Chocolate Banana Smoothie

Begin the day with a Chocolate Banana Smoothie for breakfast. It's a sweet treat packed with nutrients to get your day off to a good start.

Chocolate Banana Smoothie Recipe

It's no secret that I love a smoothie in the morning. Sometimes I even love a smoothie for a snack. And other times I will share with my husband and kids.

From tropical green smoothies to strawberry kiwi smoothies, there's not much I don't like when it comes to smoothies.

For me, smoothies need to be easy, delicious and made with ingredients I usually have on hand. But most importantly, they need to be filling and nutritious.

This Chocolate Banana Smoothie checks all of those boxes and more.

Why you'll love this recipe

• You can throw all ingredients together in a blender.
• You can customize it to your liking by making it low- or no-sugar and/or dairy-free.
• There are tons of substitutions and variations you can make!
• It's easy, nutritious and delicious! Kids and adults alike will love it. It tastes like a milkshake!

Ingredients

You don't need a lot of ingredients to make these chocolate banana smoothies:

• frozen bananas
• unsweetened Greek yogurt
• almond milk
• cocoa powder
• maple syrup

Frozen bananas are available at the grocery store in the freezer section, but I prefer to buy my own bananas and freeze them. You can also use unfrozen bananas, but you will probably want to add 1 cup of ice to the blender to make it cold.

For the yogurt and almond milk, feel free to substitute your favorite yogurt and milk. Non-dairy milk and yogurt will work just fine. If you use flavored milk, such as vanilla-flavored almond milk, you may wish to skip adding a sweetener.

You can use Dutch-process cocoa powder or regular cocoa powder.

For the sweetener, I like maple syrup, but you can also use honey or agave nectar if you prefer. A no-sugar sweetener like Stevia would also be fine. Or you can skip the sweetener altogether for a lighter option.

How to freeze bananas

Freezing bananas is easy! They are a great addition to smoothies because they are thick. They also act as ice. I love frozen banana in lots of smoothie recipes, but especially this Strawberry & Banana Smoothie.

Here's what to do:

You can freeze bananas in slices, halves or even whole depending on what you typically use them for.

Place banana pieces on a baking sheet in a single row and then freeze for about 10 minutes. Then take them off the sheet and place them in a reusable bag or storage freezer-safe container.

How to peel frozen bananas

Though I recommend freezing peeled bananas, you can freeze them in their peels.

Just note the peels will turn completely black in the freezer — don't be alarmed! You'll just have to peel them.

1. Let the unpeeled frozen bananas thaw for 5 minutes on the counter.
2. Use a knife to cut open the peel.
3. Remove the rest by hand like you would normally peel a banana.

If you are using frozen bananas for mashed bananas like in a banana muffin recipe, you may notice a bit of extra water content as they thaw.

How to make a chocolate banana smoothie

Making chocolate banana smoothies is easy! They are an easy breakfast or snack you can whip up in minutes.

1. Place all ingredients into the blender. Start with the bananas, then add the yogurt and top with almond milk.
2. Blend until smooth.
3. If too thick, add extra almond milk. If too thin, add in ¼ cup more yogurt or another half of a frozen banana.

You can also check out these tips for making smoothies thicker and thinner for some more ideas.

Are you cleaning your blender well? There's nothing like old caked-on gunk — or worse, an odor — to ruin your smoothie. Here's how to clean a blender properly.

Variations and substitutions

When it comes to breakfast smoothies, I am all about making them my own! Here are some ways you can tweak this Chocolate Banana Smoothie recipe:

Make them sugar-free: Skip the maple syrup and use a no-sugar sweetener like Stevia. You can also skip adding a sweetener altogether.

Make them vegan and dairy-free: Use vegan, non-dairy yogurt and non-dairy milk, like oat milk, soy milk or almond milk. Make sure to use maple syrup, not honey, as the sweetener if you need the smoothie to be vegan.

Add protein powder: Feel free to add a scoop of your favorite protein powder to the blender to give this recipe more protein.

Add peanut butter: For a tasty treat, add a ¼ cup creamy peanut butter (or any nut butter) to make a chocolate peanut butter banana smoothie.

Make smoothie bowls: Pour it into a bowl and add banana slices, granola, unsweetened shredded coconut and/or mini chocolate chips. Eat with a spoon!

More smoothie recipes

If you love smoothies, you should check out these easy recipes:

• Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie
• Blueberry Greek Yogurt Smoothie
• Caramel Apple Smoothie
• Pineapple Smoothie
• Kale Smoothie
• Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
• Banana Berry Smoothie