How to Make a Banana Smoothie

Banana smoothies make excellent breakfasts, mid-day snacks, and hangover cures. Since bananas blend so well with other flavors, it's easy to create a smoothie to satisfy your particular tastes. Read on for directions on how to make four types of banana smoothies: pure banana, berry banana, health nut banana, and dessert banana.

Steps

Pure Banana Smoothie

1. Gather the ingredients. Here are the ingredients you'll need to make a pure banana smoothie:
   
   • 1 banana
   • 1 tablespoon honey, or sugar
   • 1 cup milk
   • Ice (optional)
2. Peel the banana and put it in the blender. You can also use a food processor if you don't have a blender. Break the banana into large chunks to make it fit.
   
3. Add the milk and honey, or sugar. If you like thick smoothies, reduce the milk to 1/2 cup. For a thinner smoothie, add more milk or water.
   
4. Top it off with ice, if desired. Place about 8 ice cubes on top of the banana, milk and honey mixture. Either crushed or cubed ice will work equally well.
   
5. Blend the ingredients. Put the lid on the blender and choose the "smoothie," "blend," or puree option, depending on what your blender offers. Pulse the mixture a few times and blend it until it reaches your desired consistency.
   
6. Pour the smoothie into a glass. Drink it with a straw or straight from the cup.
   

Berry Banana Smoothie

1. Gather the ingredients. Here are the ingredients you'll need to make a berry banana smoothie:
   
   • 1 banana
   • 4 large strawberries, stems removed
   • 1/2 cup blueberries
   • 1 teaspoon sugar
   • 1 cup plain yogurt
   • 1/2 cup orange juice
   • Ice
2. Place the fruit in the blender. Peel the banana, break it into chunks, and place it inside. Wash the strawberries and blueberries, then add those as well.
   
3. Add the juice, yogurt and sugar. Pour in the orange juice and scoop in the yogurt. Add the sugar if you like your smoothies on the sweeter side.^[1]
   
4. Top it off with ice. Fill up the rest of the blender with cubed or crushed ice.
   
5. Blend the ingredients. Put the lid on the blender. Use the pulse feature to help grind up the ice, then blend the smoothie to your desired consistency. The presence of the berries will cause it to turn a lovely shade of red.
   
6. Serve the smoothie. Pour it into a clear glass and serve.
   

Health Nut Banana Smoothie

1. Gather the ingredients. Here are the ingredients you'll need to make a health nut banana smoothie:
   
   • 1 banana
   • 1/2 cup almonds
   • 2 cups spinach
   • 1 teaspoon peanut butter
   • 1 tablespoon agave nectar
   • 1 teaspoon chia seeds
2. Make almond milk. Place the almonds in the blender along with a cup of water. Blend them together until you have a smooth, white, frothy milk. This is a healthy substitute for dairy milk.
   
3. Add the spinach. Put the spinach into the blender and puree it with the almond milk. You may have to work in a few batches, since spinach leaves can be tricky to blend. Keep pulsing until the leaves are completely blended with the almond milk.
   
4. Add the remaining ingredients. Peel the banana, break it into chunks, and put them in the blender. Add the peanut butter, agave nectar, and chia seeds. Cover the blender and blend the ingredients until the smoothie reaches your desired consistency.
   
5. Serve the smoothie. Pour it into a glass and drink it for breakfast. This health nut smoothie will keep you full until lunchtime.
   

Dessert Banana Smoothie

1. Gather the ingredients. Here are the ingredients you'll need to make a dessert banana smoothie:
   
   • 1 banana
   • 1 cup half and half
   • 1 teaspoon brown sugar
   • 1 teaspoon maple syrup
   • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
   • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2. Blend the banana and half and half. Peel the banana, break it into chunks, and place it in the blender. Pour the half and half over the banana chunks. Blend the two ingredients together until they are smooth.
   
   • For an even richer dessert smoothie, use cream instead of half an half.
   • For a lighter version, you can use whole or skim milk instead.
3. Add the remaining ingredients. Put in the maple syrup, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Blend until the ingredients are silky smooth.
   
   • Add some cocoa for a subtle chocolate flavor, or sprinkle in some mini chocolate chips.^[2]
   • Make a spicy-sweet smoothie by adding 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne.
   • Try another sweetener if you aren't a fan of maple syrup. White sugar, molasses, honey, jam, and all other types of sweeteners taste good in this smoothie.
4. Serve the smoothie. Pour it into a glass and put a squirt of whipped cream on top. Add a cherry to make the smoothie truly dessert-like.
   
5. Finished.
   

Banana Strawberry Ice Cream Smoothie

1. Assemble the following ingredients:
   
   • 1 banana
   • 1/2 cup strawberry ice cream
   • 1 cup milk.
2. Cut the banana in half. Add both halves to the blender.
   
3. Add the ice cream and milk.
   
4. Blend until combined.
   
5. Pour into a tall glass. Add a garnish of a strawberry half.
   
6. Serve immediately.
   

Tips

• The fresher the fruit, the better the smoothie.
• Banana smoothies don't store well (as it turns black faster), so drink it up!
• Freeze the fruit before using if you like your smoothies icy.
• Kiwis, mangoes, papayas, and all other fruits blend well with bananas.

Things You'll Need

• Blender
• Cutting board
• Knife
• Large glass to hold your smoothie

Related wikiHows

• How to Make a Strawberry Banana Smoothie
• How to Make a Smoothie
• How to Make a Berry Smoothie
• How to Make a Simple Orange Julius
• How to Make a Smoothie with 7 Up and Cherries
• How to Make Banana Smoothie with Hot Chocolate Sauce
• How to Make a Banana Pumpkin Smoothie

Sources and Citations

Cite error: <ref> tags exist, but no <references/> tag was found

from How to of the Day http://ift.tt/1ex6SL2