For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a mint chocolate chip ice cream devotee. Sure, I dabbled in other flavors — and still do, because there are so many awesome new flavors hitting the market — but I always find myself returning to my old faithful mint chocolate chip. It’s cool, refreshing, and sort of even gives you nice breath afterwards, especially when made with real mint leaves! And despite the fact that non-dairy ice cream is arguably healthier than its dairy-full counterpart, I try to avoid having cartons of ice cream in the freezer regularly, because I want it to be a treat and not turn into a daily habit.
After a full weekend of hiking, biking, and rollerblading around Southern California, soaking up the gorgeous spring weather, a craving for mint chocolate chip ice cream hit me. We were biking past Cafe Gratitude in Venice and I contemplated ducking in to pick up an I Am Cool smoothie — basically a mint chocolate chip shake — but after doing a quick inventory of what we had in the kitchen at home, I realized I could make a very similar mint carob chip smoothie without shelling out $10! The result was the creamiest, freshest, most decadent minty treat, and one that now has a permanent spot in my smoothie rotation.
- 2 peeled and frozen bananas
- 1 cup non-dairy milk (unsweetened)
- 4 dates
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
- ½ cup fresh mint leaves, stems removed
- 2 handfuls of fresh spinach
- carob chips for garnish
- Combine all of the ingredients but the carob chips in a blender and mix until you have the perfect smoothie consistency. Depending on the strength of your blender, you might need to add a bit of water or non-dairy milk to help things get moving around. Divide into two glasses, top with carob chips and mix throughout. I ate mine with a spoon and it was just like slightly melted ice cream. Enjoy!
