Birthday Cake Smoothie

Have your cake and eat it too with this healthy Birthday Cake Smoothie recipe. Made with organic ingredients, superfoods, plant protein, and tastes like a cake batter milkshake. It’s a super sweet post workout treat that doesn’t need a celebratory reason to be enjoyed!

This festive creation was inspired by my birthday celebration, which was yesterday!

While I am cacao-aholic, growing up my preferred celebratory dessert of choice was the classic funfetti cake. I cringe at that looking back, because of what’s actually inside the traditional cake batter box. It seriously decreases the amount of birthday celebrations, as to add on the years.

I’ll save you from my health-nut rant and get back to what you came here for. A healthy Birthday Cake Smoothie! This one is something special, literally. It’s not like the traditional cake batter smoothies, as this one is filled with superfoods, plant protein, and just good-for-you ingredients. 

The two main ingredients that make this cake batter smoothie stand out from the rest. First, is the almond extract, which makes it taste like you’re drinking a legitimate cake batter milkshake. Trust me. And second, instead of sprinkles, we’re bleeding up a handful of goji berries. They’re better than sprinkles, both from a taste and health perspective.

While this is a Birthday Cake Smoothie recipe, you can enjoy it all year round. No day is off limits, as life is worth celebrating, especially in a healthy way! Just don’t forget the homemade coconut whipped cream for topping, to make it an extra special cake batter treat.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Birthday Cake Made Healthy: All the flavors you love in the classic funfetti cake, but in a healthy cake batter milkshake form. 
• Perfect Protein Smoothie: This smoothie features over 20 grams of plant based protein and is a great post workout drink.
• Fully Customizable: Add even more wholesome ingredients to elevate your Birthday Cake Smoothie. I’ve listed some delicious ways further down in the post.

Goji Berry Health Benefits & Nutrition 

As mentioned above, we’ll be using goji berries instead of sprinkles to take this healthy Birthday Cake Smoothie recipe to the next level. Goji berries are one of the most powerful antioxidants on the planet. Also, called wolfberry, these vibrant colors are deliciously sweet taste, chewy, and provide a wide variety of health benefits. 

For centuries, goji berries have been used in traditional Chinese medicine for their health benefits. These small, but mighty berries are an abundant source of vitamins and minerals, making them a great source of antioxidants, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, potassium, magnesium, iron, copper, zinc, and so much more. By enjoying these nutrient-rich, beautiful berries, you can potentially receive the following health benefits:

• Enhanced Energy & Mood 
• Blood Sugar Regulation
• Improved Immune Function
• Healthy Skin
• Liver Detoxification

Don’t stop at this goji berry smoothie recipe, you can also incorporate them into other recipes to brighten up your plate or glass! Such as other smoothies, tonics, brewed as a tea, or even by the handful. The benefits are too good to pass up.

Ingredients

• Organic Unsweetened Oat Milk: Any non-dairy milk works in this birthday cake smoothie recipe, but I love oat milk! Just be sure to use trusted brands – I like MALK Organics or Three Trees.
• Organic Raw Cashew Butter: A little cashew butter adds extra creaminess and healthy fats to this birthday smoothie. 
• Organic Hemp Seeds: For some healthy fats, protein, omegas & minerals.
• Organic Vanilla Plant Protein: Adding a scoop of protein powder helps to keep you full and satisfied longer. I love Truvani’s Organic Vanilla Plant Based Protein Powder for this recipe. It’s ​​made with no preservatives, no artificial colors, & no artificial sweeteners. Oh & it’s super delicious. Nevertheless, if you have yet to try Truvani’s Organic Vanilla Plant Based Protein Powder you’re missing out, but you can add your favorite vanilla plant protein.
• Organic Almond Extract: It transforms this drink into a cake batter milkshake. Careful, a little goes a long way! 
• Sea Salt: A healthy pinch of sea salt is rich in a ton of minerals and beautifully enhances the flavor of this smoothie.
• Organic Pitted Medjool Date: Adding a date to this smoothie, increases the natural sweetness. I recommend buying pitted dates, that way you don’t have to remove the pits yourself. Oh, & my favorite brand of dates is Joolies!
• Organic Frozen Banana: It’s best to use a frozen bananas to create that super thick & creamy texture. 
• Organic Goji Berries: AKA the sprinkles! This superfood adds color, texture, & is packed with nutrients, to amplify this smoothie.
• Organic Coconut Whipped Cream: Completely optional, but if you’re wanting an extra special treat, dollop on the homemade coconut whipped cream.

How To Make

• Blend the Liquids & Powders. Add the non-dairy milk, nut butter, seeds, plant protein, and sea salt, to a high-speed blender. Blend these ingredients until smooth.
• Blend the Medjool Date. Add the soft medjool date to the blender and blend until smooth.
• Blend the Frozen Ingredients. Next, add in the frozen banana. Blend until smooth and creamy. If needed, you can pause the blender, remove the lid, and scrape down the sides so that everything is fully incorporated. You may need to add a little more non-dairy milk depending on how thick/thin you like your smoothies
• Blend the Goji Berries: Add the goji berries. Blend for 20 seconds on medium.
• Serve. Pour into a chilled glass, top with a dollop of homemade coconut whipped cream, and enjoy immediately.

Smoothie Add-Ins

Feel free to truly make this recipe your own! Here are a few suggestions to amp-up this healthy Birthday Cake Smoothie:

• Organic Chia Seeds: Add a tablespoon of organic chia seeds for some omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, selenium, phosphorus, calcium, etc. + it helps thicken this smoothie.
• Organic Ground Flax Seeds: Incorporate a tablespoon of organic ground flax seeds to increase the fiber & minerals to this smoothie.
• Organic Coconut Yogurt: Add some creaminess to this smoothie with a scoop of coconut yogurt. You may have to eliminate the milk to the smoothie when adding yogurt.
• Organic Greens: You can get your greens in too in this cake batter milkshake. They blend easily & you can’t taste them. Plus, greens are packed with so many minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants. Spinach, kale, swiss chard, mustard greens, collard greens, or mixed greens all work. WARNING: it will change the color!

Tips for Making the Perfect Smoothie

Interested in how to make the perfect smoothie? As someone who makes smoothies daily, here are my TOP tips:

1. Use Frozen Fruit: Adding a frozen banana to this smoothie is the only way to go! The ice from the frozen banana adds thickness to the smoothie.
2. Soak Medjool Date: If your dates aren’t soft, you will need to soak your pitted date in very warm water for 5 minutes. This will help them soften up, so that they can blend nicely.
3. Adjust Liquid Amount: If you find that your smoothie is too thick to blend, not to worry! Just add a bit more milk, blend, open the cover, scrape down the sides if needed, and blend again. When possible, always use a larger high-speed blender, as it will blend the ingredients much better.
4. How To Make: Add your liquid first & blend your powders first, then the medjool date, before adding your frozen ingredients. This is my personal favorite way of preparing my smoothies. By blending the liquid & powders first, it ensures that your powders blend completely.
5. Blend Goji Berries Last: The reason for adding the goji berries last, is because you don’t want them to get as creamy like the smoothie – you want them to retain their structure and texture. That makes this smoothie a bit crunchy, which I love!
6. Smoothie Blending Tip: Start your blender on low to medium speed. If you blend the smoothie too quickly from the beginning, it’s really hard for the blender to properly blend the frozen ingredients – so start lower and gradually increase the speed.
7. Chill Your Glass: There’s nothing better than a cold smoothie, in this case, a cake batter milkshake. Put your serving glass in the fridge or freezer while you’re making your smoothie to ensure a chilled smoothie with every sip.

Healthy Breakfast Smoothie FAQ’s

Do I have to use a frozen banana?

The frozen banana in this recipe gives the smoothie a thick & creamy texture. If using a fresh banana, be to add a handful of ice cubes to achieve a cold, thick smoothie. However, if you’re looking to remove the banana altogether, because you’re allergic or simply don’t like them, you can replace it with ½ cup of frozen zucchini, frozen cauliflower, or frozen avocado chunks. If you elect to make this a banana free smoothie, I recommend keeping the organic medjool date to maintain its sweetness.

Is it healthy to have a smoothie?

Duh! I wouldn’t post something that was unhealthy. Having a smoothie full of protein, healthy fats, & superfoods for a post workout breakfast is great because you’ll be getting essential vitamins, nutrients, & protein, first thing. However, some smoothies on the market or on the web can be loaded with tons of fruit, added sugar, & nonsense, making them a less healthy option. 

What is the best protein powder to use?

For this healthy Birthday Cake Smoothie recipe, I love using Truvani’s Organic Vanilla Plant Based Protein Powder. It’s ​​made with no preservatives, no artificial colors, & no artificial sweeteners. If you don’t have Truvani’s Protein on hand, you can use your favorite vanilla protein powder. However, when selecting a plant protein, it’s crucial to look at the protein content and most importantly, the ingredients. 

How can I add protein without using protein powder?

If you don’t have vanilla plant protein on hand, no worries! To increase the protein content, you can add a tablespoon of organic chia seeds &/or organic ground flaxseeds, without changing the taste too much.

Can I make this protein smoothie in advance?

Yes! Feel free to make the smoothie as is or double it for later. Check out this “How to Prepare Smoothies in Advance” post to achieve the best results.

More Smoothie Recipes You’ll Love

• Cashew Cold Brew Smoothie
• Cinnamon Roll Smoothie
• Goji Berry Green Smoothie
• Sunflower Seed Maca Protein Smoothie

Sharing Is Caring!

If you make this recipe, please leave a review & rating below! I love hearing from you and it helps others learn more about the recipe too. Lastly, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Be sure to follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, & TikTok for even more deliciousness & wellness tips!

Xoxo.

Christin.

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