Watching the snow piling up outside, relieved we were home safe as visibility went down to 0 with hours of snow to go, I started thinking about ways to make treats with what I had home. Loving mint, especially at this time of year, I’ve been curious about healthy spins on green shakes and smoothies.

I made my own almond milk, because going anywhere near a market once the snow levels were announced was pretty much impossible, but any milk of choice certainly will do! If you make your own nut milk, and are using a 55-year-old blender like me, a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth will allow you to separate the nut ‘meats’ from the ‘milk.’ They can be reserved for mixing into hot breakfast cereals. 🙂

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Refreshing Healthy Mint Smoothie
Copyright 2017 by Lauren Bradford
(aka The Food Puzzler)
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Prep time: Overnight (soaking the almonds)
Processing time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4

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INGREDIENTS:
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1 10-oz bag almonds, soaked in water overnight
1 mint tea bag
1 oz mint extract
10 leaves fresh, washed mint
2 cups fresh, washed baby spinach
Water as needed

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STEPS:
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1. In a container with a tight lid, place the almonds and enough water to cover, and put the container in the fridge overnight. Make a strong cup of mint tea and leave the bag in the cup while it cools, then remove the bag, cover and store the cooled tea in the fridge overnight.

2. The next day, drain and rinse the almonds, add to your blender with fresh water to cover and blend until as smooth as possible. Strain the ‘milk’ into a separate container and reserve any remaining ‘nut meats.’

3. Add the extract, mint leaves, tea, spinach and ‘milk’ into the blender and purée, adding cold water if necessary.

4. Taste and adjust to your desired level of mintiness.

Enjoy!