    Process until creamy and smooth. Add water a quarter-cup at a time if you want a thinner consistency. Serve immediately or store some in fridge for later. Salud!