Daily Dozen – Chocolate Smoothie

So, what’s the “daily dozen”? This page explains it much better than I could: https://nutritionfacts.org/daily-dozen/.

Essentially, it is a science-based checklist of the healthiest foods you should try to include in your diet every day for optimal longevity. Rather than a restrictive meal plan, it focuses on “crowding out” junk by hitting daily targets for specific, nutrient-dense groups like berries, greens, beans, and whole grains. It also includes foundational habits like hydration and exercise, serving as a simple, evidence-based guide to ensure you’re getting the most protective nutrients possible from your plant-based lifestyle.

You can see the full Daily Dozen in the infographic below.

I wanted to modify my Chocolate Recovery Smoothie so that it hits as many of these as possible, without overly changing the taste, and you’ll find that this covers a number of bases.

We’ve got two servings of fruit (dates & banana), 1 greens (kale), flaxseed, nuts/seeds (cashew nuts), half a whole grains (oats) and some water. There’s a couple of additional ingredients (cacao, rice protein and vanilla) which give it great flavour and a good amount of protein. All in all, this smoothie contributes well to the daily dozen, and it’s also a great smoothie for recovery after training.

If you don’t have a power blender, you will need to mill/grind your flax seeds in advance. You can purchase pre-ground flax seeds, but it’s best to grind them yourself if you can. This ensures the seeds are fresh and their healthy Omega-3 fats haven’t started to oxidise — a process that happens once the shell is broken and the oils are exposed to air and light, eventually causing them to lose their nutritional potency and go rancid.

Any plant-based protein will work here – just use whatever your favourite is. I use rice protein for a number of reasons – mainly histamine level and the flavour profile. A blend of rice and pea would likely be nice here too.