Blueberry Banana Breastfeeding Smoothie

This blueberry banana breastfeeding smoothie is the epitome of a delicious, refreshing lactation smoothie recipe. Fresh (or frozen is alright also) fruit and extra milk boosting ingredients that blend together with ease. A perfect meal replacement that you can make with one hand while holding a baby.

Why You Need Breastfeeding Smoothies

Smoothies are great for a midafternoon snack or even a quick morning breakfast. When you are breastfeeding, it’s really important to get enough hydration, enough protein, and to eat for your milk supply.

Breastfeeding smoothies should include all three things! Nutrient-dense liquid like unweetened almond milk, a high-quality breastfeeding safe protein powder (or other protein sources like oats, nuts, etc.), and lactogenic ingredients should always be a part of your lactation smoothies.

More breastfeeding smoothie recipes:

• Peanut Butter Breastfeeding Smoothie
• Apple Pie Lactation Smoothie

It’s really tough to eat enough nutrients while breastfeeding. Hunger strikes quickly, and it’s easy to grab the fastest and easiest thing. Which might not always be a very nutritious one.

Also, you are probably busy every moment and not sleeping much at all. Making healthy food choices to support your breastmilk supply and your own postpartum recovery can be difficult.

Lactation smoothies almost eliminate that problem. You can scoop everything right into a blender and mix it up. You can add as much nutrition and supplements to the blender as you want, and can usually complete this task one-handed. This is important for a new mom with a baby.

 

Let’s see what goes into this healthy blueberry breastfeeding smoothie

Blueberries –

Frozen or fresh blueberries are the star of this smoothie. You can use whatever you have on hand. Using frozen berries gives you a thicker and creamier smoothie as compared to the fresh ones. I always like to buy organic berries whenever possible. Frozen berries are free from pesticides and since berries are one of the top produce in the dirty dozen list. But organic berries can be expensive and fragile. So, I like to freeze my berries whenever I have extra so they don’t go to waste. Comes in handy when I want to make a smoothie like this one.

Banana –

Banana is an excellent base for most smoothies and desserts. They give a natural sweetness to the smoothie, without having to add a lot of sweeteners. Banana is also a great source of energy, which new moms need a lot.

Greek yogurt –

If you are looking for more ways to increase the protein in your diet, adding Greek yogurt to smoothies is a great way to do that. Whole milk Greek yogurt without added sugar is an excellent source of protein, calcium, good probiotics, and healthy fat. Greek yogurt here can always be substituted with whole milk yogurt or even protein powder. You can also use vegan yogurt alternatives in its place.

Milk –

I have used almond milk here. I like to use different milks in my smoothies sometimes. Almond milk here is a good source of protein, fiber, vitamin E, and other nutrients. Cow’s milk, oat milk, soy milk, and other nut milks are equally great substitutes here.

Oats –

I love adding oats to my breastfeeding smoothies. They make the smoothie more filling and give it more body. Since they are filling, smoothies can be used as meal replacements, especially during busy days. Oats also make the drink fiber-rich and healthy. I use old-fashioned rolled oats or quick oats, which I have on hand. Steel-cut oats might not work well for this purpose. Oats are also lactogenic, giving this smoothie extra milk-boosting properties.

Maple syrup –

We love maple syrup in our home. You can easily omit the maple syrup in the recipe and rely on the sweetness from the bananas and berries. If you are using very ripe bananas, they tend to be sweeter and you don’t need any other sweetener in the recipe. I had to use just a tiny amount of maple syrup as my banana was not very ripe. Again, maple syrup can also be substituted with any other sweetener of your choice, like honey, agave, coconut sugar, unprocessed sugar, etc.

How do I make this smoothie vegan?

To make this recipe vegan, use any plant-based milk of your choice and substitute the Greek yogurt with plant-based options like soy yogurt, almond yogurt, or even coconut yogurt. You can also replace the yogurt with vegan protein powder, which there are a lot of these days!

Other add-ons to the recipe –

You can add other healthy and nutritious ingredients like –

• Flax seeds (also lactogenic, so they help you make even MORE milk)
• Chia seeds (a great source of soluble and insoluble fiber)
• Nuts (Make sure you use a high-powered blender to blend so the smoothie remains creamy and smooth. Cashews or macadamia nuts are the most easy to blend, but almonds are the most lactogenic.)
• Nut butters
• Greens like spinach
• Protein powder
• Hemp seeds
• Other fruits of your choice
• Vanilla extract for some vanilla flavor
• Spices like cinnamon, turmeric, pumpkin spice, allspice, etc
• Silken tofu for extra protein
• Avocado for good fat and texture

There are so many things you can add to the smoothie to make it nutritious and tasty. You can choose different add-ons each time to see how you like it. I would suggest not going overboard with adding too many ingredients at first. You can choose one or two ingredients from the above each time to see how you like it.

How to make this breastfeeding blueberry banana smoothie

Prep time – 5 minutes

Cook time – 5 minutes

Serves – 1 large or 2 small smoothies

Ingredients

• 1 banana
• 1/3 cup frozen blueberries or fresh blueberries
• ¼ cup Greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp oats
• ½ cup milk of your choice
• 2 tsp maple syrup (optional)

Method:

Add all the ingredients to a smoothie blender and blend until smooth and creamy.

Serve.

Note:

If you wish the smoothie to be a little runny, you can add more milk. For a thicker consistency, add more berries and reduce the milk.

 

 

 

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