This spiced oat milk smoothie makes for a tasty and nutritious breakfast. Inspired by Jugo De Avena, a popular drink in Dominican Republic, it combines rolled oats with milk, banana, carrot with a variety of spices.
Country Number 49: Dominican Republic
If you read our last post, you would have seen that we made the mistake of not realizing Dominica and Dominican Republic were different countries. Well, it went one step further. We initially made this recipe thinking it was from Dominica. It was only afterward that we realized that Jugo De Avena is actually a drink from Dominican Republic, not Dominica. Thankful, we realized before posting the recipe online and making false claims of its origins, and we were able to use it for the DR instead.
History of Dominican Republic Cuisine
The Dominican Republic is located on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, which it shares with Haiti. With population of over 10 million people and a land mass of 48,671 square kilometres, it is one of the largest Caribbean nations. The island of Hispaniola was first inhabited by the Taíno people, where they established an advanced society of farming of hunting. However, Christopher Colombus discovered the island in 1492 and claimed the Dominican Republic for Spain. The country remained under Spanish colonial rule for hundreds of year, as well as French, Haitian and even American control before gaining independence in 1924. Inevitably, the cuisine has been shaped by these cultures, as well as being influenced by Middle Eastern, African and Taíno cuisine.
The typical Dominican diet consists of nearly all the food groups, including meat or seafood, grains, vegetables, fruit and legumes. Starches and meats make up the bulk of the diet and are featured in most Dominican dishes. Most dishes are served with rice as this is a staple grain of the island. Thanks to the Spanish influence, lunch is the most important meal of the day and tends to be a lot more substantial than dinner. Many traditional Spanish dishes are still present on the island, such as empanadas, arroz con leche and crème caramel. Soup is a very common meal as it is cheap, filling and can feed many people. The soups in Dominican Republic often contain rice, meat, vegetables and beans, and locals take a lot of pride in the soups they prepare.
Popular Dominican Republic Vegetarian Dishes
- Mangú– A uniquely Dominican dish consisting of mashed plantains, using served with eggs and fried cheese.
- Habichuelas Guisadas- A protein-packed bean stew that is served with white rice.
- Ensalada Verde– Almost every meal in the DR is served with a green salad, often including vegetables such as shredded cabbage, tomatoes, onions, cucumber.
- Tostones– Made from unripe plantains that are twice-fried which are often served as part of a larger meal.
- Jugo De Avena– A popular drink that combines milk, fruit juice and oats.
Vegetarian rating of Dominican Republic Cuisine:
Making Spiced Oat Milk Smoothie (Jugo De Avena)
Believe it or not, Dominican Republic have been making jugo de avena before oat milk became a trend. However, unlike oat milk, which tends to just be oats that are blended with water and strained, jugo de avena . Either way, we are obsessed with oat milk and anything oat based, so figured it would be a fun one to try out. Please note that this is not a traditional recipe for jugo de avenue. Instead, we took inspiration from the flavours of the popular Dominican Republic oat drink and turned it into a smoothie. The result is a super creamy, spiced drink that is filling enough to have as a meal in itself.
How to make Spiced Oat Milk Smoothie (Jugo De Avena)
Besides a little pre-preparation with soaking the oats and freezing ice cubes and bananas, this recipe comes together in one step. It’s the perfect for a quick breakfast on the go!
- In a bowl, mix 1/3 cup rolled oats in 2/3 cup of water and leave in fridge overnight to soak.
- Fill half an icecube tray with coconut milk and freeze overnight.
- In the morning, blend soaked oats and residual water together to form liquid.
- Add in all other ingredients and blend until smooth.
Ingredient notes for Spiced Oat Milk Smoothie
- Rolled oats- We recommend using whole rolled oats for this recipe (not pre-cut) as these will blend the best and retain the most oaty flavour. You can also skip the first step of soaking and blending the oats and sub for oat milk.
- Coconut milk– You can sub the coconut milk icecubes for a milk of your choice or just use normal ice if you don’t mind the smoothie being a little less creamy.
- Bananas– Make sure you freeze your bananas the night before to get the best smoothie texture.
Serving suggestions for Jugo De Avena
This spiced oat milk smoothie is nice and filling, making it a great standalone breakfast or midday pick-me-up. You could also top it with fruit and granola and make it into a smoothie bowl.
Other sweet recipes:
- Tufahije Recipe: Walnut-Stuffed Poached Apples from Bosnia
- Cocada Amarela Recipe: Spiced Coconut Porridge from Angola
- Torrejas Recipe: Cinnamon French Toast from Andorra
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