Pumpkin pie meets phytonutrients in one delicious smoothie

Contrary to it’s name, this smoothie is not made with pumpkin, but rather with it’s sweeter, smoother cousin the Kabocha Squash. This variety of winter squash is not only one of the sweetest, but has the most pudding like texture and comes packaged in an appetizing paper thin skin. That’s right! No peeling!

Kabocha Squash is not only extremely tasty, but like other winter squash is packed with lots of nutrients. With it’s bright orange flesh it’s a boon of beta-carotene and reason why I recommend using whole raw milk and an egg yolk (or coconut oil for vegetarians) in this smoothie. The saturated fat will aid in absorption of precious vitamin A and the powerhouse of nutrients found in both spinach and winter squash. You might even consider adding a heaping spoonful of raw pasture raised butter!

Cooking Tips

If You Don’t Do Dairy

Add a tablespoon of unrefined coconut oil to the smoothie. Coconut oil’s medium chain fatty acids will do a nice job of making the nutrients in the spinach and Kabocha Squash bio-available for your body.

Buy Organic

Be sure to buy Kabocha or any other winter squash from a chemical free farm or Certified Organic at the grocery store. Winter squash has been found to be an effective intercrop for use in remediation of contaminated soils and is especially good at pulling Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and other contaminants out of the soil. You certainly don’t want those toxins ending up on your plate!

Egg Yolk

Although the egg yolk is optional, should you choose to add a nutrient-dense yolk, it’ll make this smoothie all that much more balancing and healing, while bringing the experience closer to that of pumpkin pie!

To maximize and preserve nutritional content:

• Stir the yolk in by hand once the smoothie has been completely blended.

This type of smoothie requires a pretty violent blend cycle, which can destroy some of the precious nutrients much in the same way heat does.

When sourced form an organic pasture-raised source, raw yolk (or very lightly heated) is what supplies all the important nutrients found uniquely concentrated in eggs. This is your source of fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, along with choline and B vitamins like B6 and B12. The yolk will also greatly help with absorption of nutrients from the Kabocha and spinach!

Sweet Factor

This smoothie really tastes like pie when you add enough sweetener. You can push it by using a whole tablespoon of honey, but if for any reason you prefer not eat that much honey in one serving, Sweetleaf Liquid Stevia works really well in this recipe!

I don’t like stevia for the most part, despite having tried a number of the best brands. Sweetleaf is the only one that I’ve been able to tolerate, but not in just any dish. Stevia sweetener seems particularly well suited for this recipe.

My favorite sweetener ratio is 10 drops Sweetleaf and 1 teaspoon honey. Were taking serious liquid pie.

Ratios

My recipe yields a thick smoothie that works well with a spoon or wide straw.

• If you prefer a thinner smoothie texture:
  • Add about 1/4 cup of fresh carrot juice or more milk or ice.
• For a pudding like texture:
  • Omit the ice and reduce milk to 1/2 cup. Keep in mind you’ll likely need to use a hand blender with so little liquid and to adjust the sweetness to your liking.

Cooking Kabocha

The recipe calls for cooked and chilled Kabocha. I’ve included the directions for roasting or steaming your squash ahead of time. If you can’t eat up the entire cooked squash within about 4 days time, chop up some of the cooked squash and transfer single smoothie servings into paper sandwich bags (then into one large ziplock bag) for freezer storage. Defrost before using.

If you have a large enough pot for steaming, this is the healthiest and fastest cooking method, while also yields the best texture for using in a smoothie. This 11″ steamer basket should do the job.

For quicker roasting times and to retain moisture and nutrients, use a Dutch Oven with lid or if using a roasting pan, cover the wedges with unbleached parchment paper. Both methods will help to create a steam effect and produce a softer texture. Check the squash at about 45 minutes for tenderness.