A while back, a reader left a comment asking if I had a peanut butter cup smoothie recipe.
I did not.
I did a little research, but really couldn’t find one that spoke to me, so I came up with my own.
When I think of peanut butter cups, I think of the chocolate shell that surrounds them. They’re sweet, but also slightly salty, and that’s what I’ve tried to replicate here.
Instead of blending in chocolate powder, I suggest melting a portion of a quality chocolate bar (45 seconds to a minute in the microwave will do this) and layering it throughout the smoothie.
This is definitely a meal replacement smoothie – it is not at all low calorie. If you want to reduce the calories for a snack, halve the protein powder, avocado, banana and peanut butter. You can also omit the protein powder altogether if you don’t have it on hand.
Peanut Butter Cup Smoothie
Recommended Ninja Blender Jar
- Ninja Pulse: 40 ounce jar with standard blade
- Ninja Kitchen System: Single serve cup
- Ninja Mega Kitchen System: Single serve cup
- Ninja Professional Blender: 72 ounce jar with standard blade
- Ninja Ultima: Single serve cup, or 72 ounce jar with quad blade inserted
Ingredients:
- 1 cup non-dairy milk of choice (I use almond milk)
- 1 serving preferred vanilla protein powder (optional)
- 1/2 avocado
- 1 small ripe banana
- 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter
- 1/4 of a quality dark chocolate bar, melted (about 2 ounces)
- 3-4 ice cubes (a small handful)
- Pinch of salt (optional)
Method:
- Melt chocolate bar either over low heat in a small sauce pan or in a small bowl in the microwave (30-45 seconds should do it)
- Add all ingredients except melted chocolate into your blender jar
- Pulse to combine, then blend on medium — “2” for Ninja Blenders until smooth
- Layer about a quarter of the smoothie, and then add a little melted chocolate
- Continue the layering process until all of the smoothie and chocolate has been poured out
Nutritional Breakdown:
This uses all of the ingredients above, with unsweetened almond milk and Plant Fusion protein powder.
