When my sweet tooth hits I want to eat something right away. But I also know if I fill up on cookies I’ll be shaky and hangry in no time. Instead, I like to whip up a smoothie that can both satisfy my sweet tooth and give me lasting energy without the crash. Enter this Mint Chocolate Smoothie.
Dessert smoothies bring up the sweetness level in a smoothie, yet do it in a strategic way. They use the power of natural sugar in fruit like bananas so you still get the fiber. Plus, by adding a natural energy ingredient like cacao powder (which contains natural caffeine), you’ve got an energy booster in a cup!
Don’t let the spinach in this keep you from blending the ultimate minty dessert smoothie today.
Table of Contents
Mint Chocolate Smoothie Ingredients
Even my dessert-like smoothies use whole food, plant-based ingredients. I love getting creative with food and figuring out just the right combos of unique ingredients to bring the flavor and texture I want.
- Almond milk: I use almond milk since it’s widely available in most grocery stores today.
- Spinach: This superpower green is full of protein, vitamins and minerals that will naturally energize you.
- Mint leaves: A little mint goes a long way! Plus herbs like mint naturally help your body detox.
- Banana: A creamy, naturally sweetened way to add thickness and lightly sweeten your smoothie.
- Avocado: My fav way to add healthy fat to smoothies. Add them in fresh or frozen!
- Medjool dates: I love the way this fruit adds sweetness to a smoothie as well as fiber.
- Cacao powder: A chocolate-lovers dream ingredient! 1 tablespoon will turn any creation into a chocolate-y heaven.
Easy Ingredient Swaps
Before running off to the store for some new-to-you ingredients, check your kitchen! You may have some easy swaps on hand that will work great in this treat. 100% unsweetened cocoa powder can be used in place of cacao powder with little to no flavor change.
No need to use almond milk if you’ve got another kind of plant milk on hand. Cashew or oat milk would work great in this recipe. While fresh mint leaves really elevate the flavor in this mint shake, mint extract can be used in a pinch.
How to Make a Minty Chocolate Dessert Smoothie
Since this smoothie has leafy greens, I like to use my two-blend method for the smoothest finish possible. First, blend the spinach, mint leaves and almond milk until smooth. Make sure no leafy chunks remain (the gaps between your teeth will thank you!).
Second, add the remaining ingredients and blend again until smooth. This gives your blender the chance to really break down the leaves before blending everything else and is really a no-fail way to avoid leafy smoothie chunks.
Pro Tip: Dates are rather sticky, and can be tricky to blend completely. I like to add them in the 2nd step and slowly get my blender speed to medium. Leave it blending on medium until you don’t hear the dates whipping around in chunks, then turn it up to high to finish off the blend.
Blending a Mint Chocolate Protein Shake
If you want to get the most out of this chocolate creation then add a plant-based protein powder to turn this into the ultimate mint chocolate protein shake. Most of us don’t need bodybuilder amounts of protein and the other weird ingredients in many commercial protein powders, so stick to a plant-based protein powder like Protein Smoothie Boost for a super clean, super fine powder.
It will boost this mint chocolate smoothie by 10g of protein and add in healthy fat and fiber to help your body get full and stay full.
Mint Chocolate Smoothie FAQs
I use spinach, fresh mint, almond milk, banana, avocado and cacao powder to make my chocolate mint smoothie. These ingredients might sound a bit odd together yet once blended, they create the perfect shake-like texture and rich chocolate flavor you’re looking for.
Use cacao or cocoa powder for that chocolate flavor you desire. 1-2 tablespoons per serving is more than enough. Use plant-based milk instead of water as the liquid base to keep the creamy-nutty combo you want in a chocolate smoothie. Then add in ingredients like banana and avocado to thicken the smoothie to perfection.
They can be! My mint chocolate smoothie is full of whole food, plant-based ingredients that deliver the sweetness, chocolate flavor and creaminess you want yet without any weird junk in them. And bonus, it’s super easy to blend!
More Dessert Smoothie Recipes
Love when a smoothie can double as a dessert? So do I! Save these recipes for your next dessert night or to use as a great afternoon energy boost:
- Red Velvet Smoothie: Seriously brings the red velvet flavor in a glass.
- Chocolate Covered Cherry Smoothie: Another rich, chocolate and fruit smoothie for all those chocolate covered fruit lovers.
- Cinnamon Bun Smoothie: Breakfast vibes whenever you want with this warming cinnamon smoothie.
- Strawberry Milkshake: All the love of a milkshake without any of the dairy in this fresh strawberry shake!
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Mint Chocolate Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cups almond milk unsweetened
- ¾ cup spinach
- ¼ cup mint leaves fresh
- 1 banana
- ¼ avocado
- 2 medjool dates
- 1 tbsp cacao powder
- cacao nibs optional
- 1 serving homemade protein powder optional
Instructions
- Blend spinach, mint and almond milk until smooth.
- Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use at least one frozen fruit to make the smoothie cold. Bananas are easy to freeze and toss into any smoothie.
- Add plant-based protein powder like Protein Smoothie Boost to quickly turn this into a protein-packed shake.
- Swap cacao powder with 100% unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Swap almond milk with the plant milk of your choice.
I grow my own mint in a strawberry planter outside. Right now everything is frost bitten but as soon as it starts growing again you can be sure that I’ll be using very fresh leaves.
Sounds great but what can I substitute for banana (allergy) Thanks, would love to make this!
Hey Carol – I would add swap an extra half of an avocado for the banana. So, your recipe would have 3/4 of an avocado. I would maybe add in an additional date, to replace the sweetness from the banana, too. So, 3 dates.
Your modified recipe would look like this:
Mint Chocolate Smoothie –
1 cups almond milk unsweetened
3/4 cup spinach
1/4 cup mint leaves fresh
3/4 avocado
3 medjool dates
1 tbsp cacao powder
cacao nibs optional
This is very similar to a smoothie we “reverse engineered” from a vegan smoothie/salad/wrap place in Maui.
Try swapping the spinach for kale, and adding a few TBS of both unsalted macadamia nuts (or raw almonds), and cacao nibs at the very end, and then just “buzz” your blender briefly. The resulting tiny, chewable pieces of chocolate + nuts will satisfy, not only your Thin Mint craving, but a McFlurry/Blizzard hankering, as well!!!
Great suggestion, Abbie! That sounds amazing!
I just ordered some cacao nibs after trying them at a local smoothie shop, can’t wait to try them in this!