Start your day with peanut butter, fruit, and all the other tasty ingredients in this Oatmeal Smoothie, and load up on the nutrients and energy your body needs to thrive.
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Today, it was a smoothie morning. That’s what I call those early hours when, no matter how early I set my alarm, no matter how organized I THINK the kids are, no matter how prepped and ready to go I am, I never seem to have time for a decent breakfast. Would I prefer to spend some time making myself a delicious omelet? Of course. Would I like 20 minutes to then sit down in peace and quiet and enjoy said omelet? You bet. Do I ever feel like this is a viable option? Nope. It’s one thing to have time to, say, make cold cereal; it’s another to have the time to sit down and eat it without giving yourself indigestion.
That’s why this was a smoothie morning. It takes only a few minutes to accumulate the ingredients and blend them up, which gives me enough time to sit down and drink it while looking over today’s headlines (though, admittedly, I am usually forced to carry the smoothie around the house with me as I tend to the kids).
And I really don’t mind (the smoothie, that is; I’d rather not chase after my pajamas-clad children every morning). The smoothie tastes great with its peanut butter, banana, and cinnamon. It goes down smooth and keeps me feeling full well into the afternoon. Try it as a breakfast substitute or a snack today!
Is This Oatmeal Smoothie Healthy?
It’s important to start your day with the right foods, but it’s also tough to wake up to a meal that doesn’t taste good. So I’ve opted for healthy ingredients that won’t feel like a chore to eat. Wholesome stuff like the oats, banana, peanut butter, and almond milk contain lots of carbs and protein—integral for a busy day. It’s suitable for vegetarian/vegan, dairy-free, and gluten-free diets (though I recommend inspecting your oats to ensure they don’t contain anything that will upset your digestive system).
Is Nut Butter Good For You?
That really all depends on which nut butter you use. If you’ve walked down the peanut butter aisle (yes, it takes an entire aisle!) lately, you’ll know this isn’t an easy question to answer. The best advice I can give is to consult the ingredients list on the side of the jar. The fewer the ingredients, the healthier the butter. Ideally, there should be only one: nuts. Forgo those that add sugars, salts and preservatives. You may think they taste better but I can speak from experience: Within a month of switching to 100% all-natural peanut butter, I don’t miss the salt and sugar at all. In fact, I recently tried some of the impure stuff on toast and couldn’t finish my slice. For this recipe, I recommend peanut or almond butter.
INGREDIENTS
- 1/4 cup old-fashioned oats or quick oats
- 1 banana, chopped into chunks and frozen
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tbsp 100% natural peanut butter
- 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup plus additional to taste
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp kosher salt
- ice (optional, for a thicker smoothie)
INSTRUCTIONS
Grind
Pulse the oats in the blender until finely ground for a smooth texture.
Combine
Add the banana, milk, and other ingredients to the blender with the oats.
Blend
Mix until smooth and creamy, scraping the sides as needed.
Taste and Adjust
Sweeten further if desired, and add ice for thickness.
Enjoy
Serve the smoothie immediately and savor every sip.
Devour!
FAQs & Tips
Because I’ve got the recipe down to a science, I rarely make more than I know I can consume in one go. But if you made too much, I recommend pouring it into a mason jar then putting it in the fridge until the next day. Then, you can easily reblend it and finish it off. You can also freeze the smoothie for up to a month. Let it thaw in the fridge then reblend ahead of drinking it again.
There are 235 calories in this smoothie, with a majority of those coming from the banana and oats. I recommend leaving the recipe unaltered, even if that number seems high to you. As a breakfast replacement, this smoothie will provide you with the energy you’ll need (provided you won’t spend your day sitting on the couch).
Whole oats (a.k.a. groats or steel-cut oats) haven’t been steamed and so, aren’t very pliable. Without this vital step, they will prove chewy and tough to eat (and even harder to drink). Consequently, I don’t recommend them. Go for rolled, old-fashioned, or instant oats instead. Your blender will thank you.
It generally doesn’t matter given it’s all going into a blender. That said, the blades may miss those tiny pieces of nut, so unless you don’t mind occasionally chewing your smoothie, go with smooth.
Using a frozen banana keeps your smoothie cold and makes for a thicker consistency. It also makes the storage of your bananas easier. I can just toss any browning banana in the freezer where they can bide their time until I require a smoothie.
Serving Suggestions
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup old-fashioned oats or quick oats
- 1 banana chopped into chunks and frozen
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tbsp 100% natural peanut butter
- 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup plus additional to taste
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp kosher salt
- ice optional, for a thicker smoothie
Instructions
- Place the oats in a blender and pulse until they are finely ground, creating a smooth base for your smoothie.
- Add the frozen banana chunks, almond milk, peanut butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and kosher salt to the blender with the ground oats.
- Blend the mixture until it reaches a smooth and creamy consistency, pausing to scrape down the sides of the blender if necessary.
- Taste the smoothie and add more maple syrup if you prefer a sweeter flavor. If you desire a thicker texture, add ice and blend again.
- Pour the smoothie into a glass and DEVOUR!
Nutrition Info:
Recipes written and produced on Food Faith Fitness are for informational purposes only.
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