My Fix-Everything Smoothie Recipe | Cup of Jo

Three years ago, I was interviewing author Virginia Sole-Smith for her Beauty Uniform, when she casually mentioned the smoothie she made each morning. “It’s just this easy smoothie that the whole family likes,” she said. “Oat milk, frozen blueberries, peanut butter, and chocolate protein powder.” And though I was meant to be asking about stuff like her face wash, I was intrigued. A breakfast smoothie that everyone liked?

My daughter had just started preschool, and I’d come to understand how hectic breakfast time could be. Each morning felt like a reality-show competition, wherein I had to invent something filling and appealing in the exact amount of time it took my husband to get her dressed (would it be three minutes or 17? Who knew?!). But, I realized, all I needed for a smoothie was my little NutriBullet and a cup. Furthermore, I could throw in one of the 800 frozen bananas taking up all our freezer space. Could a good, easy, filling smoothie solve all my problems? Well, no. But it could solve a lot.

Riffing on Virginia’s recipe, I came up with my own combo: 1 frozen banana, 1 handful of rolled oats, a heaping scoop of peanut butter, and an eye-balled cup of milk. Maybe some vanilla, if I have an extra 10 seconds. It’s thick and creamy, it fills you up, and though it looks like grey sludge it tastes so good that you’ll forgive the presentation. This smoothie is a hit with lots of folks (I made this batch at Joanna’s, and her teenage boys devoured it!), but what makes it my pinch-hitter is that I always have the ingredients around.

You are welcome to just use mine, or riff on it, as I did with Virginia’s. But for guidance on designing your own, I reached out to recipe developer Amy Palanjian (you may know her as the creator of Yummy Toddler Food). Amy is an absolute whiz at smoothie recipes — her prowess comes from years of making breakfast for her three children. “My eldest hated smoothies and wouldn’t drink them unless there was a braces situation,” she told me. “It was frustrating! So, when I had my second child, I decided to do everything in my power to figure out how to make smoothies they’d love.” Here are Amy’s pro tips:

1. Think beyond banana. “For creaminess, bananas obviously work great, but if you don’t want a banana-forward smoothie, there are other ways to get that texture. Two ways I add creaminess are Greek yogurt or frozen mango.” While frozen berries have a higher water content, mango is dense and fibrous, she points out. “It basically has the same texture as ice cream when blended.”

2. Try hemp seeds and nut butters. A breakfast smoothie needs a little heft to sustain you through the morning. “I often a few tablespoons of hemp seeds, because they add fat and protein, but they don’t muck up the texture. Some people like flax or chia seeds, but they can make a smoothie kind of gelatinous. Peanut butter and almond butter also work well for adding density.”

3. Experiment with dry and powdered ingredients. Dry ingredients can add a lot to your smoothie, without messing up flavor or texture. “If you want something similar to protein powder, dried milk powder is a great option. It’ll add the nutritive components of milk, without adding a milky flavor. It’s also inexpensive and convenient because it’s shelf-stable.” You can also smash up some freeze-dried fruit.

4. Keep it super simple. “One thing I realized when I was trying to nail smoothies is that I’d been adding too much stuff. Fewer ingredients is often the best way to go — there was a solid year when my kids drank the same smoothie every day after school, and it was just milk and frozen mango. I’d suggest adding a little maple syrup or something, and they’d just go, ‘Absolutely not.’”

Smoothie expert Amy Palanjian

What do you put in your smoothies? Thank you for the pointers, Amy! (And thanks to Virginia for the smoothie inspiration!)

P.S. Three throw-together breakfasts, and morning cookies for the backpack.

(Last photo by Lauren Volo from Amy’s cookbook, courtesy of Amy Palanjian.)