Chocolaty Almond Butter Banana Smoothie

Chocolaty Almond Butter Banana Smoothie

I had root canal a few weeks ago, after intermittent pain that started when I was pregnant with Harry—that’s right, I lived with twinges for five years before I finally did something about it. It would flare up every couple of months, bother me for a day, maybe two, and then just when I’d think, hmm, maybe it’s time for the oral surgeon, poof! The pain would disappear. Until this one time, it didn’t. By about Day Five of constant throbbing, with flashes of holy-crap-what-was-that fireworks every time I accidentally chewed on that side, I realized it wasn’t going away. Why did I hang on for five days? I was finishing up the cookbook, and just couldn’t imagine taking time away from it to fix something as trivial as a toothache. Of course, I waited until Friday afternoon to call the dentist, which meant I had an entire weekend to get through before I could even hope for hard-core pharmaceutical relief.

You are so lucky.

As a direct result of a full week of being unable to chew, I came up with this smoothie recipe. It was born of boredom, largely. I just couldn’t take another strawberry-mango-peach-raspberry-what-have-you fruity drink. A gorgeously salty jar of almond butter, made in-house at Brooklyn Larder, seemed likely to offer a bit of variety—while also being full of healthy fat and fiber, to keep me full longer. Toss in a frozen banana for heft and sweetness (what? You don’t keep frozen bananas on hand? How do you make Magic Banana Ice Cream?), some milk to thin it into drinkability, and a healthy squirt of chocolate sauce just because chocolate is so perfect with everything, and I had myself a mighty fine treat.

Now you do, too. Man, the things I do for you guys. You’re welcome.

Oh, and a bonus for new parents: This makes a perfectly delicious one-handed meal.

Chocolaty Almond Butter Banana Smoothie
Serves 1
Weight Watchers: This is a fairly ridiculous 13 PointsPlus per serving. If you’re not using it as a meal replacement as I did, I suggest sharing

1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt
2 tablespoons almond butter
1 banana, peeled and frozen in chunks*
1 tablespoon chocolate syrup (use more if you’re not on Weight Watchers!)
1/2 cup milk (I use 1%)

  1. Put the yogurt, almond butter, banana, and chocolate syrup into your blender jar, and whir on high.
  2. With the feed tube open, pour in the milk until it reaches the consistency you like. Pour and serve.

* OK, if you don’t have frozen banana on-hand, it’s fine to use a fresh one. Just make sure it’s nice and ripe, and toss in some ice cubes to make up for the loss of cold. The texture will be slightly different as a result, but you’ll still love it.

MAKE BABY FOOD: If there are no food allergies in your immediate family, almond butter is fine to serve to babies. If you do have allergy concerns, speak to your pediatrician first.