THM-E, Low fat. Cute background kitchen is courtesy of my favorite little kitchen helper, Brookie.
My husband LOVES banana splits! He also loves a good smoothie and tends to ask for the ones that have all the ingredients of…banana splits. So one evening I just went to the blender and started adding all the goodies that I thought might satisfy his sweet tooth and out came this drink which we call our Low Fat Banana Split Smoothie!
We think it is just one of the best E Smoothies ever and I’m getting it out to you guys ASAP so you don’t have to go another day without the luscious, lip smacking flavors that will remind you of the beloved banana splits that we all know and love!
I have been making a FP chocolate syrup for years by modifying my mocha latte syrups. I simply leave out the extra caramel or peppermint flavorings and extracts in these syrups and have a nice chocolate syrup to garnish smoothies or add wherever I need it. Here are the links to the syrups that I moved over to the blog from last year, but originally published a couple of years ago. They are the Peppermint Mocha Latte and Caramel Mocha Latte Syrups.
Looking for more fantastic smoothies? I make no secret of being a sweet drink fanatic. I have many of my cold drinks linked up in this post that I call my Cool Summer Drink Roundup.
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This is a typical THM yummy smoothie in many way,s but since it is low fat it might act a little differently than the typical S or low carb smoothie. Just remember:
- Don’t overdo on the ice, just use enough to make it nice and cold. The banana, almond milk and protein powder are really the only source of creaminess in this VERY creamy smoothie so treat them carefully.
2. A THM admin advised me that we may use Daisy brand 2% cottage cheese in an E setting because of the purity of the ingredients. All others brands need to be 1% or lower, from my understanding.
3. Try to use the unsweetened original almond milk. I have had success with the Blue Diamond unsweetened vanilla almond milk, but all the other vanilla flavored almond milks that I have tried had a funny flavor to me.
4. We love this smoothie so much that I make it often, but bananas are hard to keep fresh, prices can be high and I like to catch sales. So I tried freezing fresh ones to use as I do in baked goods and it was a disaster! The drink was sort of dark and dank. I do not recommend this!
5. I have an ancient (almost 20 year old) Vita-mix and it still breezes right through the strawberry seeds, but be sure that you get those broken down so the seeds are not a problem even if you have to use a less strawberries (which would be very sad).
6. This totally scrumptious smoothie is plenty creamy enough with no extra fat from the half and half, but if you are enjoying it as a snack all by itself be sure that you add some fat in as called for in the THM plan. This little bit of fat will help you assimilate the much needed vitamins in the fruit.
7. I never top this drink with whipped cream except in the picture, but you may if you wish as a very small amount of Fat Free Redi Whip is on plan for THM-E’s.
8. I have links in the post above for a FP chocolate syrup that I used to drizzle over this drink for the pictures also, but I love it just fine with the amount of cocoa specified.
See the bottom of the post for a printable recipe and Enjoy!
Low Fat Banana Split Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup 2% Daisy cottage cheese or 1% of another brand
- 1 cup unsweetened original almond milk
- 2 tablespoons Gentle Sweet or 1 tablespoons Pyure or Truvia
- 1/2 medium banana (fresh)
- 2 - 3 strawberries (frozen or fresh)
- 1 tsp. cocoa powder (to taste, I just wanted a hint of it)
- 1 tsp. very high quality vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons on plan protein powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pineapple flavoring if you have it or fine without
- *1 tablespoon half and half- optional is you have another fat source in the snack or meal
- Enough ice to blend in and make it nice and cold but not frozen this will keep it creamy tasting.
- Freezing it might really effect the texture.
Instructions
Put all ingredients in a high enough quality blender to incorporate the strawberry seeds well and blend.
Notes
- 1 capful of Fat Free Redi Whip is allowed on an E so I used it for garnish in the picture, but that is totally optional.
- I tried freezing a fresh banana and using a half for this recipe but it compromised the flavor so I'm calling for fresh in this recipe. Save the frozen ones for baked goods maybe.
This looks great and I can’t wait to try. I’m a bit new to THM and am just confused as to why you recommend making sure there is a fat source either in the smoothie or other parts of the meal. I thought the point of E recipes is carbs plus protein and S is fat plus protein. Why are we making sure to have fat with an E? Thanks!!
The E recipes are not intended to be totally fat-free. One teaspoon of a plan approved fat source is required for each meal or snack to make the requirements. It is all specified in the Trim Healthy Mama plan book.
As far as I know fat in an E meal is not required. I have both books and if it is in the books I must have missed it. Ahhh! I thought we were just allowed up to 1 tsp if we wanted it in the meal. I haven’t been doing this and have lost a bunch of weight 🙂
Just wanted to clarify I found where it says it in the book! Thanks for the info 🙂 it’s amazing what we miss!
Hi there! Yes, the small amount of fat isn’t about weight loss per se it’s more about THM being concerned with nutrition optimization and the E meals tend to be packed with vitamins, some of which are fat soluble, and they don’t want you to miss a single nutrient! Thanks for checking it out for me and confirming my memory on it though 🙂 Enjoy your smoothies!
Why is only one capful of fat free Reddi whip allowed in an E setting?
Fat free Reddi Whip is allowed on the plan so I used it as a garnish but it is not really encouraged for normal use.
I’m confused – I thought it would be ok if you count the carbs in it?
Looks yum! Do you have a pink kitchen?
https://avigailife.wordpress.com/
Hi Avigail, and thanks! No that is my grand daughter’s play kitchen. We just couldn’t resist that retro look for a nod to a diner classic throwback like a Banana Split, even if it is a new fangled low fat Smoothie!
Sooo delicious! Thank you for the inspiration and best post workout smoothie ever. ?
Thanks for letting me know Naomi and glad it helped! 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing this! It is hands down the best THM smoothie I have had. I didn’t have pineapple flavoring so I used 2 small pieces of canned pineapple in juice in its place. I am so excited to have a delicious E smoothie as I struggle to get my E meals in. ❤
Thanks, Cara! I didn’t include the extra pineapple in order to be super careful about the carb count. Although it is on plan I just wasn’t sure about the banana pineapple combo, carb wise. But it does sound like you used a tiny amount and it’s totally personal choice. I’m so glad you loved it and thanks so much for letting me know 🙂
Really tasty smoothie. I’m just wondering, This is for one serving correct?
Yes it is a single serving for one adult. Glad you liked it and thanks for letting me know 🙂
Have fixed the Banana Split Smoothie twice. Love it more each time! Thank you for the recipe!
Hi Patti! I’m so glad you love that smoothie and thanks for letting me know 🙂
BEST SMOOTHIE E V E R!!!!!!!♡♡♡♡♡♡♡
I put tweak to it a couple of times… taste of “heaven: left out pineapple extract, added two heaping tablespoons of organic peanut flour… OHHHHHHHHHHH MYYYYY!!
Could you use Lily’s chocolate chips in place of the cocoa? I thought that may make a nice addition ☺
I use Lily’s chocolate chips every chance I get but I’m not sure how it will work in this recipe. If you try it let me know if you get a chance though.