Berry Smoothie
A thick sweet berry smoothie, low carb, sugar free and vegan too!
Thick creamy sweet berry smoothie, a perfect ‘snack’ for a summers day! What makes this recipe even better is that it is low carb, high fat, but also vegetarian, vegan, dairy free, gluten free and nut free!
I advise having this as a snack instead of just drinking alongside food due to the carbs in the fruit. The fruit in a smoothie has been blended, meaning the fructose (sugar from the fruit) will be more easily absorbed into your body. This is why it is important to stick to lower GI fruits (such as berries) and pairing it well with a low carb, high fat milk such as the tinned coconut milk in this recipe.
Berry Delight
Turn this smoothie into Berry Delight, by pouring the smoothie into ramekins or glasses and leaving in the fridge overnight to set! This creates a vegan version of angel delight!
Servings: 1 serving
Calories: 534kcal
Ingredients
- 80 grams raspberries (or strawberries)
- 250 ml tinned coconut milk (including the cream from the top)
- 4 whole ice cubes
- 2 tsp xylitol or erythritol sweetener (optional)
Instructions
- Add berries, ice cubes and tinned coconut milk to a blender (ensuring to use the cream from the top of the coconut milk tin. This is the BEST bit, so make sure you get it!)
- Blitz the ingredients until they are smooth and then try the smoothie. Depending on the berries used and your taste, this may be sweet enough. If it is not sweet enough add your sweetener of choice 1tsp at a time, blitzing in between each spoonful until you reach the desired sweetness
Notes
In this recipe I had strawberries that needed using up, so mine was made with 6 medium strawberries which when weighed came to 80g. You could use strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, blackcurrants, red currants, gooseberries, or a mixture. Berries are lower in carbs than most fruits and so this is why they make a good choice for a smoothie.
I advise having this as a snack instead of just drinking alongside food due to the carbs in the fruit. The fruit in a smoothie has been blended, meaning the fructose (sugar from the fruit) will be more easily absorbed into your body. This is why it is important to stick to lower GI fruits (such as berries) and pairing it well with a low carb, high fat milk such as the tinned coconut milk in this recipe.
You could also add double cream and/or nuts/seeds and avocado.
Avoid using higher sugar fruits such as banana, mango, pineapple, passionfruit etc as higher GI fruits will not be tolerated as well.
I do not advocate using protein powders as part of the GD diet. Try to stick to REAL FOOD. The research around the use of protein supplements in pregnancy suggests that they can cause lower birth weights in babies and whilst many may think this ideal with gestational diabetes, it is not. Many women with gestational diabetes see a complication of slowed growth, small for gestational age and IUGR babies and so this is not something we would want to risk. The diet I advocate is high in protein from natural protein sources and so I do not advocate adding additional protein supplements such as protein powders unless advised by a medical professional.
SWEETENERS
The main two natural sweeteners I use in my recipes are xylitol and erythritol. The brand of xylitol that I use and is most widely available in larger supermarkets is Total Sweet. To find a local stockist, please check this link. It is important to note that xylitol, although a natural sweetener, is highly toxic to dogs, so no sharing your GD treats with your furry friends! If you struggle with IBS you may find you are sensitive to xylitol, in which case erythritol is a better choice. I use NKD Living powdered erythritol.
Artificial powdered sweeteners such as sucralose (like Splenda) or aspartame (like Canderel) can be used but they may raise blood glucose levels slightly and can leave a bitter aftertaste.
Nutrition
Calories: 534kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 54g | of which saturates: 47g | Fibre: 5g | of which sugars: 4g
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