Blend up carrot cake into a smoothie. Fresh carrots, pineapple, Greek yogurt, flax-seed and a few other ingredients whip up for a deliciously, healthy, vegetarian breakfast full of protein and fiber.

I wouldn’t call myself a smoothie fanatic, but I’ve definitely been more partial to them since I got a new blender. This sucker purees in seconds. It is so much fun so I’ve been playing with flavor combinations. When I was making Baked Carrot Cake Oatmeal for my hubby, I whipped up a Carrot Cake Smoothie for me.  Yikes, the first one was a disaster and was promptly poured down the sink.

The second was what I was looking for.  It had plenty of carrot flavor but also delicious sweetness from the pineapple.  For texture, I went with my old stand-by, cottage cheese.  Oh yes, cottage cheese makes a fantastic smoothie and helps amp up the protein.  Even if you don’t like cottage cheese plain (me, I don’t), you will like it in a smoothie.

Starting the day with a smoothie always makes me feel like I am starting my day off so healthfully.  I don’t know why but it makes me feel like I’m a super-star, healthy fanatic.  While drinking a smoothie I see a  mental picture of being at a swanky gym, sitting at their smoothie bar, sipping a delicious smoothie fitting in perfectly with all those firm bodies.  While reality bursts my bubble, the smoothie does seem to put me in the right frame of mind for the rest of the day.  That is the crux of it, losing weight is a mind game.  I know it has nothing to do with my stomach.  It is my brain that I need to lasso and tie up and throw to the ground.

I’ve gone through so many ups and downs with my weight. This year I had been doing really well and doing a decent job keeping my commitment to myself to put myself first. I was making good choices and have lost a few pounds. My fitness level is increasing. It is a constant battle with my brain. It is exhausting to be constantly battling with yourself about whether you are really hungry or not. Ugh! I had been winning the war more than losing until last week. Blah!

What happened? It makes me laugh to think about it now, but it all was because I decided to go to a Food Bloggers Conference in Miami. This is light years out of my comfort zone, like a galaxy far, far, away. I am shy but I decided to put on my big girl pants and go. Hello, how could I pass up this opportunity? It was a chance to network and make new contacts. It was also a chance to learn more about this profession.

So I knew I was nervous about going. The days leading up to the trip, my stomach was filled with flapping butterflies although they felt more like bats. I bought a new pair of shoes and outfit. When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping. New shoes usually make me feel better but all the junk I don’t normally eat had neon signs on them shouting “eat me”.

I was in the grocery store walking by some chocolate donuts (my nemesis) and heard them calling to me. They taunted me and told me I had already been horrible all week so why not eat them. The first time I kept walking while my brain played good cop bad cop about the chocolate donuts. Ugh! I forgot something so I had to go back by them. They jumped out taunting me “buy me”. I started to reach for the packet and then stopped. Wow! That is big for me. Nope, you aren’t coming home with me.

All of the sudden that commercial where the band breaks out in song singing “I just want to celebrate another day of living” pops into my head. I think it is a smoking cessation product or something. Do you know the one I mean? Anyway that band was playing right in the grocery store for me. We were rocking out in the paper products aisle. I literally laughed out loud in the aisle. Yes, I’m the crazy lady laughing at myself in the grocery store. It worked though! It was only one very small win that week but it helped.

The whole week leading up to the conference and the time during the conference gave me so much to think about. My brain is buzzing about new things I want to implement on Food Done Light. Perhaps, what it really did was push me a little closer to that “aha” moment. When I hear people talk who have successfully lost weight, they always seem to have an “aha” moment. There were a few moments where I felt I was literally being hit over the head to wake up and get back onto the healthy eating wagon. Yes, all of this is swirling around in my brain which is trying desperately to analyze it and put it into something I can act on. Woo!

This post got heavy! I try not to do that too often. However, I don’t want to forget that part of the mission of Food Done Light was a way for me to be accountable about my weight loss and hopefully help others. Food Done Light is not just about delicious food to eat. I feel like we are coming around 360 degrees. Don’t worry, I can’t help but talk about food. Not all posts will be this heavy. That is an interesting choice of words. Can I make the posts heavy and myself light? LOL, if only it were that easy.

If you want to be sure to see Food Done Light’s next recipe, Homemade Buffalo Chicken Sausage, subscribe by email below. You won’t want to miss it.

Carrot Cake Smoothie

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Prep Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Servings 1 serving

Calories 332 kcal

Author Christie Daruwalla

Ingredients

• 2 small carrots peeled and roughly chopped
• ½ cup chopped fresh pineapple
• 1 oz lemon flavored organic non-fat Greek yogurt, 5.3 .
• ¼ cup 1% fat cottage cheese
• 2 tbsp ground flax
• ½ - 1 tsp sweetener I used honey
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.

Recipe Notes

Nutritional value per smoothie(with 1 tsp. honey): Cal 332/Fat 7 grams/Carbs 52 grams/Fiber 8 grams/Protein 24 grams

I calculated 12  Weight Watcher Smartpoints.

If you use an artificial sweetener: Cal 322/Fat 7 grams/Carbs 46 grams/Fiber 8 grams/Protein 24 grams

 

Nutrition Facts

Carrot Cake Smoothie

Amount Per Serving

Calories 332 Calories from Fat 63

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 7g 11%

Saturated Fat 1g 5%

Total Carbohydrates 48g 16%

Dietary Fiber 8g 32%

Sugars 35g

Protein 24g 48%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Happy Healthy Eating,

Christie

But wait, there is more.  Check out these deliciously, healthy smoothies, too:

Green Smoothie

Mango Guanabana Smoothie

Creamy smoothie with undertones of orange, mango and banana

Orange Banana Smoothie

Banana Blueberry Flax Smoothie