Yes, the following is better than peanut butter.
I know, you’re all rolling your eyes right now, saying, “How can anything (besides chocolate) be better than peanut butter?” Hear me out; this spread has the one-up on regular pb because it:
- is easier to spread
- is lower in calories (more about this at the end of the post)
- tastes sweeter, without any added sugar, and has a serving of fruit
Above, spread on top of Banana Bread for One.
Another bonus: This recipe doesn’t make as much of a mess as trying to smush sliced banana into a sandwich. As usual, the recipe is so simple that I feel a little silly writing it down.
Banana Butter
- 1 medium banana
- 2 to 4 tablespoons peanut butter, depending on how pb-y you like it (or almond, cashew, walnut butter, etc.)
- optional: I like to add a little cinnamon
My favorite ratio is 4 tablespoons peanut butter to 80 grams (without peel) banana (about 1/2 a large banana). And I often use a frozen banana, which makes this spread taste like peanut butter ice cream!
Procedure: Whir the two ingredients in your food processor or blender until smooth. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge. (If possible, it’s best to let the mixture sit for a few hours before enjoying, as the taste becomes more robust with time.)
Above, spread over a Breakfast Pizza Cake.
Other Ideas for Use:
This creation can be used anywhere you’d use regular peanut butter—warmed up and drizzled over oatmeal, as a sandwich spread, dip, or pudding, as a smooth-and-velvety topping for waffles or pancakes, on vegan ice cream, or simply eaten plain off a spoon (or out of the blender, depending on your level of self-restraint!).
As for calories… Ok, so I’m having a bit of a dilemma: Recently I’ve been getting quite a few requests from readers asking if I can add calorie counts to my recipes. I don’t count calories, but I know that a lot of you (readers and fellow bloggers) do count. So, since I really try hard to make my recipes—and my blog in general—suitable for everyone, and since it’s not hard for me to figure out the calorie counts anyway, I thought I’d ask: Do you want me to add calorie info to my recipes? Please vote; either way, I’m interested in hearing your opinion. And until I figure this dilemma out, here are the nutritional stats for the banana butter:
Banana Butter Calories:
Serving Size: 1 tablespoon (based on my favorite combination)
Calories per serving: about 40 calories
(As a reference, regular peanut butter has about 100 calories per tablespoon.)
Variations:
Yes, there is a chocolate version.
🙂
What an awesome giveaway!!! My favorite nut butter is cinnamon raisin peanut butter…but i have been dying to try the Artisana brand!!! All of their nut butters sound amazing!!!!
oh bloody helll this stuff is TOO good and TOO addicting! i just love it.
my favorite nut butter flav is definitely Mighty Maple from PB&CO. I am going through major withdrawal right now because I just ran out of my beloved PB.
I have been dying to try the ARtisan’s brand, but can’t find it at any of the health food stores and the only one that is sold is the coconut one at a raw cafe an hour away blah.
My dream nut butter would be an almond butter flavored- chocolate vanilla swirl!
ilove dark chocolate dreams by pb&co OR maranatha’s dark chocolate almond spread. deeeeeeelish!
happy (belated?) birthday!!!!
i think i really reallly reallllly need to try this goodness! im a recent almond butter lover (nuts used to make me a bit squeamish but nutbutters are helping me overcome the fear). hope you had an amazing birthday! i wanna know what you got – there were so many presents!!!! hopefulyl fun cooking tools and stuff 🙂
I am in love with any nut butter that has cinnamon in it! I can’t get enough that spicy creamy taste 🙂
Thank you for doing this giveaway, all of the Artisana flavors look DELICIOUS!!! My ‘everyday’ nut butter is Naturally More. I would love to try a macadamia nut butter.
Almond Butter is my favorite…
Vanilla Almond Butter is very yummy too…
My favorite has to be plain old crunchy with the only ingredients being peanuts. While the fancy chocolate, raisin, and maple kinds do wonders for my oatmeal, I really do truly love the original the most.
Honey almond butter. Just delightful.
Hope your birthday was splendid, girl! Your blog always is 🙂
How sweet of you to host a giveaway for your birthday! Right now I am really enjoying white chocolate peanut butter, especially with cold sliced apples!
I love cashew butter, especially whipped together with bananas. I have not yet had the pleasure of trying macadamia or hazelnut butters. And of course, PB & Co have awesome flavors as well!
I love chocolate and hazelnut together. But those paired with bananas would be sooo good! Thats the nut butter combo i would choose!
My favorite nut butter would have to be Cinnamon rasin swirl….Oh so good. Keep up the awesome posts Katie!!! HAppy Birthday again!
Hmm… The perfect nut butter would be a chocolate almond butter for me! Its one of my favorite combos ever.
Although the banana butter looks darn good!
(And a belated happy birthday! Mine was on Saturday. Here’s to a good year *raises non-existent glass*)
I havent had the opportunity to try any kind of flavored pb, Id love something like cinnamon bun or dark chocolate would be yummy ! 🙂 Good giveaway ! 😀