30 Delicious Protein Shake Recipes with Protein Smoothie Guide

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Getting Started

Protein shakes and smoothies are a quick and easy way to create a healthy and nutritious snack or meal that can be enjoyed at any time of the day. Smoothies make it easy to get in your daily fibre along with other vital nutrients from whole food.

To create a balanced smoothie that will keep you energized and full throughout the day, make sure to incorporate the following elements:

• Fats (nuts, seeds, oils, dairy)
• Protein (dairy, legumes, protein powders)
• Liquid (water, seed/nut milk, juice)
• Fibre (fruits, vegetables, seeds) (Importance of getting fibre in your daily diet.)

Choose a Blender

There are many blender options on the market. High-end blenders from brands like Ninja and Vitamix may cost more but will improve your smoothie’s texture and consistency. Vitamix blenders can thoroughly blend seeds and other hard to blend ingredients. Additionally, more expensive blenders will last longer.

However, less expensive blenders like the Magic Bullet are great for making quick and easy smoothies at a more affordable price.

Blender Versus Juicer

A blender blends the entire fruit/vegetable into smaller fragments until it becomes a thick liquid. A juicer on the other hand, removes the pulp and only keeps the juice.

The benefits of smoothies is that your drink will include the fibre, the nutrients from your fruits and vegetables plus the other macronutrients you add – protein and fat. Juicers allow for quick digestion of the vitamins and minerals stemming from the fruits and vegetables.

Frozen or Fresh

Store bought frozen fruit and vegetables are usually frozen at source, which means they can be more nutritional than fresh as they have not been transported for hours, sprayed for ripening, or sitting on a shelf in the store. Frozen fruit is often less expensive as well.

An excellent way to preserve and store your own produce is to freeze it yourself. This allows you to buy your favourite fruit and vegetables year round and add them to your smoothies as desired.

Organic Versus Conventional

Organic produce can be costly. It is not imperative you purchase organic; instead, aim to buy from local and trusted brands and get a wide variety of fruit and vegetables in your daily diet.

Dirty Dozen and The Clean 15

Every year the Environmental Working Group (EWG) puts out a list of the produce that contain the most pesticides called the Dirty Dozen. If possible, this produce should be purchased organic to avoid toxins. The Clean 15 is the produce with the least pesticides and is safer to purchase non-organic. The list below is the 2024 list.

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Tips for Making Delicious Protein Shake Recipes

• Make sure your blender is always clean and ready to use. It’s best to wash your blender right after you use it to avoid the contents drying up on the surface. An easy way to clean the blender is to add a bit of soap and water and press blend.
• Do all the prep work with your fruit and veggies before hand: chopping, cutting, cleaning, slicing, measuring, and freezing.
• To save even more time, you can prepare smoothie packs in advance and freeze them. Place the fruit and vegetables in a sealable bag or jar. Add in your dry additions and then greens.
• When ready, add the smoothie pack straight into the blender along with any liquids and blend. The smoothie packs will keep up to 3 months in your freezer.
• If your smoothie is too frothy, add less liquid next time. When using ingredients such as avocado and banana, you will generally need less liquid, as they have a high liquid content.
• If your smoothie is too bitter, reduce the greens and add more fruit.
• If your blender is not making your smoothie creamy and well blended, try cutting your ingredients into smaller pieces.
• You can boost the protein content of any smoothie by adding a serving or two of protein powder. When using flavoured protein powder, you may want to reduce the sweetener, as the powder is already sweetened.
• If your smoothie is too liquidy, add more ice.

Protein Shake & Smoothie Template

1. Choose a base liquid

• Water
• Coconut Water
• Plant Based Milk
• Cows’ Milk
• Green Tea
• Coffee

2. Choose your protein

• Whey Protein Powder
• Plant Based Protein Powders
• Protein Powder Blends
• Greek Yogurt
• Cottage Cheese

3. Choose your fruit

• Berries
• Mango
• Pineapple
• Bananas
• Apple, etc.

4. Choose your vegetables

• Greens (kale, spinach, swiss chard)
• Beats
• Cucumber
• Sweet Potato
• Celery
• Avocado

5. Choose a healthy fat

• Nuts (almonds, cashews, pecans)
• Seeds (chia, pumpkin, sesame, hemp, flax)
• Nut Butters
• Coconut Milk

6. More add-in options

• Oats
• Cinnamon
• Matcha
• Honey
• Dates
• Maca
• Ginger
• Tumeric

Protein Powder Guide

Animal Protein Powder

WHEY PROTEIN
Whey Protein is by far the most popular and cheapest choice available. This type of
protein contains all essential amino acids and is one of the byproducts of
milk. Whey is a perfect choice for pre and post workout as it is quickly
absorbed by the body.

CASEIN PROTEIN
This protein powder is the other byproduct of milk and also contains all essential amino acids. Casein has a slower absorption compared to whey. This powder also does not mix as well as casein powder.

EGG PROTEIN
This powder is made from the protein in eggs, making it a perfect option for people with dairy intolerance.

PEA PROTEIN
This protein powder is made from yellow peas. It is a good quality protein with 21g of protein per ¼ cup and it is easily digestible, making it a good choice for those with gastric discomfort.

RICE PROTEIN
Rice protein powders contain 22g of protein in ¼ cup and is considered a medium-digesting protein, fitting in between whey and casein powders. When combined with pea protein, it will give a full profile of the nine essential amino acids.

HEMP PROTEIN
This protein powder is not as high in protein as the other plant-based powders, but it makes up for it with its nutritional profile, providing a good source of zinc, iron, and omega-3s. A serving of hemp protein powder will provide around 12-15g of protein.

Note: Check the ingredients in your protein powder to ensure it is a good quality product without added fillers and that it is low in sugar.

Other Protein Sources for Protein Shake Recipes

If you don’t like to use protein powders, then you can substitute them for other options that will boost the protein content in your smoothies.

GREEK YOGURT
Greek yogurt is naturally packed with protein with around 10g per 100g of product. It will also provide a very creamy consistency to your smoothie.

COTTAGE CHEESE
Cottage cheese is another dairy product that works well in smoothies, boosting protein content and in turn making your smoothies more satisfying. 100g of cottage cheese provides around 11g of protein.

TOFU
This option is perfect for vegans as 100g of tofu will give you around 8g of protein, making your smoothie thicker and creamier.

GRASS FED MILK
If you use cow’s milk to replace the liquid in your smoothie, you will gain 8g of protein per each cup.

NUT BUTTERS
Peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter… are all good sources of protein, containing about 3-4g of protein per one tablespoon. They are also perfect to add creaminess and a slight savory flavor to your smoothie creations, just keep in mind that they are also high in fat.

SEEDS
Chia seeds, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds… are all great options to heighten the protein content of your smoothies. Apart from boosting the protein content they are also excellent sources of healthy fats.

QUINOA
Quinoa is an excellent choice of plant-based protein as it is a complete protein (nine essential amino acids) that our bodies cannot produce on its own. It’s also naturally gluten free and high in fibre. It has 8g of protein per 1 cup of cooked quinoa.

Now let’s get blending! Check out the following 5 Delicious Protein Shakes and don’t forget to grab the guide that has 30 more recipes!

1. Strawberry Burst Breakfast Protein Smoothie

Yield: 2

Strawberry Burst Breakfast Protein Smoothie

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Print

Ingredients

• 1 medium banana, sliced & frozen
• 1 cup (145g) strawberries, frozen
• 2 tbsp. rolled oats
• 2 scoops (50g) vanilla protein powder
• 2 tbsp. natural peanut butter
• 1 ½ cups (360ml) almond milk, unsweetened

Instructions

Place all the ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Serve right away.

Notes

Add ice to make thicker if necessary.

Nutrition Information:

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 305Total Fat: 11gCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 29g

2. Wake Me Up Protein Shake Recipe

Yield: 2

Wake Me Up Protein Shake

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Print

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp. rolled oats
• 1 ½ cups (360ml) almond milk, unsweetened
• ½ cup (120ml) water
• 1 scoop (25g) chocolate protein powder
• 2 tsp. instant coffee powder
• 2 tsp. cocoa powder, natural
• 1 banana
• ¼ cup (30g) pecans

Instructions

Place all the ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Serve right away.

Nutrition Information:

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 267Total Fat: 14gCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 6gProtein: 14g

3. Greenology Protein Shake

Yield: 2

Greenology Protein Shake

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Print

Ingredients

• 1 cup (240ml) almond milk, unsweetened
• 1 medium banana, frozen
• ½ mango, frozen
• 2 cups (60g) spinach
• ¼ cup (15g) pumpkin seeds
• 2 tbsp. hemp seeds hearts
• 1 scoop (25g) vanilla protein powder
• ¼ cup (60ml) water

Instructions

Place all the ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Serve right away

Nutrition Information:

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 266Total Fat: 10gCarbohydrates: 30gFiber: 5gProtein: 19g

4. Black Beauty Protein Shake

Yield: 2

Black Beauty Protein Shake

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Print

Ingredients

• ⅔ cup (160ml) almond milk, unsweetened
• ½ cup (120g) Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp. ground flax seed
• 1 tbsp. natural cocoa powder, unsweetened
• 2 tbsp. peanut butter
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 medium banana, chopped & frozen

Instructions

Place all the ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Serve right away.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 335Total Fat: 18gCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 10gProtein: 23g

5. Cinnamon Roll Smoothie

Yield: 2

Cinnamon Roll Smoothie

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Print

Ingredients

• 1 cup (240ml) almond milk, unsweetened
• ½ cup (120g) Greek yogurt
• 2 scoops (50g) vanilla protein
• powder
• 4 tbsp. rolled oats
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 banana, chopped & frozen

Instructions

Place all the ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Serve right away.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 274Total Fat: 4gCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 28g

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