Strawberry Shake

Strawberry shake (serves 4 hungry kids)

5-7 dates
1-3 teaspoons vanilla
5 cups frozen strawberries
1 1/2 big handfuls raw, unsalted almonds, brazil nuts, or cashews (whatever you prefer or have on hand)
1 orange, pealed and cut into quarters (optional, for a more tropical flair)
water

1. In a blender, puree the dates with the vanilla and a bit of water until they become a paste. This is important to avoid date chunks as much as possible so they don’t clog your straw (Suuuuper important to kids to not have a clogged straw!).
2. Add the remaining ingredients to you blender and fill with water to about 1 inch below the top of your ingredients.
3. Blend, adding more water if needed. The less water you use, the more flavorful your shake will be!
4. Check your shake to determine whether it needs more blending. My blender is a Blentec, and it times itself for smoothies, so I often run it through the smoothie cycle twice just to make sure everything is really smooth.

Variations: Use pineapple instead of strawberries for a pineapple whip
Use pure coconut milk and pineapple instead of water and almonds and strawberries for a pina
colada. Nobody will judge you if you add a splash of rum (but not for the kids!)