Well, it’s official! These chocolate kefir smoothies are our nighttime, after-dinner ritual!
It’s all the benefits of kefir wrapped into a great and tasty little package — so what’s not to love?
The ratio of kefir to raw milk is flexible. The more kefir, the more tartness. You’re aiming to include as much kefir as your family will stand. 😉
Currently, we like 2-1/2 cups of goat milk kefir with 1-1/2 cups of raw goat milk. It tastes like frozen yogurt — sweet but with a tang. Yummy!
If your family prefers smoothies on the sweet side, I recommend starting with 2 cups of kefir to 2 cups of milk. The awesome benefits of kefir will still be there for all to enjoy.
If you don’t have access to kefir, you can use plain yogurt as a substitute. Yogurt with active cultures is very good for you, too!
As far as sweetening, my recipe calls for using raisins or chopped dates. As Larisa suggested here, dried figs sound delicious as well. If you fancy adding some raw honey, use a mild-flavored variety. I tried a dark, richly-flavored wildflower honey once and didn’t think the kefir flavor meshed with it at all. 😉 Feel free to experiment.
Add in a handful of local fruit, like sweet cherries or raspberries, for an added flavor boost.
Chocolate Kefir Smoothie
When blended, this mixture fills the entire Vitamix wet container to a volume of more than 8 cups. It really fluffs up as air is incorporated. If this exceeds your blender's capacity, halve the ingredients.
Ingredients
- 2 cups plain kefir *
- 2 cups raw whole milk *
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil
- 1/2 cup raisins about 3 handfuls, lightly pack if using a measuring cup. Or substitute date pieces
- 1/2 to 1 cup seasonal fruit such as sweet cherries or raspberries (optional)
- 12 ice cubes made from pure water
Instructions
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Put all ingredients in the Vitamix wet container.
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Secure the 2-part lid. Turn ON, then increase variable speed to 10, and then flip to HIGH.
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Blend until you no longer hear ice or raisins being chopped up.
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This will be about 30 seconds, but perhaps longer.
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Don't let it go too long or the mixture will begin to heat up
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Pour into glasses.
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Optional: dust with cocoa powder and swirl. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
*Adjust ratios of kefir and milk as desired -- 2 cups kefir and 2 cups milk works well at first.
This post was featured in 90 Nourishing Egg-Free Breakfasts, 56 Fermented Probiotic Drinks {beyond kombucha & kefir!} and 31 Healthy Smoothie Recipes {a whole month’s worth!}.
What’s your favorite yummy way to get your family to eat kefir?
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Wardee
This is something that I’ve never done! haha :o) But we have enjoyed purchased kefir for years. My oldest two boys were raised on it, but its hard to find now around here.
I may have to investigate this some more, I’d want to use it for things other than smoothies. I have a flat bread recipe that calls for kefir that I have been wanting to try and I know that it makes a substitute for sour cream in dressings, etc.
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Thank you! I will try it with storebought kefir. My youngest loves kefir. I had been buying Nancy’s kefir, but had second thoughts about that brand, considering the agave in the sweetened varieties. I like plain, but the kids won’t drink it. I just bought Helio (?) brand and it seems good, but now that I’m thinking of it, I’m not sure its organic. I really like Nancy’s for that reason, and I think the cows were pasture-fed too. Maybe I should venture into sweetening the plain variety using the ingredients you’ve suggested.
Sylvia – Oh, my! Something you’ve never done! You’re killing me! 😉 Yes, I believe you can do all that with it. You can use it for soaking grains or in soaked recipes. If you want to start making it yourself, I could help you get a grain. 🙂
Christie – The plain variety would be great in this recipe. My homemade kefir is plain, so I know for a fact that it works great! 😉 You could probably get the whole family drinking the Nancy’s plain if you made it this way. I’m not kidding when I say it is good! Enjoy.
I make fruity kefir smoothies all the time but have never had much success with chocolatey ones. Maybe I’ll try your ratio of cocopowder to kefir and see if it works. Raisins…. very worth a try.
Thanks!
.-= Alyss´s last blog post… Of Probiotics and Pickles =-.
Alyss – Hope you like it! I agree, the fruity-kefir smoothies are delish! Once we started using the raisins/dates instead of honey, these started getting super good! Perhaps that will make the difference for you!
Ok, alright, you got me. I think I just might have to try this tonight after dinner. I’m definitely going to err on the sweet side, though!
Smoothie maker is packed somewhere…I hope a food processor will do. :/
.-= Mindy´s last blog post… "Not my child" Monday =-.
Mindy – Yay! I really think you’ll like it. I hope so, anyway! The food processor should do, though I’ve never done ice in one. Better halve or quarter the recipe and maybe add a bit more raisins just to be sure it is sweet enough for you. 🙂 Please let me know how you like it, even tonight. I’ll be on pins and needles until!
I tried it!
My food processor had a really hard time processing the raisins, so it was pretty tart. But it smelled so deliciously chocolaty! I think that next time I will have to use honey, I’m sure that’ll make a huge difference.
My 6-year-old really liked it, too! Keep up the great recipes, Wardee. 🙂
.-= Mindy´s last blog post… "Not my child" Monday =-.
MIndy – Oh, bummer! I didn’t think about the raisins causing you trouble, but of course, they would! I’m glad your 6yo liked it and hopefully, with the honey, you will too. Thanks for trying!
I know this comment was made a long time ago (I’ll bet you’ve already found your smoothie maker!), but it might help others to know that the raisins would be processed much easier if you soak them first (dates, too). That goes for blenders as well as food processors. 🙂
Sounds great….I’m becoming a frequent visitor as we just started gluten free cooking for the sake of my son who has Down Syndrome and a lot of gut issues. Your recipes all look great and I look forward to trying them!
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Christie, Helios kefir is most definitely organic. Also, you might consider trying our kefir (Lifeway Foods). We also have organic varieties and we sweeten all our flavored kefirs with organic cane juice. But yeah, adding your own sweeteners is a great idea too. A lot of people like having it with some honey or Stevia or shaved chocolate or almost anything else you can think of! So get creative.
We’ll have to try this out tonight, sounds yummy! I’ve always used ripe bananas to sweeten our kefir fruit smoothies, and that works great too! I never thought to add any coconut oil, though I’ve always added high-lignan flax seed oil. I’ll have to start adding the coconut oil too, starting tonight. Thanks for sharing!
.-= beth @ brew*crew adventure´s last blog post… {365:10-11} Savannah & Sabbath =-.
I do a similar smoothie and we do love it….we have just discovered that we love one with chocolate and frozen cherries! I sweeten with stevia. Also good when I don’t want to get the Vita-Mix out is….kefir, chocolate, cherry juice concentrate, and stevia. Blend with an immersion blender…Yummy!
I just tried this with frozen blackberries instead of ice because we don’t have any. I let my husband taste it. He has told me that he didn’t like things with yeast in it. He liked this. He actually didn’t know that it was kefir. I just started making the kefir last week. HeHe! I like being sneaky.
I made the kefir smoothie again tonight with honey, fresh cherries, and chocolate. This time I told my husband what was in there and he went back for seconds. Thank you! I really have been trying to find something that he really likes that is fermented.
Any ideas about how to get him off artificially sweetened drinks like Crystal Light?
What’s wrong with sweetening it with Agave?
I make a smoothie similar to this, too. It has homemade cow’s milk kefir, 1-1/2 frozen bananas (instead of ice), some dark chocolate (either from a fair-trade, high-cocoa bar or chocolate chips), and a little vanilla extract. I love the idea of adding a little cocoa powder and CHERRIES! I have some local cherries in my freezer right now, so guess what I’m about to make for my afternoon snack… Y-U-M!
My husband doesn’t like kefir, but he LOVES these smoothies! Haha!
Thanks for posting this recipe! 😀
Our 5 year old decides every day what flavor we should make. We always add Tera’s Whey (vanilla or chocolate), which is already sweetened with stevia. She usually adds a couple of frozen strawberries, even to the chocolate whey. We mix it with an immersion blender in Ball jars (she loves to see the white kefir gradually turn to a pretty pink. We even added a section of an orange plus the rind. All this with only about 3/4 c of kefir. No need to add extra milk.
I will have to give this recipe a try. I have been making my own Kefir (milk) as well as water kefir/almond and coconut. Kombucha is a definite with continuous brew. The milk kefir introduced me back into the dairy world, using milk kefir grains and organic milk. Thank you for the recipes. I look forward to looking over your website as well.
Sincerely in health and wellness for His service, Linda
FYI
I’ve recently learnt that honey and kefir shouldn’t be taken together as you’re defeating the purpose of the bacteria.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23782759?log$=activity
Hey Wardee, could you suggest what I could swap out the raisins or dates with as the sweetener? My B/I/L, who has mouth cancer just started to drink kefir. I am trying to gather some ideas for my sister to try for him. I know he has issues with tiny pieces (such as strawberry seeds) as they get trapped in his mouth and is ends up being very uncomfortable.
Hi Colleen,
Honey or maple syrup could be used as the sweetener. I also sometimes add a banana. They are so sweet very little other sweetener is needed. Prayers for a quick and easy recovery for your B/I/L.
Millie
Traditional Cooking School Support
I just got a Vita-mix & heard mention of the hearing up factor. Should I not be using the smoothie setting?
Hi Caley,
Wardee’s vitamix doesn’t have the settings so she can’t comment on how it heats up or not using the smoothie settings.
However, even when run manually, like on her vitamix, it doesn’t heat up right away. It takes a few minutes. Which is WAY longer than you ever need to blend a smoothie. So she thinks it’s not a concern. 🙂
Millie
Traditional Cooking School Support
Don’t worry about honey and kefir together defeating the healthy effect of your cultured drink. That study cited about honey’s antimicrobial effects is all about its use topically for wound healing. In the gut as part of a drink you would not be using enough to kill the good bacteria. It would be no more antimicrobial there than honey, agave, maple syrup or any other natural concentrated carbohydrate source.