How to make a low-sugar fruit milkshake?

How do you make a low-sugar fruit milkshake?

Keep the recipe simple and skip the usual sugar sources. This is a starting method, not a standard recipe, so adjust it.

• 1 cup (240 ml) plain milk or unsweetened plant milk.
• 1/2 to 1 cup frozen fruit, such as strawberries or raspberries.
• 2 to 3 tablespoons plain unsweetened yogurt for creaminess (optional).
• A few drops of vanilla.
• Blend until smooth, then taste before adding anything sweet.

What counts as sugar in a milkshake?

The NHS defines free sugars as sugars added to food or drinks, plus those in honey, syrups, nectars and unsweetened fruit juices, smoothies and purées. Sugar that occurs naturally in milk, and in whole fruit, does not count. Once fruit is blended into a drink it is treated as free sugar. The NHS recommends adults have no more than 30 g of free sugars a day, so a milkshake with a lot of fruit still uses up some of that allowance.

Which ingredients keep sugar down?

• Skip: ice cream, flavored syrups, honey, sweetened yogurt and fruit juice, which all add sugar.
• Use: plain milk, plain yogurt, frozen fruit and spices like cinnamon.
• Thicken without sugar: frozen fruit and a little yogurt instead of ice cream.

Which fruits are lower in sugar?

Berries are generally lower in sugar than very ripe bananas, mango or grapes, and they blend well when frozen. Fruit sugar content varies, so check a nutrition database for the amounts you use. A small amount of ripe banana can sweeten and thicken with less fruit overall.

How can you check it?

Add up the sugars on the labels of what you use, such as yogurt and plant milk, since sweetened versions are common. Choose unsweetened versions where available.

Is it a replacement for fruit?

No. The NHS says smoothies count as at most one portion of 5 A DAY, so eat whole fruit as well.