When you live in a place that gets so cold the air hurts your face it can be a challenge to eat seasonal in the winter months. In the fresh fruit department your options are pretty much limited to cranberries, pomegranate, citrus, pears and persimmons (unless you are willing to spend $5 dollars on half a cup of berries – which I am not!).

About a month ago I came across a recipe for a beautiful spiced persimmon tart with vanilla crème fraishe and fresh rosemary and the first thing I thought was – that would make an amazing winter smoothie! There are A LOT of smoothie recipes out there and for good reason. Smoothies are a great way to sneak vegetables and fruit into your diet, they have endless flavor combinations, make an awesome meal or snack and are quick and easy to prepare.

This particular recipe uses butternut squash and persimmon, which are orange in color, readily available in the winter and rich in fibre, vitamin C, and vitamin A. The addition of fresh rosemary is delicious – but if mixing fruit, squash, and rosemary is outside your comfort zone feel free to leave it out. Also, the sweetness comes exclusively from the persimmon, so if you like your smoothies on the sweeter side feel free to use a vanilla yogurt (rather than plain) or add a sweetener of your choice.

If you try out this recipe, leave me a note in the comments section and tell me what you think!

*BIG thanks to my friend Diane for these beautiful hand blown glasses!

Makes 1 serving

Ingredients:

• ½ cup 0% greek yogurt, plain
• 1 ripe persimmon, chopped
• 1 cup butternut squash, diced and frozen
• 1 cup skim milk
• ¼ tsp cinnamon, ground
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ Tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped

Instructions:

• Add all ingredients into a blender.
• Blend until smooth.

Nutrition Information:

327 calories, 0 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat, 13 mg cholesterol, 175 mg sodium, 62 g carbohydrate, 9 g fibre, 29 g sugar, 21 g protein