Pumpkin Smoothie (Concrete Mixer Substitute)

One of my favorite, favorite things about fall is all the pumpkin flavored stuff.  Pumpkin Spice Latte at Starbucks, pumpkin donuts, pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie...all good.  And one of my favorite pumpkin flavored things is the Pumpkin Pecan Concrete Mixers that Culver's features on their menu this time of year.  If you're not lucky enough to have a Culver's restaurant near you, a concrete mixer is basically the frozen custard equivalent of a Dairy Queen blizzard: lots and lots of frozen custard blended with flavorings, candy, cookies, etc.  Each fall they trot out the Pumpkin Pecan concrete mixer, and I will usually treat myself to one or two before they disappear around Christmas time. (Which is about the time they trot out the Peppermint Stick mixers.  Oy.)

However, over the past year, I've lost 75 pounds by taking up running and cutting down on calories (I'll write more about this in another blog post).  I knew that this year, a Pumpkin Pecan concrete mixer was going to be a no-no.  A simple look-up of Culver's nutritional information confirms this: the smallest size pumpkin pecan mixer (a "mini") is 603 calories and 43 grams of fat.  Yikes.

So the other day I decided to create a substitute.  Now, if you're expecting a super-rich, creamy dessert, you might come away from this disappointed.  But for me, this substitute satisfies my craving for a pumpkin pecan mixer with all the taste, but many fewer calories and almost no fat.  This recipe clocks in at 223 calories, even less if you split it as Little One and I did.

It's based on the Pumpkin Smoothie recipe listed on Skinnytaste and also utilizes her recipe for pumpkin butter (which I totally recommend that you try). I just altered her recipe a bit to suit my tastes and nutritional needs.

You will need:

4 oz. frozen pumpkin butter*
1/4 cup 0% fat, plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup skim milk

*(I used this recipe and froze my pumpkin butter into 4 oz. portions to use in various recipes.)

Put everything in a blender. If your pumpkin butter doesn't want to leave the container you froze it in, run the closed container under some warm water to soften it just a touch. If it still won't slide out, you can use a spoon to scoop it out.

Blend till smooth.  It'll have the consistency of an Wendy's Frosty when done.

Using the frozen pumpkin butter is key - it eliminates having to add ice, which keeps the pumpkin taste more concentrated, less watered down.  You could also easily add extras if you'd like (extra sweetener, chia seeds, some chocolate chips, a banana) but keep in mind extras will alter the end result AND the nutritional info and calorie count.

Voila - the finished product:

Smooth, creamy, and pumpkin-y, and at a fraction of the fat and calories of a frozen custard concoction.