Easy Protein Packed PB and J Smoothie

I'd like to think I was a simple child growing up. I didn't need fancy lunches with the colorful lunchbox or the crusts cut off my sandwiches. I was quite content with the basic turkey and tomato sandwich, fresh fruit, and a brown paper bag!

That being said, I didn’t grow up eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches! I never liked jelly—it was too sweet and too mushy for my liking. I was definitely a turkey sandwich kind of girl. I liked fresh fruit and peanut butter, just not a PB&J sandwich.

Flash forward to 2020, I'm bored of the same two smoothies in my breakfast rotation and I wanted a post-workout protein shake without spending $50 on protein powder. Looking through the pantry, I found powdered peanut butter and had a thought... maybe I could try the classic PB&J combo?

Surprisingly, my intuition was both easy AND delicious. I also ran the numbers and discovered I developed a smoothie with 30g of protein in it, without protein powder! I still haven’t made the actual sandwich, but this Peanut Butter & Jelly Smoothie is so good that I’m 100% satisfied!

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Why you'll love this PB and J smoothie

This peanut butter and jelly smoothie has easily become one of my favorites (I guess I say that every time LOL) because it’s a great flavorful and nutritious to start my day and it doubles as a tasty post-workout protein shake!

I’ve loaded this smoothie with vitamin C from the strawberries, healthy fats from the peanut butter powder and the almond milk, and 12g of protein from the Greek yogurt! Sometimes I even add chia seeds for a boost of fiber and omega-3 fats. It’s just an amazing flavor combo.

This healthy protein smoothie is also thick and creamy, which is how every protein smoothie should be. It tastes amazing and feels even better going down, especially after a hard workout!

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Ingredients you'll need

Another reason I’ve added this PB and J Smoothie to my breakfast rotation is because it only needs four ingredients! For this recipe, you’ll need:

• Frozen strawberries: I prefer frozen over fresh because they keep the smoothie cold and thick. I also don’t have to worry about them going bad! I buy them in a huge bag from Walmart.
• Peanut butter powder: using the powder rather than natural PB helps thicken the smoothie and lower the calories (70 cal vs 190 cal!). If you only have natural peanut butter, you’ll only need 1 tablespoon. My favorite brand of PB powder is Crazy Richard's because they don't add any salt or sugar to their powder - it's pure peanut butter powder!
• Nonfat vanilla Greek yogurt: an absolute must in my opinion! My go-to brand is Oikos Triple Zero because it has no fat, no added sugar, and no artificial sweeteners with 15g of protein. Using this yogurt thickens the smoothie and gives it a big boost of protein. You can also use your favorite dairy-free yogurt.
• Almond milk: I always use non-dairy nut milk in my smoothies to cut back on calories but keep that creamy flavor and texture. Any milk will work with this recipe!

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Customize your protein smoothie

I’ve tried a couple different combinations of this recipe and found some other flavors and ingredients that work well:

• Use 2 tablespoons regular creamy peanut butter in place of the peanut butter powder: this keeps the protein content the same but adds 15g of heart healthy fats
• Substitute 2 tablespoons of your favorite nut butter (almond, cashew, or sunflower) with a splash of vanilla for added sweetness
• Switch up the frozen strawberries for frozen raspberries or blueberries! I’ve tried all three berries for this PB and J Smoothie and all of them are wonderful options! Strawberries are still my favorite though.
• Add in 1 tablespoon of chia seeds with 2 extra tablespoons milk for a boost of fiber and omega-3 fats

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Expert tips

For easy blending and easy cleanup, build your healthy protein smoothie from most liquid ingredients to most solid ingredients.

For this smoothie, I recommend adding the ingredients in the following order: almond milk, yogurt, peanut butter powder, then strawberries. This ensures that there is enough liquid to completely pulse the frozen fruit and create a thick, creamy smoothie every time!

I've also found that using a personal size blender like this one rather than a full-size blender helps incorporate all the ingredients better and results in a smoother smoothie.

Because this recipe calls for frozen fruit and powdered peanut butter, you're going to want all ingredients confined in a smaller space to ensure they're completely blended.

It's possible to use fresh fruit for this Peanut Butter and Jelly Smoothie, but it's not preferred. Using frozen fruit keeps your healthy protein smoothie cold, thick, and refreshing, so if you do decide to use fresh fruit, you'll need to add at least a 1/2 cup of ice.

Lastly, choose wholesome ingredients. What makes this PB and J Smoothie so good is not only the texture and flavor, but the quality of the ingredients as well. That's why I recommended my favorite Greek yogurt and the absolute best peanut butter powder on the market.

You can find both at Walmart or snag a 2 lb. bag of your powdered peanut butter here on Amazon!

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I know you'll absolutely fall in love with this healthy protein smoothie. It's easy, it's thick, it's nourishing, and it's incredibly delicious!

When you make this PB and J Smoothie, I'd love to hear about it! Snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @kapaicooking, then leave a star rating and review below!

Your feedback is valuable to the content development here at Ka Pai Cooking and I do my best to respond to each one. Happy smoothie-making! :)