Turn your morning coffee into a healthy breakfast with this Java Chip Mocha Green Smoothie – inspired by the Starbucks Frappuccino! This sugar free mocha smoothie has a healthy base of yogurt, bananas and spinach.
Love smoothies? Try this Dreamy Chocolate Chip Mint Smoothie or the uber popular Whole Fruit Orange Julius Smoothie.
Contents
A Dreamy Mocha Green Smoothie!
If you love coffee shop drinks, you’ll appreciate learning more about what’s in your cup!
As a teenager, I loved the Java Chip Mocha Frappuccinos at Starbucks. Creamy frozen coffee with little bites of chocolate. Unfortunately, it’s nothing more than a coffee flavored milkshake.
I love making smoothies that are creamy and sweet just like milkshakes. They are a great way to pack in nutrients. My favorite smoothies start with almond milk (or coconut milk), banana for a creamy texture and sweet flavor, and spinach for a dose of greens. The variations are endless!
Give this version a spin and give your body a healthy burst of energy – one that will sustain you through the morning rather than lifting you up and leaving you crashing!
What You’ll Need
- Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk (full fat coconut milk is awesome in these too!)
- Frozen Banana
- Spinach
- Instant Coffee
- Cacao Powder (or natural cocoa powder)
- Whey Protein Powder
- 85% Dark Chocolate, or sugar free chocolate chips, cacao nibs work too!
- Vanilla Extract (optional)
A Nutritional Comparison
It’s easy to order a drink from a restaurant and keep your eyes closed to the actual contents. There’s no nutrition label on a Starbucks cup!
If you love these drinks, here’s a comparison of the Starbucks ingredients vs. the ingredients in this healthy green smoothie version.
That’s a pretty long list of ingredients!
The Starbucks Version: [source]
- Lists sugar 5 times!
- Has a variety of “science lab” sounding ingredients – these are not food. Check out this list of Food Additives to Avoid to help navigate nutrition labels!
- Uses a processed cocoa, meaning most of the beneficial antioxidant effects of chocolate are destroyed.
- What are Java Chips? They are actually candy-coated chocolate cookie pieces, meaning this drink has gluten.
The Sunkissed Kitchen Version:
- Is sweetened with fruit – which adds fiber and slows down the absorption of sugar into the blood.
- Uses nutrient dense, whole foods, like spinach, raw cacao powder, and banana.
- Is made with ingredients you recognize and most likely have in your kitchen already!
Java Chip Frappuccino Calories
We can dive a little deeper into the nutritional stats of the two drinks to better understand how the drinks affect our bodies.
The Starbucks Version: [source]
- Has 60 grams of sugar – a surefire way to cause a glucose spike & crash!
- Only has 2 grams of fiber.
- Only has 6 grams of protein.
This drink will give you a small burst of energy, followed by a crash, sugar cravings, and hunger.
The Sunkissed Kitchen Version:
- Has 20 grams of sugar, which come from the banana and small amount of dark chocolate.
- Has 8 grams of fiber.
- Includes 14 grams of protein, but add more whey protein or collagen if you have higher protein needs!
Fiber + protein is satiating, and will slow the absorption of sugar into your bloodstream. This drink will keep you full for hours.
And if that’s not enough to convince you to blend up your own — a 16 ounce coffee house frappuccino costs about $5, where as this one costs about $1. Although I like saving money, that’s the least important reason for me preferring this homemade version.
How to Make a Java Chip Mocha Green Smoothie
Step 1: Add all ingredients into a blender (except chocolate!). Process until very smooth, with a light and creamy texture.
Step 2: Process until very smooth, with a light and creamy texture. Add more milk to make it thinner, depending on your preference.
Step 3: Add chocolate chips or dark chocolate, and pulse 5-6 times to break up the chocolate. The chocolate should be the size of the chocolate pieces in ice cream.
Step 4: Top with whipped cream, coconut whipped cream, or additional chocolate or cacao nibs, if desired.
FAQ and Variations
Make this Vegan: Use your favorite vegan protein powder in place of the whey protein. The rest of the recipe is vegan as written.
Increase the Protein: Add more whey protein, or use some collagen protein powder to make this smoothie higher in protein, based on your individual needs.
Lower the Carbs & Sugar: Make this smoothie with 1/2 frozen avocado plus 2-3 teaspoons of monk fruit sweetener (or your favorite sweetener), and omit the banana.
Other Starbucks Copycat Recipes
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Java Chip Mocha Green Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup almond milk (or coconut milk for an extra creamy treat)
- 1 banana frozen, cut into chunks
- 2 cups fresh spinach (I keep mine frozen so it's easy to have on hand)
- 4-6 large ice cubes depending on desired thickness!
- 10 grams whey protein isolate (unsweetened, natural, or sub your favorite protein powder)
- 1 tablespoon natural unsweetened cocoa powder or raw cacao powder
- 2 teaspoons instant coffee
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon 85% dark chocolate (or sugar free chocolate chips or cacao nibs)
Instructions
- Add all ingredients, except chocolate chips, to a blender and process. If desired, use your favorite sweetener (I use monk fruit sweetener) to add a little more sweetness to your smoothie. Process until very smooth and spinach is completely broken down. Use a tamper stick, or add a little extra almond or coconut milk if desired.
- Add the chocolate chips, and pulse 10-12 times, until they are chopped up but not fully blended.
This looks so thick and yummy! <3
Homemade version of smoothies are always fun to make and yep, you will save tons of money. I love the fact that I get to do whatever I want (or in my pantry) in the smoothies, and discover new recipes. Love how you incorporate java chip in a green smoothie. 🙂
So thick you can eat it with a spoon now that is my idea of a smoothie! Love how you disguised all the healthy things in your smoothie, maybe I could tell the boys that the green colour is just matcha tea. I can’t wait to try it and pinned!
Yes– I love smoothies that are really thick. The thin ones just don’t do it for me 🙂 I keep all my smoothie ingredients in the freezer– easy to keep on hand, and makes smoothies extra thick.