Chai Charger Smoothie can be enjoyed anytime of the year but it's my favorite in the cold winter months! It has a base of nut milk and banana with strong brewed chai tea as a pick me up. A bit of cinnamon and dates add sweetness while the almond butter makes the smoothie thick and creamy.
A couple of years ago, one of my husbands and my favorite restaurants in our town closed down. They offered Paleo and gluten-free meals with a big selection of smoothies, juices, and baked goods. One of the smoothies we always ordered was called the chai charger. I never did get the recipe before they closed but I was able to create my own version and get really close to the original recipe!
So, what exactly is chai tea? Chai is black tea with the addition of spices such as ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, fennel, and clove.
Since the base of chai is black tea, it does contain caffeine. In a Google search, an 8 ounce cup of chai has 26 mg of caffeine. In comparison, an 8 ounce cup of black coffee has 95 mg. The chai charger smoothie will give you a little pick me up without the common jitters of black coffee.
A couple notes about Chai Charger Smoothie:
Can I make this smoothie caffeine free?
Yes! If you would like to make this smoothie but without the caffeine, The Minimalist Baker has a recipe for caffeine-free chai mix using ground spices. If you decide to try making the Chai Charger without the brewed tea, I would recommend adding an extra one and a half cups of nut milk to replace the brewed chai, blend all the ingredients in a blender, and add ½ tsp of the ground chai mix at a time until you reach your desired taste.
Interested in more smoothie recipes? Try my Tropical Smoothie which is like drinking a little sunshine in the middle of winter!
Chai Charger Smoothie
Ingredients
- 3 bananas
- 3 medjool dates pitted
- ¾ cup nut milk I use unsweetened almond milk
- 2 cups extra strong chai tea chilled
- 3 tbsp almond butter I use smooth almond butter
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1-2 cups ice
Instructions
- Boil two cups of water. Once boiled, place in a mug with 2-3 chai tea bags or 2 tsp of loose chai tea. Allow to steep for five minutes. Once steeped, place in the refridgerator to cool. This step can be done a few days in advance if desired
- Place all the chai charger smoothie ingredients in a blender and blend on high until smooth
- Once blended, pour into two glasses and enjoy!
This smoothie! What a game changer. Its the perfect afternoon pick me up! Also, pretty easy to customize. I added some gf oats and cashews for some extra protein after my workout. This is definitely going in my recipe box!
What a great idea to add GF oats and cashews! I'm so happy you like it!