Food Healthy Drinks

This Delicious Carrot Cake Smoothie Fights Inflammation With Every Sip

Allie Flinn

March 1, 2021

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A smoothie that tastes like cake and also fights inflammation? Yes please. Watch the video to see how to make it.

We're rapidly approaching the year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic (cue internal screams), and while there are signs of progress in the form of three new vaccines and declining infection rates, there are still a lot of days where you just need a lot of comforts to deal. And chef Julia Turshen, founder of Equity at the Table, offers the latest dose of culinary coziness in the latest episode of Cook With Us: a carrot cake smoothie.

This stroke of genius was inspired by a carrot cake recipe from Turshen's forthcoming cookbook, Simply Julia ($30), but made slightly more appropriate for breakfast. The smoothie tastes like dessert, but is lower in sugar and full of anti-inflammatory ingredients. She achieves this by combining carrots, frozen pineapple, and a blend of spices for the depth of carrot cake flavor. (Pro tip: use frozen pineapple so the smoothie is nice and frosty—plus, you don't have to deal with cutting a whole pineapple.) The spices she uses—cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg—are choice inflammation fighters in their own rights, and when combined become a powerful trifecta, like the Charmed sisters but for inflammation. Cinnamon is high in antioxidants, and has been shown to be particularly good for your heart. Ginger contains a compound, gingerol, that has been shown in studies to help reduce inflammation. Last but not least, nutmeg is packed with inflammation-fighting phytonutrients. Turshen uses fresh nutmeg in the video, but ground nutmeg also works (same with the ginger).

Ready to drink cake for breakfast? (I know I am.) Watch the video to get the full carrot cake smoothie recipe.

Carrot cake smoothie

Yields 1

Ingredients

1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
1 small carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1/4 tsp ground ginger (or 1/2-inch fresh ginger)
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
1 cup milk of choice (dairy, oat, almond: whatever you like!)

1. Place all of the ingredients together in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a glass. Enjoy immediately!

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