The weather this winter has been crazy. Last week we had temperatures approaching -20 degrees Celsius which was by far the coldest temperatures so far this year.  Today the temperature is in the + range and sunny. The yo-yoing weather has me torn between cozying up on the couch with a warm cup of hot cocoa and walking outdoors with a cold coffee treat.

K has been asking for ice cream so as a compromise I’m making a chocolate peanut butter banana coffee smoothie for me and a smoothie without the coffee for her.   This is such an easy thing to make and it is one of the only ways I can get banana into K’s diet. I love that my blender affords me sneaky ways of getting her to eat different foods.

To make this, you can either brew your coffee and let it cool or better yet, try freezing leftover coffee into ice cubes so that you can just grab them from the freezer when you want to add coffee to a smoothie. Either way works but I’m not a patient person so I love the ice cube trick.

For the chocolate flavour I’m using chocolate almond milk.  If you don’t have this available you can also add regular milk with either chocolate syrup or cocoa. Toss this in the blender with a small frozen banana, the coffee or coffee ice cubes, a heaping tbsp of peanut butter and blend away. Once blended I add ice because I like my coffee smoothies to be icy.  Remember, leave the coffee out if making for a little one or you may find someone has a little too much energy.

If you are feeling indulgent you can top the whole thing off with a little whipped cream and chocolate syrup.  The chocolate peanut butter banana coffee smoothie doesn’t need it as it is delicious on its own but it does give it a bit more a decadent feel and it certainly attracts the attention of K. We are using it today so that we can finish up the can in the fridge.  If you like coffee smoothies you may want to try some of my favourites at the bottom of this post.