Salted Caramel Smoothie, and the secret roasted banana.

Salted. Caramel. Two very popular words, and for good reason in my opinion! Traditional caramel, although delicious, doesn’t technically scrape into the healthy realm… However, I was playing around in the kitchen the other day, and I believe I have a fabulous offering for you which provides the rich, silky sweetness, but with all natural goodies.

It all started with these roasted bananas.

They look harmless enough, but oh my wow are they delicious! I have become a little addicted to adding them to my breakfast. Somehow I had some leftover, and thought oh great I’ll make a smoothie. Making a smoothie in itself is quite an exciting thing for me at the moment, I haven’t been making them due to our less than favourable (bloody cold) weather…but I digress. Roasted bananas. I threw a few things in the blender and then thought ooh salted caramel, and voila!

I am convinced the deliciousness of this smoothie is due to these roasted babies, but of course you could make it with fresh, ripe banana too, I’m sure it will still be great. However if you can at all be bothered, roast away!

Serving wise, keep it modest. It is quite rich and insanely delicious so served out in small portions is the way to go. Or alternatively, serve it fancy dessert style as in the top image. It would make a great after dinner treat.

[headline]Salted Caramel Smoothie[/headline]

1 ripe banana

1/4-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 cup nut milk (or milk of your choice)

1/4 cup coconut milk

1 medjool, or 2 small soft dates, pitted

2 tbs cashews (ideally soaked for at least an hour)

A good pinch of sea salt to taste

Preheat oven to 180C /350F.

Slice the banana in half lengthways, and lay on a lined baking tray. Sprinkle with cinnamon, along with a tiny drizzle of maple syrup and coconut oil if desired. Pop into the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the banana is just soft.

Add all ingredients to a blender, and blend until smooth. It’s a good idea to start with just 1/2 the banana and date, and taste, as this is quite a sweet smoothie and you can easily add extra to your taste. Adding a few ice cubes to the mix is lovely too.

Enjoy as is, or if you are going for fancy, top with shavings of chocolate and cacao nibs – I used Loving Earth’s salted caramel chocolate, no words! x