Last night I was really craving something sweet and creamy after a weekend of hiking, carrying people, and horseback riding in the mountains.

On the sugar detox, though, I’m only allowed one green apple or one green banana all day. I already had an apple in my morning smoothie, so I went to bed and made this creation just now:

Here are the ingredients for my sugar detox, sweetener free pumpkin cheesecake smoothie:

1/2 c cottage cheese
1 green tipped banana, peeled and frozen
1/4 c canned pumpkin
5 ice cubes
1/2 c coconut water
1/4 c milk
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice

Blend until smooth to make two big glasses of creamy “dessert” shake. All that cottage cheese gives this smoothie a big dose of protein, making it a suitable replacement for protein shakes using sweetened protein powders.

If you’re not sugar detoxing, I encourage you to add 1 tsp of your favorite sweetener. This shake was just below my threshold for sweetness, so I bet the tiniest amount of sugar, agave, honey, or stevia would really bring out the flavors. Enjoy!