Peanut Butter Jelly Smoothie Further Proves Perfect Match!

In case you hadn’t heard, March is National Nutrition Month--yes, nutrition has its own month! And even though March is almost over, it’s never too late to find nutritious snacks and meals to help get you slim and ready for summer. One example of such meals can be found right here with an old favorite--or at least a different version of it! This peanut butter jelly smoothie not only combines the classic pair, but it also includes banana, berries, milk beverage, vanilla, and Manuka honey, providing just the right blend of sweet flavor and rich smoothness.

Thick like a shake but not overly filling, this smoothie is dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, grain-free (don’t worry--no one put sandwich bread in this recipe), soy-free, vegan, and vegetarian, therefore fitting into as many diets as possible. For paleo diets, you can use almond butter instead of peanut butter and substitute coconut milk for the milk beverage. Five minutes prep time and the push of a blender button is all it takes to be drooling with pleasure once you’ve taken your first slurp of this delicious, nutritious smoothie!

Ingredients for the Peanut Butter Jelly Smoothie

• 1 large ripe frozen banana, broken into chunks
• 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter (lightly salted)
• 1 teaspoon Manuka honey
• ⅔ cup sweetened dairy-free milk beverage, divided
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup frozen blueberries or strawberries

Directions for the Peanut Butter Jelly Smoothie

1. Place the banana chunks, peanut butter, and Manuka honey in your blender. Add ⅓ cup of the milk beverage and the vanilla, and blend until smooth and creamy. It will be quite thick, so be sure your blender is strong enough to handle the mixture.
2. Pour ⅔ of the mixture into a serving glass (should fill up half the glass).
3. Add the remaining ⅓ cup of milk beverage and the blueberries or strawberries to the remaining mixture in your blender and blend until smooth and creamy.
4. Pour the the fruit smoothie mixture on the peanut butter mixture (should look layered rather than mixed). Serve with a spoon or straw and enjoy!

Optional Add-Ins

• 1 to 2 tablespoons oats with the peanut butter mixture before blending
• ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon with the peanut butter mixture before blending
• Handful of spinach with the berry mixture (berries mask color & flavor if you’re worried!)
• Stevia or sweetener to either mixture if you’re craving a sweeter smoothie