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If you’re a fan of chocolate covered strawberries, then this chocolate strawberry smoothie is for you. A naturally sweet, indulgent dessert.
I love mixing flavors and coming up with new combos for delicious smoothies. Don’t let the leafy greens in this one scare you. This chocolate strawberry smoothie has the texture of a milkshake and will satisfy all those sweet chocolate cravings.
Smoothies with a milkshake texture are my jam, but dairy is not my friend. Most of my smoothie recipes use plant-based ingredients, yet still blend together into a creamy treat.
Table of Contents
Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie Ingredients
- Kale: A leafy green in a dessert?! Kale YEAH. Massage the kale and de-stem before adding to the blender to cut down on the bite. Tip: Baby kale is a milder kale option.
- Almond Milk: Unsweetened plant milk is a great way to thicken a smoothie. Almond milk provides a bit of protein and a mild, nutty flavor that compliments both the fruit and cacao.
- Strawberries: During strawberry season, use fresh for the sweetest taste. If you’re blending this smoothie during the winter months, frozen strawberries will give you the best flavor.
- Banana: I love freezing bananas to have on hand for tasty treats. Bananas provide natural sweetness as well as the milkshake flavor I want.
- Cacao Powder: Unsweetened cacao powder is a chocolate-lovers paradise. No need for extra sweetener since you’re using other fruity ingredients. Surprisingly, cacao also helps balance the bite from the kale.
Simple Ingredient Swaps
This dreamy chocolate smoothie will stay dreamy, even with a few easy swaps. Use the dairy-free milk of your choice in place of almond milk. Strawberries can be swapped with any berry you choose. Use unsweetened cocoa powder in place of cacao powder.
Cut back on natural sugar by using 1/2 the banana and adding 1/4 an avocado. Boost protein, healthy fat and fiber by adding in this homemade protein powder.
Why I Add Leafy Greens to Smoothies
Surprisingly, this dessert-like chocolate strawberry smoothie only has 15 grams of natural sugar. It also boasts 9 grams of fiber, helping to process that natural sugar into a smooth energy boost that won’t leave you jittery.
This comes from the mighty kale leaves. Adding leafy greens to smoothies provides protein and fiber to break down the sugar from the fruit into useable energy for your body.
Pro Tip: Add 1 cup of leafy greens to any fruit smoothie to help cut down on the natural sugar. If you’re new to leafy greens, start with a small amount! Then as you get used to adding them, start increasing the amount to a healthy giant handful (one cup).
Tips for Blending
Smoothies can sometimes get a little thin, which is harder to enjoy (in my opinion). I always make sure to blend an ingredient that naturally thickens my smoothie. This chocolate strawberry smoothie uses almond milk as the base (thicker than water) and banana.
Other easy thickeners include vegan yogurt, cauliflower or avocado. You can also swap out almond milk for cashew milk, oat milk or coconut milk for a creamier liquid base.
Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie FAQs
Yes! While this might be an opinion, chocolate typically goes well with most berries. Strawberries provide a sweet balance to the bitterness of cacao powder.
My version of a chocolate strawberry milkshake uses a banana as a natural sweetener and thickener and cacao powder for a less processed, yet still chocolatey flavor. Plant milk makes this delightfully dairy free.
Yes! Just make sure the cocoa powder is 100% unsweetened and the only ingredient listed is cocoa powder.
More Dessert Smoothie Recipes
I love the idea of a dessert that gives my body a natural energy boost instead of putting me to sleep. Smoothies like my chocolate strawberry smoothie taste like a sweet treat yet use plant-based ingredients. Here are a few more favorite ‘desserts’.
- Strawberry ‘Milk’shake
- Chocolate Covered Cherry Smoothie
- Raspberry Smoothie
- Shamrock Shake
- Skinny Mint Smoothie
- Strawberry Smoothie
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake
- Cinnamon Roll Smoothie
I’d love to know how this smoothie turned out for you; will you leave a rating + review once you’ve tried it?
Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup kale
- 1 cup almond milk
- 1 cup strawberries frozen
- ½ banana
- 2 tbsp cacao powder
- 1 serving homemade protein powder optional
Instructions
- Place kale and almond milk in blender. Puree until smooth.
- Add fruit and cacao, and blend again.
Notes
- Use at least one frozen fruit to make the smoothie cold.
- Swap in unsweetened cocoa powder for cacao powder.
- To lower the natural sugar, use 1/4 banana and 1/4 avocado.
- Use the plant milk of your choice in place of the almond milk.
- Use the leafy greens of your choice in place of the kale.
I love chocolate so this is one of my favorites! I could pro even get my picky child to drink it!
Probably my least favourite so far. That being said i had to make a few subs for things I had at home so the actual recipe might be a lot better. My version was a bit bland. Still drank it though.
My subs – normal milk for almond ( was out of it), blueberries for strawberries, choc protein powder for cocao.
Also my banana was not that ripe so maybe it was just bad ingredients ! I will try this one again
Not my favorite green smoothie. I did however make some changes. I added my berry flavored greens powder, vanilla protein powder, and used kale in place of spinach. A good smoothie, just not my favorite.
Tastes like a milkshake! I would like to try this one with coconut milk, as the almond milk sometimes has a tangy flavor to it.
Yummy!!& so deliciously I’m a fan of this…. will definelty make more again.
Chocolate smoothies have never been a favorite in our house. I used half the amount of cocoa powder and my milk kifer instead of almond milk with a bit of vanilla protein powder. As far as chocolate smoothies this is one of the better ones.
My favorite so far!
how can you go wrong with chocolate and strawberries! The ratios in this recipe are delish!
Gotta love chocolate & strawberries !!
Lets just say I’m not a big fan of this smoothie. I’m struggling to drink this one and I happen to enjoy green smoothies! It’s the cacao powder that done it for me the after taste is what gets me. #greensmoothie #30daychallenge
Wow! Can I say yum! I added chocolate protein powder in replace of the cacao powder. This is so good!
Just blended this one up to take with me for the day but I couldn’t help to steal a sip. Good Lord, this one is good!
This was soooooo good!! Normally, I’m not a big fan of chocolate green smoothies, but I really liked this one!
It’s crazy how much this really does taste like a chocolate dipped strawberry. After the first few happy sips I kept thinking of our local strawberry festival and sitting on the grass with my kids eating those fresh berries covered in dark chocolate. This is the super healthy and delicious memory in a glass jar.
I used kale because I was out of spinach, and since both of my fruits were frozen I needed to add a little extra almond milk, with that being said it was delicious!
My favorite so far!