I’m a bit of a pumpkin fiend. Around this time of year, I can’t help but crave it when I least expect to. All too often, I find myself opening a can of pumpkin puree, using half of it in a baking recipe, and leaving the rest in the fridge for a week until I get that next craving for baked things.

By that point, however, my poor puree has usually become inedible. So I had to get creative as to how to use it up quickly without completely destroying my diet plan. I’ve recently been on a breakfast smoothie kick, so I decided I had to incorporate it somehow!

I’d previously been having my daily mashed sweet potatoes for breakfast, but realized I wasn’t getting quite as much fruit as I’d like to. I switched to breakfast smoothies, and ended up loving how they somehow squashed my cravings for the rest of the morning and afternoon! (I still have my sweet potatoes once or twice a week though as a treat, of course!) And now, this pumpkin banana combo is probably one of my favorite breakfasts. I’d never considered the combination of pumpkin and banana until I decided to throw it in this smoothie, simply because frozen bananas add such a wonderful creaminess; I’ve discovered that the flavor combo is actually delicious!

Serves 1

Ingredients

1/2-3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1 banana, sliced and frozen

About 1/3 cup oats**

1-2 pinches cinnamon

Pinch ginger

Pinch cloves

1/3 cup vegan yogurt

Splash of soy, coconut, or almond milk

Maple syrup to taste

Directions

**I like to soak my oats first by adding equal parts water and oats in a jar and putting that into the fridge overnight. Using dry oats is fine too though, depending on what texture you prefer!

1. Combine all ingredients but maple syrup and milk in your blender and blend until smooth.

2. Add the milk until the smoothie is at your desired consistency (I didn’t put a specific amount since I like my smoothies thicker than most people!), and maple syrup to desired sweetness.

And most importantly, enjoy your quick, easy, and healthy breakfast!

Happy holidays!

Michelle