An addictive, café style peanut butter and jelly chocolate smoothie loaded with peanut butter and raspberry chia jam.
Some days are green smoothie days, and some days... Well some days are for comfort and chocolate.
I very rarely buy indulgent superfood smoothies because something in me just balks at their typical café price tag, when I know I could make them for a fraction of the price at home (even though I usually don't!).
I'm pretty sure this peanut butter and jelly smoothie would be right at home on any café menu. It's smooth and luscious, chocolatey, peanutty and a little salty, with bright fruit bursts from the chia jam. It's knock your socks off delicious and will see you scraping out every last bit of goodness from the bottom of your glass.
A deprived childhood
It may be laugh out loud ridiculous to my North American friends, but last year (as in 2015) was the year I tried peanut butter and jelly (or jam to my NZ kin) together for the very first time. I know y'all grew up on the stuff, but it's just seriously not a thing here in New Zealand. I'd heard of it, for sure, but never had it as a kid and just never really thought about it as an adult.
The recipe that tipped me over the edge into full blown peanut butter and jelly fandom was this Peanut Butter and Jelly Snack Bars recipe from the Minimalist Baker. It's amazing, and now there's just no going back. I'm a convert, and seeing as I spent my whole childhood without this magic combination, there's a lot of making up to do!
Peanut butter and jelly smoothie success
I used my favourite 'just peanuts' smooth peanut butter from Pic's, which was perfect in the smoothie and to smear up the sides of the glass. Use the best peanut better you can get your hands on, for the best results.
The chia jam is too heavy to float in the smoothie, so it also got smeared, before filling up the glass with smooth chocolatey goodness and garnishing with a few raspberries, chopped peanuts and cacao nibs.
Acknowledging peanut butter and jelly is not exactly the most healthy food choice to have on the regular, I loved being able to create this smoothie version which is lower in sugar and still just as delicious. With 14.3g of protein it's a great post-workout treat, and also has 60% of your calcium RDI and 24 per cent of your iron RDI.
INGREDIENTS
For the chia jelly:
- ½ cup frozen berries (I used raspberries)
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
For the smoothie:
- 2 cups almond milk or milk of your choice
- 2 ripe bananas (fresh or frozen, freeze them if you prefer a thicker smoothie)
- 3 tbsp cacao powder or cocoa
- ¼ cup smooth peanut butter + extra for smearing inside your glass
- 4 pitted medjool dates (or 6 dried dates soaked a in little boiling water for a few minutes to soften)
- 1 tsp natural vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
For the topping (optional):
- A few whole berries
- Chopped peanuts
- Cacao nibs
INSTRUCTIONS
For the chia jam:
- Defrost the berries at room temperature, or speed it up by microwaving them for 30 seconds.
- Mash berries with a fork, then stir through the chia seeds and maple syrup.
- Set aside to thicken. For best results, make the chia jam ahead of time and leave in the fridge to thicken for an hour or two. If you don't have time, 15-20 minutes on the countertop will be okay in a pinch.
For the smoothie:
- Put all smoothie ingredients into your blender and whiz until smooth.
- Smear a little peanut butter up the inside walls of your glass, then add half of the chia jam and smear it around too.
- Pour the smoothie and garnish with toppings, as you like.
Ok, yum! Again, going back to my European childhood, peanut butter wasn't even a thing in Germany at the time. I did have it once in the Netherlands when I was about 11 or 12, but it was really unpleasant. Nowadays, snooty fart that I am, I prefer almond butter but I'm going to have to try this just because of the raspberries (nomnom).
Oh I love almond butter too, and it would be equally delicious in this smoothie!