Anyone know how that expression began? Dog days of summer? Leave a comment with your take on it. I'd love to finally know how it came about.
Regardless, the relentlessly hot and humid days are upon us. And I don't know about you, but when I'm wilting from the heat (that's a generous way to put it!) the last thing I want to eat is hot and/or heavy food. Every Friday for next few weeks I will share with you a recipe for what I'm eating right now to beat the heat. Ready?
BANANA PEANUT BUTTER SMOOTHIE
This is a fantastic way to use up your bananas that go from almost ripe to over ripe in the blink of an eye in this sweltering heat.
TOOLS REQUIRED
blender
blender
PREP AHEAD
Take a banana - ripe or over ripe - peel it, and cut or break it into sections roughly 2 inches long. Put pieces in a storage container or ziplock bag. Freeze. Don't fret if the banana pieces turn brown in your freezer. This is normal and does not affect the taste or texture of your smoothie. You can freeze a bunch of banana pieces at a time and dole them out as necessary for your smoothie needs.
INGREDIENTS
5 ice cubes
1 frozen banana (approx. 4 pieces of 2" frozen banana chunks)
3/4 cup soy milk (or your preferred dairy*/non-dairy milk)
2 Tbs natural, unsalted peanut butter
Want it super peanut buttery? Add 1 Tbs more peanut butter.
METHOD
Just to be perfectly clear, these instructions assume you will safely cover the blender after each addition, before mixing. And safely stop blending before removing the lid or scraping down the sides. ;-)
Toss the ice cubes in your blender and crush. I do this in short spurts. Add the frozen banana and grind it up on the ice crush setting. Scrape down the sides and crush some more if you need to. Pour in the soy milk and add the peanut butter. Blend well on the mix setting or whatever is the equivalent on your blender. Pour into a big glass (it makes roughly 16-20 ounces) and enjoy the chill.
TROUBLESHOOTING
If it's too thick, slowly add more soy milk and continue to blend until the smoothie reaches your desired consistency. If it's too thin, adjust your quantities next time. Your ice cubes may be smaller than mine. Add more of those at the beginning.
VARIATION
Just thought of this while drinking my icy smoothie and simultaneously sipping a mug of hot coffee. Replace soy milk with chilled coffee. Sure, it decreases the protein power of the smoothie, but the flavor combo intrigues me.
I hope you enjoy this! If you try it, please share your review in the comments.
* I find dairy products unappealing when it's this darn hot. What can I say? They sit like a brick, an uncomfortable feeling in an already uncomfortable, sweaty situation. I highly recommend a non-dairy milk for this recipe in hot, trying times.
Take a banana - ripe or over ripe - peel it, and cut or break it into sections roughly 2 inches long. Put pieces in a storage container or ziplock bag. Freeze. Don't fret if the banana pieces turn brown in your freezer. This is normal and does not affect the taste or texture of your smoothie. You can freeze a bunch of banana pieces at a time and dole them out as necessary for your smoothie needs.
INGREDIENTS
5 ice cubes
1 frozen banana (approx. 4 pieces of 2" frozen banana chunks)
3/4 cup soy milk (or your preferred dairy*/non-dairy milk)
2 Tbs natural, unsalted peanut butter
Want it super peanut buttery? Add 1 Tbs more peanut butter.
METHOD
Just to be perfectly clear, these instructions assume you will safely cover the blender after each addition, before mixing. And safely stop blending before removing the lid or scraping down the sides. ;-)
Toss the ice cubes in your blender and crush. I do this in short spurts. Add the frozen banana and grind it up on the ice crush setting. Scrape down the sides and crush some more if you need to. Pour in the soy milk and add the peanut butter. Blend well on the mix setting or whatever is the equivalent on your blender. Pour into a big glass (it makes roughly 16-20 ounces) and enjoy the chill.
TROUBLESHOOTING
If it's too thick, slowly add more soy milk and continue to blend until the smoothie reaches your desired consistency. If it's too thin, adjust your quantities next time. Your ice cubes may be smaller than mine. Add more of those at the beginning.
VARIATION
Just thought of this while drinking my icy smoothie and simultaneously sipping a mug of hot coffee. Replace soy milk with chilled coffee. Sure, it decreases the protein power of the smoothie, but the flavor combo intrigues me.
I hope you enjoy this! If you try it, please share your review in the comments.
* I find dairy products unappealing when it's this darn hot. What can I say? They sit like a brick, an uncomfortable feeling in an already uncomfortable, sweaty situation. I highly recommend a non-dairy milk for this recipe in hot, trying times.
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