Smoothies are such an easy and delicious energy boost. I tolerate carrots with ranch but I relish a good smoothie. This chocolate smoothie recipe is both crave worthy and healthy.
Energy is somewhat elusive for me. Some days I’m killing it – Leslie Knope style, on other days standing wears me out. I don’t know if i just got the short end of the DNA stick (I do have celiac after all) or if it’s poor decision making when it comes to food.
For this reason, I’ve decided to reach for energy inducing snacks instead of sugar laden ones (my normal inclination). Think almonds and chocolate chips instead of a fudge brownie. I won’t ever give up chocolate. As much as you might hate (or love) sayings like YOLO or life is short – they’re as true as they are cliche.
This chocolate smoothie recipe is the best of both worlds. I still get something rich and chocolatey, but it’s full of healthy ingredients. You can trust me – I would never say spaghetti squash tastes “just like pasta” or wheat bread is better than a baguette. A chocolate shake it is not – delicious? Definitely.
Are chocolate smoothies (and others) actually healthy?
You can find smoothies around every corner I feel like. Heck, the frozen yogurt place by our house sells them. If you opt for any smoothie anywhere – healthy you will not be. (Okay, thanks yoda) When you blend up your own you control of all the ingredients (no “smoothie bases” allowed).
Our local cafe serves up some dreamy albeit funky smoothies. It’s caused us to get adventurous with our blender. I’ve been pleasantly surprised what fruits, vegetables and nuts taste amazeballs together. Pineapple is naturally so sweet it pretty much tastes good with anything. If you are looking into green smoothies – pineapple is a fantastic way to make them taste good.
We now rotate ingredients like pineapple, pear, avocados, bananas, dark cocoa powder, oats, peanut butter, almonds, berries, pecans, sweet potato, butternut squash, cinnamon etc. We make chocolate smoothies different all the time but this one is an all time favorite.
Although energy is more of my driving force for smoothies if your sights are on weight loss – they can be great for that too. You just want to be careful with sneaky sugar laden ingredients that pack little nutrition like concentrated fruit juices. You also want to keep additional sugars like honey and maple syrup limited.
Whole fruit does a fantastic job sweetening up a smoothie. Opt for unsweetened ingredients like unsweetened plant based milks and unsweetened yogurt. (And trust me I’m no stranger to sugar). Read this for more information on how to make smoothies healthy.
Whats in this chocolate peanut butter smoothie?
- Banana
- Peanut Butter
- Greek Yogurt
- Oats
- Dark Cocoa Powder
- Mixed berries
- Unsweetened Almond Milk
- Honey
Bananas are a great way to add sweetness as well as creaminess to a smoothie. This smoothie has frozen berries to thicken it up but if a smoothie doesn’t have frozen ingredients simply freeze some unpeeled bananas and use those. Oats also act as a thickener.
This smoothie is packed with protein (peanut butter and greek yogurt), and super filling so I usually use it as a meal replacement. I like to top it with gluten free granola and whipped cream. If you are interested in a very simple coffee smoothie recipe click here.
Chocolate Smoothie Recipe
Equipment
- blender
Ingredients
- 1 large banana
- 2 T. peanut butter
- 3/4 C. unsweetened nonfat greek yogurt
- 3/4 C. quick rolled oats I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Oats
- 4 T. Dark Cocoa Powder
- 2 C. frozen mixed berries
- 1 1/4 C unsweetened original almond milk Almond Breeze is my personal favorite
- 1 1/2 t. honey
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients together until smooth.Pour into two glasses and top with granola and/or whipped cream if desired.
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