a chocolate avocado smoothie recipe

Hello, lovely people.

I write this as I feel pumped up, yet knackered.

This is a big, busy week. It's my capoeira group's annual festival, which means a whole week of fun, games, ass-kicking and exhaustion. And awesomeness. It's seven straight days of fast, furious activity, culminating in an after-party with samba and caipirinhas on Saturday, and a street roda on Sunday.

So as I write this, I'm halfway through. Between work and the extracurricular stuff, it's hard to keep up, and yet I feel so alive. So tired, yet so present, and, also, invariably, so hungry and so wishful that someone would just thrust a smoothie my way as we wrap up yet another workshop.

chocolate avocado thickshake - tastes better than it looks!

Like this chocolate avocado smoothie. This is pretty much the only avocado smoothie I make. It's inspired by the Indonesian avocado shake, jus alpukat, but instead of using condensed milk and chocolate syrup, I give it a more wholesome, and even more delicious twist (- well, I think so anyway, and Simon can't get enough of it, too). Just good old-fashioned milk, Dutch cocoa, and raw sugar, because that's how I roll... and we're ready to rock.

I like my smoothies cold and refreshing. If you're not in a hurry to make this (and I can totally understand if you are), pop the avocado in the fridge ahead of time - a few hours will do - so that it's all nice and chilled by the time you prep it.

And, let's face it, this is a smoothie recipe, so don't worry too much about exact measurements, they're here to serve as a loose guide. Make it more chocolatey, make it sweeter, make it icier... it's all up to you! You may also control the texture via the amount of milk you include, to make it thinner or thicker. My version here makes a pretty dense, creamy milkshake, kind of like a frappe or thickshake, but if you further reduce the amount, it'll turn out even thicker and richer, like a chocolate avocado mousse or pudding... excellent and intense.

a chocolate avocado smoothie recipe
(serves 2)

1 small avocado (approx. 150g / 1/3lb)
2 tablespoons good quality unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons raw sugar (or maple syrup, or honey dissolved in a little water)
1 teaspoon instant coffee or cacao nibs (optional)
1.5 cups cold milk (approx. 375ml) (substitute with almond milk/rice milk/oat milk/soy milk/coconut milk to make it vegan)
8 ice cubes

Cut avocado in half, then scoop out the flesh, discarding the seed and the skin.
Whiz avocado flesh along with the other ingredients together in a blender or food processor until smooth and well-combined.
Pour into glasses and serve it whilst it's icy-cold.

yes, it looks a bit like a swamp. but it is, in fact, a very delicious chocolate avocado smoothie.