Vegan Pumpkin and Peanut Butter Mousse Recipe

Sounds weird, right? This recipe tastes like a Butterfinger mousse to me. I love the silky consistency and the fact that the ingredients are wholesome and easy. I’ve eaten a low-sugar diet for a while, so this dessert isn’t super saccharine. I usually enjoy my pumpkin peanut butter mousse in the morning for a quick start to the day, or as an afternoon snack. It would be great with some cream (whipped, coconut, etc.) and a chocolate drizzle. The coconut oil is what makes the mousse turn from a thick smoothie texture when it’s initially blended, into the silky, spoonable consistency I love.

Vegan Pumpkin and Peanut Butter Mousse

1. Put into a blender:

• 1 can pumpkin
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1/3 – 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 – 1/3 cup maple syrup

2. Blend on low, and ramp up the speed until everything is smooth. If your blender doesn’t have speeds, I recommend heating up the coconut oil into its liquid state before blending. Note: all my ingredients except maple syrup are at room temp to start.

3. Pour the smooth mixture into another container and refrigerate. I like to put it in serving-size containers that I can grab and go. But scooping from one big container isn’t that big of a deal.

Notes on ingredients:

• Pumpkin: I use the organic Trader Joe’s brand that comes out this time of year.
• Coconut milk: I use the full fat kind – good fats are good! That’s what my naturopath and the internet tell me. I get them from Costco.
• Peanut butter: I use creamy, organic, Costco brand that has no sugar.
• Coconut oil: I use the giant size I can get at Costco
• Maple syrup: I use the Costco or Trader Joe’s brand, grade A, though I would love to find grade B in a bulk size.

I also love to do a raspberry version of this same recipe, but in the fall and winter, pumpkin is my fave.

Chocolate Pumpkin Smoothie Recipe

I guess maybe we should call it a shake, but let’s not get into a lexicon debate about the chocolate pumpkin smoothie. I’ve been playing around with the fall pumpkin smoothie (original recipe here), and this is my new favorite version. Amounts are not precise, but the ingredients are right, so have at it and get back to me.

Chocolate Pumpkin Smoothie

Blend up in your favorite blending device…

• 1 13-ounce can coconut milk
• 1 15-ounce can pureed pumpkin
• 1/2 cup hazelnut milk (or almond milk or milk milk or water)
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 4–5 dates
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder (unsweetened)
• 3–4 tablespoons chocolate protein powder (This is the first time I’ve ever used protein powder. It’s a hail-Mary to get my breakfasts rebooted. My naturopath suggested PurePaleo Protein Chocolate by Designs for Health, so I’m going with that.)
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

I put my smoothie in a big glass jar and pour servings out for a few days. After I have it in the fridge for a day, I like to add some more hazelnut milk to thin it out. I find this especially delicious if the kids are down and it’s time to veg out on the couch with my husband and I need a treat. It feels kind of like a chocolate malt, with a Mexican chocolate-style kick.

 

Fall Pumpkin Smoothie Recipe

I’m done with green smoothies. It’s fall. Leaves, crisp air, scarves, you know the drill. Morning routines are going well as a fam, except for my breakfast. I have a weird diet designed to keep me from getting recurring bronchitis (no dairy except butter, no gluten, no eggs, low sugar, no alcohol). Breakfast is hard. I need something incredibly easy and delicious (I make my smoothies ahead of time and put them in mason jars in the fridge) and I’m tired of kale and mango and bananas (if you’re not tired of that stuff, you can find a recipe here).

I was complaining to my naturopath, and she recommended making a pumpkin smoothie. We brainstormed. She says that there are three things your body needs to feel full: protein, fat, and fiber. Given that I like to eat whole foods and don’t want a bunch of powders and sugars, plus I need it to be sweet enough to make me crave more, here’s what I came up with. (To see the chocolate-pumpkin version, click here.)

Fall Pumpkin Smoothie

Blend up in yo blendah…

• 1 cup pureed pumpkin (I use Trader Joe’s organic)
• 1 cup full-fat coconut milk (I use canned because the only ingredients are coconut and water)
• 1 cup hazelnut milk (I use Pacific Natural Foods brand, and I prefer their hazelnut milk to almond milk because it’s more like whole milk than skim milk in texture)
• 1/3 cup peanut butter (I use creamy, unsalted, all-natural)
• 3–5 dates
• 2 teaspoons honey (change to agave to make this vegan)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ice cubes and/or water to taste, for consistency

Add-ons I want to try:

• Oats or flax meal for fiber
• A high-quality protein powder
• Maple syrup instead of honey for more fall zing
• Cayenne pepper for kick and anti-inflammation
• More cinnamon

My smoothie tasted lovely alone or over granola and flax meal.

More ideas: My friend Cyndi, a friend, mentor, and beta-tester said this: “I’ve been using your original pumpkin smoothie recipe with almond butter instead of peanut, maple syrup…and no dates (not on my approved list). Then I blended and froze in an ice cube tray. That way in the morning, I put a banana, a cup of lactose-free milk, a scoop of vanilla protein powder and 2-3 smoothie ice cubes in the blender and it’s DELISH!”

I’ll be trying other smoothie ingredient combos to play around with spice, protein, and fiber levels. So leave your ideas and trial-and-error stories for me! (I went to chocolate-pumpkin next, it’s kinda my new favorite thing. It’s here.)

Also, did you notice those squash in the picture on the weathered wooden table? We grew the squash in our permaculture garden. And now that I think about it, I actually made that table. I think I’m going to dress Momsicle up as a homeschool-Christian-prairie blog for Halloween. (Laughing hysterically.)

Let me know how the smoothie goes.

Craigslist Missed Connections: To the Woman at the Taco Tuesday Bar in New Seasons Last Night

Remember when our eyes glowed with excitement last night? I had just gotten my hair cut, and I was feeling like the universe had my back. Then I saw the Taco  Tuesday sign: “Three soft tacos for $5.99.” Yes! I was in the middle of ordering my chicken-adobo-with-mango-salsa-and-guacamole tacos when you came out of nowhere like an angle with silver hair.

“Is this a burrito bar?!” you asked. “Yes!” I said. “And it’s Taco Tuesday! Three soft tacos for $5.99!” Your eyes sparkled when I pointed to the sign.

“I’m doing it!” you said.

“Isn’t it great?!” I said.

“Yes! Let’s do it together!” you said.

I could tell you had the soul of an excited four-year-old. It spoke to mine. We wanted to hold hands and dance to the universe’s benevolence.

How were your tacos? 

I slept in the bathroom, switching between throwing up in the toilet and the bathtub–whichever I could reach first.

I thought of you all night.

I prayed that you chose barbacoa tempeh, tomatoes, and fire-roasted salsa. Something that would spare you from the food poisoning that struck me down. If only it were the mango salsa and you chose something else!

I hope your soul hasn’t lost its glow, and that your eyes can lock with mine again.

Maybe at Whole Foods, sushi Wednesdays?