PB and J Smoothie courtesy of Sarah Fit

I check in on my favorite bloggers almost daily and recently a post by Sarah Fit, a Boston-area blogger, caught my eye. She shared the recipe to one of her favorite smoothies and now I'm currently indulging in a PB and J; smoothie, that is. If you want to follow the original recipe directions, you can check it out on her blog.  However, because I'm doing this whole Dietbet thing, I decided to decrease the caloric content and increase the veggies.

Here is my own version of the PB and J smoothie that is gluten-free and dairy-free...great for vegans and those of us with leaky guts alike.

The ingredients:

2 handfuls of spinach

1 cup of So Delicious Coconut Milk

1 scoop of Designer Whey Protein Powder

2 tablespoons of Just Great Stuff Powdered Peanut Butter (I have the chocolate/PB blend)

1/2 cup of frozen berry medley
1/2 cup of water

5 drops of liquid stevia
Ice Cubes (I used 5)

Nutrition info:

Calories: 195

Protein: 25g

Fat: 3g

Carbs: 28g which consists of 16g of Sugar and 12g of Fiber

Here is a little info on some of the more exotic ingredients. First off we have my protein powder of choice, which is Designer Whey Protein Powder in French Vanilla. I buy mine at Trader Joe's. 100 calories for one scoop, which is pretty good in my book! I like it better than the Plant Fusion Protein Powder I also have on rotation at the moment. Its a very allergy friendly protein powder.

Next we have a version of the ever famous, PB2. Since I was unable to get PB2 in the grocery store, I was just as happy to discover they have recently started stocking another powdered peanut butter called Just Great Stuff.

Peanut Butter powder is certified gluten-free, organic, 100% natural, and only 40 calories for two tablespoons.  It is in no way going to satisfy you the same way that actual peanut butter does, but I think if I'm just going for peanut butter flavoring, this is a much better alternative (as its about 160 calories less for the same amount). Plus, I'm not like...a crazy peanut butter person. I know, its weird.

Lastly, we have the newest addition to my family, liquid stevia.

I have moved away from sweeteners like Splenda over the last several years in order to incorporate Stevia into my life. Its a zero calorie all natural sweetener made from the stevia plant.  However, a month ago, I went to the grocery store to replenish my stevia stash and to my horror, not a single box of stevia was left in the building. Out of despair and angst, I wound up buying a box of Splenda.  Well, thanks in part to a documentary I watched today on the food industry, in conjunction with a facebook post that started a very long conversation, and an increased number of stomachaches, bloating, and trips to the bathroom (I am technically diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, although I feel like that can't be the complete story), I decided to ditch those nasty little fake sweeteners and once again sing the praises of stevia.  I wanted to try the liquid version for kicks and giggles.  So far, so good.

Well there you have it folks! I hope you enjoy the recipe! For the full flavored version, stick to the one offered by Sarah Fit (roughly 100-250 calories more dependent upon protein powder and using real PB, but unparalleled in taste).  I hope all of you were able to stay warm and comfy in the snow, shield your self from the rain down south, OR, just enjoy the sunshine, like you always do...San Diegoans. Lame.

Let's chat:

Do you have any good smoothie recipes you want to share?