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Peanut butter always puts me in a happy place.
If you ask me to list my very favorite childhood food memories, the number of those stories that include peanut butter is astonishing.
I remember mornings at my parents’ oversized oak table. As I sat in front of our massive bay window with a scrambled egg and sharp white cheddar-stuffed English muffin, I would study my dad’s breakfast – a thin, melty layer of smooth peanut butter on a single slice of wheat toast.
I can still smell the savory smear’s nutty aroma and the smoky fragrance of the golden, malty, multigrain bread. It soon became my own morning go-to, and twenty-five years later, this hasn’t changed.
When it was time for an after-school indulgence, I would peer over the counter and watch my mom slice crisp, tart apples into wedges and pair them with a whipped mountain of sticky peanut butter.
For those hot North Carolina summers by the beach, no water-side snack soothed me more than a duo of salty rice cakes sandwiching creamy peanut butter and sweet, syrupy honey.
No wonder I was so popular with the bees.
This peanut butter milk is my homage to that nutty nostalgia, and my way of unwinding those beloved ingredients and re-tangling them in a new way.
Another perk of this frothy treat is that it does wonders for my non-sweet-tooth. Yep, I said it. My favorite dessert is a second helping of crab cakes.
Have you ever been on an airplane where the final course options were a fudge sundae or a cheese platter? Did you lean over and whisper to your neighbor, “Who would order brie over ice cream?”
Hi. This girl would.
I like a little sweet (hence the fig jam I insist on including as a companion to my cheese plates), but I don’t like my sweet things too sweet. Make sense?
That’s why this chocolate peanut butter milk is a dessert-like dream come true, without being an actual chocolate peanut butter dessert.
Although it carries the chocolate favor that you’re craving, the unsweetened cocoa powder also delivers beautifully bitter, toasted notes. They’re balanced and brightened by the caramel-scented agave, and the warmth from the peanut butter powder brings that salty-sweet-savory combo home.
While you could certainly sub in regular peanut butter, this milk is all about texture. For a luscious, velvety liquid that drinks more like milk than a smoothie, using powder enables you to pull off that consistency like a pro.
Unfamiliar with PB powder?
This dehydrated product is a spin on the classic we all know and love, and it’s got quite a few benefits to boot. It’s produced by pressing out the majority of the natural oils from roasted peanuts, and then grinding those nuts into a powder.
Naked Nutrition’s Naked PB, available on Amazon
The flavor remains rich, earthy, and concentrated, but it contains far less calories from fat than regular peanut butter.
Personally, I wouldn’t dip apples in it or slather it onto a rice cake, and I would question my dad if he sprinkled this chalky condiment onto toast. But when it comes to making a silky-smooth beverage, all hail the powder.
Print
Peanut Butter Chocolate Milk
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 12-ounce drink 1x
Description
Craving a cold, nutty treat you can slurp through a straw? This smooth, frothy peanut butter milk is a sweet way to get your sip on.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups whole milk
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter powder
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tablespoons agave syrup (or raw honey)
- Crushed roasted peanuts for garnish (optional)
Instructions
In a blender, combine the milk, peanut butter powder, cocoa powder, and agave. Pulse until frothy and well-combined. Serve immediately.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Dairy
- Method: Blender
- Cuisine: Beverages
Keywords: peanut butter powder, cocoa powder, chocolate, milk
Cooking By the Numbers…
Step 1 – Measure the Ingredients and Add Them to the Blender
Measure the milk, peanut butter powder, cocoa powder, and agave syrup into a blender.
Step 2 – Pulse Until Smooth
Pulse the ingredients until the mixture is frothy and well-combined. Taste for sweetness, and add more agave syrup if desired.
Step 3 – Pour into a Glass
Pour into a glass and serve immediately. Top with crushed roasted peanuts, if desired, for a salty, crunchy garnish.
This Milk Is a Little Nutty
For an even nuttier (and vegan) spin on this sumptuous beverage, try subbing in your favorite non-dairy liquid of choice, like almond or coconut milk. Change up the sweetener with woody maple syrup if you like, or floral honey if you aren’t sticking with the whole vegan thing.
Double the batch and keep an extra in the fridge. The powder will settle, but a quick buzz through in the blender again will whisk your milk straight back to foam town.
Speaking of buzz, spill in a little strong coffee for a peanut butter mocha explosion that will light up your morning.
Looking for more recipes that are packed with peanut butter? Try these salty-sweet delicacies next:
- Homemade Peanut Butter Cups
- Homemade Pumpkin Spice Peanut Butter Popcorn
- Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
How would you personalize this milk to please your palate? With a dash of cinnamon? A drip of hazelnut simple syrup? Share your tasty tweaks in the comments below! And don’t forget to give this recipe a five-star rating if you loved it.
Photos by Fanny Slater, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published by Shanna Mallon on July 27, 2011. Last updated May 7, 2020.
Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Fanny Slater
Fanny Slater is a home-taught food enthusiast based in Wilmington, North Carolina who won the “Rachael Ray Show” Great American Cookbook Competition in 2014, and published her cookbook “Orange, Lavender & Figs” in 2016. Fanny is a food and beverage writer, recipe developer, and social media influencer. She was a co-host on the Food Network series “Kitchen Sink,” was featured on Cooking Channel’s longtime popular series “The Best Thing I Ever Ate,” and continues to appear regularly on the “Rachael Ray Show.”
this sounds like another great way to use my blender.
Funny, that’s a lot like the smoothie I made for breakfast this morning: frozen banana, milk, peanut butter, a little bit of honey, cinnamon, flax seeds. Yum.
i made something very similar to this almost every night when i was pregnant! … mMM MMM!!!! ps. simple = great
Great photos.
Love this! What’s your take on almond milk? Is it a real food? I go back and forth on that one, but I’ve continued to use it b/c the recipe is so good. Appreciate your thoughts!
Your pictures are beautiful and your words are inspirational! Great recipe as well 🙂
I want to be like you when I grow up. 🙂
Jolynn, The key is to look at the way the product is made. With almond milk, there is usually a lot of processing going on, and, at least with the ones I’ve looked at, weird ingredients added. For that reason, I stay away from it. If you want a non-dairy alternative, I’d go with coconut milk—just look for one with very pure ingredients. Great question!
I haven’t made a simple shake like this in years. I think I might make it for breakfast this morning for the kids (they were requesting a smoothie, but this would be a fun suprise!). Love the photos. 🙂
Oh, yum! This sounds delightful… and like a perfect afternoon snack.
oh GOSH, that sounds good!
Mmmmm, I bet a touch of full fat coconut milk in there would be heavenly as well.