Peanut Butter Green Smoothie

Imagine a luxuriously creamy green smoothie that tastes like a dessert but is made with nutritious foods like peanut butter, bananas, and kale. And all you need are five simple ingredients to make this dairy-free vegan beverage!

Green smoothies

While juicing has been popular for a long time, I prefer making smoothies. You get all the nutrition from the fruits and vegetables while keeping the fiber.

And they are so delicious and easy to make. With a little planning, you can have a quick breakfast or post-workout recovery meal in as little as 5 minutes.

While this peanut butter green smoothie features kale, you can experiment with your favorite greens and whatever you have in your refrigerator. Some options include spinach, Swiss chard, parsley, broccoli, and celery.

Shopping list

To make this recipe, you'll only need 5 ingredients:

• Non-dairy milk (I prefer unsweetened organic soy, but you can use your favorite such as almond or oat.)
• Kale (Any variety will work such as curly shown in the photos, Lacinato, or baby kale.)
• Peanut butter (I recommend a natural one without added sugar.)
• Medjool dates
• Bananas (Once they are ripe, remove the peels and freeze them so they are ready to go.)

For the complete list of ingredients with measurements plus recipe instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Method

Because I want to make sure my kale peanut butter smoothie is completely blended without any bits of greens, I like to make it in two steps:

1. First blend the liquid, dates, and kale until partially broken down.
2. Then add the peanut butter and frozen banana and blend until completely smooth.

Layering

The key to any successful smoothie is two fold: Use a high-speed blender and layer the ingredients in the proper order:

1. Liquid
2. Sweetener and any powders
3. Greens
4. Soft ingredients
5. Fresh fruit, nuts and seeds
6. Frozen fruit and ice

As mentioned in the recipe for this green smoothie with peanut butter, it helps to pre-blend the non-dairy milk, dates, and kale before adding the rest of the ingredients. This way you don't end up with any unwanted chunks.

Substitutions

This green smoothie recipe is highly adaptable to suit your preferences and dietary needs. The only ingredient I suggest making sure you use is the frozen banana, but even that can be substituted for a different fruit, if you like.

• Non-dairy milk options include soy, coconut, almond, oat, and rice.
• Sweetener options include different types of dates, pure maple syrup, brown rice syrup, and agave nectar.
• Greens options include spinach, chard, and collards.
• Nut butter options include almond, cashew, walnut, and sunbutter.

Additions

Boost your smoothie or give it a different flavor profile by adding one or more of the following:

• Açaí (powder or frozen smoothie packs)
• Avocados
• Beets (juice or raw shredded)
• Brazil nuts (limit to one or two nuts a day)
• Cacao (nibs or powder)
• Cayenne (powder)
• Chia seeds
• Flax seeds
• Goji berries (dried)
• Hemp seeds
• Matcha (green tea powder)
• Pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
• Spirulina (powder)
• Sunflower seeds
• Walnuts

If you love this recipe, please give it 5 stars! ★★★★★