Recipe: Smile-inducing Strawberry Smoothie with Pumpkin Seed Milk

A delicious, healthful strawberry smoothie recipe with home-made pumpkin seed milk

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Walking down the street the other day, I realized how little everyone smiles.

Whether they’re out and about walking or sitting on the subway/taking public transport, most people, quite comfortably, wear blank, very serious faces or even frowns.

This is sad to see, because what the world needs now — and forevermore — is ‘love, sweet love’ and a smile goes a LONG way to spreading it around like confetti. So why don’t we all smile more? Let’s make a pact.

I’m going to make a conscious effort to wear a smile on my face rather than a frown. After all, it has been scientifically proven that smiling stimulates our brain’s reward mechanisms in a way that other, more synthetic stimulants like sugar, chocolate and fatty foods cannot match!

In other words, our brains get happier the more we smile, so if you’re not smiling already at this wondrous news… START. RIGHT. NOW.

And don’t forget to share the love, because when we smile at others, it spreads positive energy FAST! Whether the other person you’re smiling at smiles back at you or not (in most cases, a smile automatically generates another smile, but don’t get caught up in expectations), just know you’ve done your bit to brighten the day.

Let’s keep that smile going with a delicious, vitamin-filled, super simple smoothie. It houses lots of goodness to make your insides smile, plus I’ve included strawberries in the recipe because they contain malic acid that acts as an astringent to remove discoloration and whiten your teeth — all the more reason to show off your smile!

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Strawberry Pumpkin Seed Smoothie

 To make this highly nutritious beverage, you will need to make your own pumpkin seed milk first — how fantastic is that!? Not only will you end up with one of the most delicious smoothies at the end, but you will also experience just how easy it is to make your own seed milk, YUM!

 Pumpkin Seed Milk

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw pumpkin seeds (‘pepitas’), soaked overnight
• 2-4 cups water
• 1 teaspoon organic cinnamon
• OPTIONAL: 1 tablespoon organic date syrup (I use Date Lady)
• Piece of muslin, cheesecloth or 1 x nut milk bag (to strain)

Directions:

1. Soak pumpkin seeds in water overnight. Strain and rinse in the morning.
2. Place seeds in a high speed blender with 2-4 cups water (2 cups = thicker consistency, 4 cups = thinner) with cinnamon and optional date syrup.
3. Blend on high until everything combines well.
4. Strain contents through fabric or nut milk bad (squeeze out as much liquid as you can).
5. Pour milk into an air tight, lidded glass jar and store in the fridge for up to 4 days – shake well before serving.

Strawberry Pumpkin Seed Smoothie

Makes: 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh pumpkin seed milk
• 1 lb/450g ripe organic strawberries. You can also use frozen — defrosted or not. In the image above, I used frozen strawberries to achieve a thicker smoothie consistency.

Directions:

1. Combine pumpkin seed milk and strawberries in a high speed blender. Blend on high until everything is combined well.
2. Serve warmed in winter (by heating in a small saucepan) or chilled glasses in summer (by placing serving glass in the freezer 30 minutes or longer to chill).
3. Smile. Keep smiling.

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