A thick & creamy Skinny Black Forest Smoothie made with blended chocolate, cherry, milk and spinach. A delicious smoothie packed with antioxidants and fiber. The perfect post workout smoothie that doubles as dessert!
You guys are so lucky because I have the sweetest dessert treat for you today! Would you believe me if I told you it were good for you too? Allow me to explain! But first I have to confess that I have a thing for cherries. While I love experimenting with fruits in smoothies and testing different flavors (by the way, did you see that cranberry smoothie a few weeks ago? OMG so good and was a total accident!), a cherry smoothie is always my preferred flavor. I’m guessing most people are all about the berries. Not me! Cherries are my jam. More time than not you’ll find me gravitating toward my favorite skinny cherry yogurt smoothie. But during the winter, I cannot bring myself to drink that coldness.
Lately though I’ve been through serious smoothie withdrawals so much so that when I reached in the freezer the other day for something and saw the four bags of frozen cherries staring me in the face, I could not resist. From that moment, I was on a mission to make something winter smoothie edible.
Later that day a ginormous box of Rockin’ Refuel arrived at my door. Rockin’ Refuel recently came out with a new line called Rockin’ Refuel Lean Builder that offers lower calorie and low sugar options. In case you aren’t familiar, Rockin’ Refuel is a complete line of protein beverages made to maximize the science behind chocolate milk recovery. If you’ve ever run a race, you will see chocolate milk being offered to runners. It has been shown to be one of the best ways to recover from a workout and ideal for people of all fitness levels who want to build and retain lean muscle.
A few more facts about Rockin’ Refuel:
- Rocks 20 grams of high quality protein
- Lean Builder is 150 calories per bottle
- Lactose & gluten free
- Available in vanilla & chocolate flavors
- Sold at Walmart in the dairy case
At first, I was a bit skeptical about these. I am very picky about the type of protein I put in my body and usually dairy and I do not agree. But to my surprise, my body tolerated these just fine. I’ve been drinking them now for a couple weeks after all my workouts. I love how full they make me feel not to mention, they’re ridiculously DELICIOUS!
I had no other choice but to turn this deliciousness into something even more delicious and what better than a winter appropriate cherry smoothie like a Skinny Black Forest Smoothie? A creamy and thick smoothie laden with chocolate and cherry with spinach snuck in. The chocolate provides the body with much needed antioxidants, cherries fight inflammation, spinach replenishes iron and milk is an excellent source of protein and calcium. I told you it was healthy!
For those of you making excuses as to why you cannot drink a smoothie in the winter, this Skinny Black Forest Smoothie is the farther thing from cold. In fact, it’s more like a warm dessert in a cup. I think I just gave you another reason why you need to drink more smoothies. So stop making excuses and go make yourself some dessert and while you’re at it, check out the Rockin’ Refuel!
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- 1 cup frozen cherries
- 1 cup milk of choice (I used Lean vanilla Rockin Refuel)
- 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ cup GF rolled oats*
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 packet Truvia natural sweetener
- optional: a sprinkle of chia seeds for topping
- In a blender, place all ingredients and blend until smooth**
- Add to a glass, top with chia seeds if desired & enjoy!
*I like adding oats to my smoothies to thicken, but you can always omit these if you chose
**You can make this ahead of time & let it sit in the freezer for awhile & it will get extra thick & creamy!
For more of the ingredients & kitchen gadgets I use, visit my food shop
Have you tried Rockin’ Refuel? What is your go-to smoothie flavor?
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Disclaimer – This post is sponsored by Rockin’ Refuel & Shamrock Farms. While I was compensated for my time and received free product, all opinions and statements are my own. Thank you for supporting me!
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Love chocolates and cherries together! definitely one of my favorite combos and need to try it in a smoothie asap 🙂
I don’t know why I didn’t do this combo sooner? You definitely need to try it!
Black forrest cake is probably my number one favorite of the cakes. I used to say that I wanted to die by being drowned in it. That might be a bit much, but I do love it!
I don’t think I’ve ever had a black forest cake. I really need to get on that!
Cherries and chocolate together are the best combo! This looks so refreshing and delicious!
Yes! I’m already dreaming up other recipes with this combo.
Cherries in smoothies are totally my jam, too! The frozen version is so easy to use, too, since the pits are already removed! I just tossed a handful in my chocolate smoothie yesterday. Love that combo!!
I couldn’t agree more Blair!
This reminded me that I need to get some chocolate covered cherries back in my life. I’m super particular about what kind though bc some varieties taste awful. The problem is that I have to buy them to know what they taste like. MY LIFE IS TOO HARD.
Oh yes, chocolate covered cherries. I’ve never had those. Let me know what kind you buy, I’ll have to hunt them down.
I LOVE cherries!!!!!! I recently read something that debunked the milk recovery thing but I will research more on my own.
Let me know what you find out. You know everyone is different. There’s no one size fits all ever.
Cherries and chocolate are so delicious together! I have a black bean & cherry brownie recipe that’s pretty amazing, so this smoothie would definitely fit one of my favorite flavor combinations. Can’t wait to try it.
Now that sounds like a recipe I need pronto!
This smoothie sounds delicious! The perfect way to have your cake and eat it, too. 🙂
Thanks Kristen!