Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

If you are looking for a healthy recipe that tastes like a dessert, this chocolate peanut butter banana smoothie is for you. It tastes like a milkshake, but it's dairy-free and naturally sweetened with fruit. All you need is five simple ingredients to make it. To get started, you'll need a frozen banana. To freeze bananas, make sure you're starting with ripe ones with plenty of brown spots on their skin. This will ensure that they have a sweet flavor. I like to store them whole so they are easy to measure, but then I like to slice them into smaller pieces for easier blending. Using a frozen banana gives this smoothie an ice cream-like texture, so I don't recommend swapping it for a fresh one without expecting pretty different results. In that case, you would need to add quite a bit of ice to achieve a similar texture, and that can dilute the flavor. To make this chocolate peanut butter banana smoothie, add one frozen banana to a high-speed blender along with a half cup of almond milk or any other milk you like, one heaping tablespoon of cacao or cocoa powder, two tablespoons of creamy peanut butter, and a half teaspoon of vanilla extract. Blend that together until it's smooth. From here, you can adjust the flavor to taste, adding a little more cocoa powder or an extra splash of milk to help everything blend smoothly. If your smoothie isn't thick enough, you can also add a few ice cubes and blend again. As soon as the smoothie is done blending, serve it right away for the best taste and texture. It reminds me of a chocolate frosty with a creamy chocolate peanut butter flavor. If you'd like to make your mornings easier, you can also make this smoothie ahead of time by preparing a frozen smoothie bag. In a freezer-safe bag, add the sliced banana, and it doesn't matter if it's fresh or frozen this time, the cocoa powder, peanut butter, vanilla, and a big handful of fresh baby spinach if you want to sneak some extra nutrients into your morning. You can't taste it at all. Store the bag in your freezer overnight or until you're ready to use it. When you're ready to make the smoothie, all you have to do is dump the contents of the bag into your blender and add in the milk. You'll probably have to use a little extra milk when blending a freezer bag since everything will be starting from frozen, but you can just add more as you go. It's a delicious way to kickstart your morning and should leave you feeling full and satisfied. Feel free to add in any other extras you like such as a tablespoon of ground flaxseed or hemp hearts for some extra plant-based protein. I hope you'll love this chocolate peanut butter banana smoothie recipe as much as I do, and be sure to check out my other videos here for more fast and easy real food recipes.