This time of year while most folks are looking for holiday cookies and sweets, I find myself seeking out comforting, healthy foods that I feel good about eating. Don’t get me wrong, I do indulge a little here and there, but generally speaking I find myself craving fresh fruits and vegetables and foods that will give me the energy I desperately need this time of year.

I had an abundance of fresh cranberries on hand from our Thanksgiving feast, so I thought a seasonally-inspired smoothie was the perfect way to use some of them. We have beautiful, juicy fresh oranges ready to be picked from our tree and I always have bananas and Medjool dates in the freezer ready for smoothie-making, so this sweet and tart, creamy, vegan, spiced Orange Cranberry Coconut Smoothie was born.

The creaminess of the coconut milk really compliments and offsets the tartness from the cranberries and the fresh orange juice and the cinnamon is so perfectly warming and comforting, the perfect addition. Besides being super beautiful and delicious, this smoothie is loaded with anti-oxidants, vitamins and other goodness, so it’s food you can feel totally good about during the season of indulging.

This recipe was originally shared on the Free People Blog BLDG 25 

[print_this]Orange Cranberry Coconut Smoothie
makes 2 small servings or 1 large

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh raw cranberries
• 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 cup canned organic coconut milk
• 1 frozen banana
• 2 Medjool dates (or other sweetener of your choice)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• pinch of pink himalayan sea salt
• additional ice, if necessary
• shredded coconut for topping, optional

Add all of the ingredients to your high speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy.

[/print_this]