This peanut butter banana protein smoothie is a healthy blend of the classic PB & B flavour profile.
This creamy, delicious, and healthy smoothie is packed with natural protein sources and is a great breakfast smoothie to kick-start your day with energy!
You only need 5 simple, wholesome ingredients!
You can also choose to add in your favourite protein powder, making this smoothie an excellent post-workout shake!
Here’s how to make this delicious and secretly healthy peanut butter & banana protein smoothie…
How to Make a Peanut Butter Banana Protein Smoothie
Step 1: Gather ingredients
First off, you will need peanut butter. Natural peanut butter made from 100% peanuts will give the best flavour and health benefits.
You will also need bananas. Frozen bananas work best to make the smoothie cold and refreshing, and well-ripened bananas will make the smoothie nice and sweet.
The liquid base for this smoothie is milk. Milk is the best option for creating a creamy and cohesive blend of peanut butter and banana, while adding protein.
This recipe also calls for yogurt. You can use either plain, unsweetened regular or Greek yogurt. The yogurt helps make the smoothie thicker and creamier, and adds plenty of protein and other health benefits.
Another protein-rich ingredient in this smoothie is oats. Any type of rolled oats or quick oats are great.
Finally, you can choose to add in a handful of spinach to help boost the protein and nutrient content of the smoothie even further. The beauty of peanut butter and banana is that these flavours completely mask the spinach; you really cannot taste the spinach at all, it just makes the smoothie slightly green in colour!
Also, to make this into more of a protein shake, feel free to add a scoop of your favourite protein powder if you’d like. This is optional as the smoothie already provides plenty of protein through its natural protein sources.
Step 2: Blend!
Note: you’ll want to make sure you blend the smoothie on high for long enough so that the oats and spinach don’t leave behind any graininess.
Peanut Butter Banana Protein Smoothie Health Benefits
Peanut butter offers many health benefits as it contains plenty of healthy fats, fibre, nutrients, and of course, protein. Peanut butter contains about 7g of protein in 2 tablespoons.
To avoid unnecessary added sugars, opt for natural peanut butter made from 100% peanuts.
Nut butters like peanut butter are great for providing energy, building muscle, and regulating blood sugar.
While peanut butter is high in calories, much of these calories come from fat, protein, and complex/fibrous carbs, which can help regulate metabolism and blood sugar.
Some studies have looked at the effects of peanut butter consumption on weight and diabetes management, and found that peanut butter consumption may be associated with decreased risk of type 2 diabetes in women and decreased risk of obesity in adolescents.
Bananas offer fibre, potassium, vitamin B6, vitamin C, and other nutrients, while also acting as a natural sweetener in the smoothie due to their high-energy carbohydrate content. This smoothie has absolutely no added sugars, but you’d never know it by tasting it!
Milk is the perfect base for protein smoothies like this because milk contains plenty of protein and health fats, along with other nutrients such as calcium and vitamin B12, while also making the smoothie satiating and hydrating.
Like the milk, the yogurt also adds protein and fat to the smoothie, and makes it more creamy and filling.
Greek yogurt especially offers tons of protein, containing ~12g of protein per 1/2 cup!
Plain, unsweetened yogurt is the best yogurt option for smoothies because it avoids any unnecessary additives like sweeteners. Yogurt also adds other nutrients like calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin B12, as well as gut-friendly probiotics!
The oats in the smoothie also add protein, as well as fibre and important micronutrients like iron.
Lastly, the spinach is an easy way to elevate the nutrient content of the smoothie. Spinach contains plenty of fibre, antioxidants, and vitamins and minerals including vitamins K, A, and C, iron, folate, magnesium, potassium, and calcium.
Give this peanut butter banana protein smoothie a try and let me know in the comments below how you like it!
Peanut Butter & Banana Protein Smoothie
Creamy, delicious, and packed with natural protein sources, this peanut butter banana protein smoothie is the perfect breakfast smoothie to kick-start your day with energy!
You can also choose to add in your favourite protein powder, making this smoothie an excellent post-workout shake!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp peanut butter
- 2 frozen bananas
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup plain, unsweetened yogurt
- 1/4 cup oats
- 1 cup spinach (optional - make it green!)
- Optional: 1 scoop of protein powder (make it into a post-workout shake!)
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a blender (frozen ingredients added last).
- Blend until smooth (about 30-60 seconds).
- Serve and enjoy!