The Shake

5 from 39 votes

This is the BEST, creamiest protein shake. You'll forget why you ever needed ice cream before! And it's massive.... my love language. Sounds like a process, but it takes me five minutes. WORTH IT.

Prep Time5

Course: Dessert/Snack

Cuisine: Shake

Keyword: blend, cocoa powder, pb2, pbfit, powdered peanut butter, pro yo, protein, protein ice cream, shake

Servings:

Calories: 156kcal

Ingredients

In my Ninja IQ

1.5-2 cups ice 180-200 g
3/4-1 cup cashew milk 180-200 g
1 Tbsp Califia Farms Almond Milk Creamer (Not essential... just extra creaminess! All flavors are good! 15 g)
1 serving of your favorite protein powder 4c/1f/20p (my favorites options are linked below) Usually about 30 grams
1-1.5 Tbsp dark or jet black cocoa powder 7-10 g
1/4-1/2 tsp Maldon flake salt (don't skip!) A little less if you're using regular kosher salt
1/4 tsp stevia if you like things sweeter Optional- I don't use this anymore
4-5 squirts of coconut extract Optional- Almond is also amazing, but a little goes far, don't over do it.
1/4 tsp xanthan gum don't get heavy handed here, it can get weird with too much! But it is a texture game changer.

The macros are for the shake alone, but this is what I add to MINE every night after it's blended:

2.5 Tbsp 20 g powdered peanut butter barely stirred in to the top for maximum chunkiness (do not blend it in! SO much better this way.)
8 Tbsp 20 g almond milk Reddi Whip Coconut is my second fave, use what you love!
1 Tbsp roasted cocoa nibs 10 g (these are hard and bitter so be warned, but I love!)
1 Handful of corn chex, crushed (10 g) or I LOVE 10 g of toasted almonds when I've got room for more fat.
1/4 of a banana diced small to spread the wealth! (35 g) (lately I prefer to blend this in FROZEN instead of the xanthan! You can experiment)
1 Handful of rice crispies 5 grams
1 Pinch of flake salt

Instructions

Add all of the shake ingredients to the jar of your Ninja IQ. (I like to keep all of my bits and pieces in a special shake drawer right near the blender. to simplify the process! I even keep the 1/4 tsp measuring spoon in there to use on the salt, stevia, and xanthan.)
Blend for a full cycle using the Auto IQ Blend button. It will run for 40 seconds, stopping and going. I like to then hit "start" and let it run for and additional 10-20 seconds. This depends on your ice, protein powder, and maybe the temperature of your house! Sometimes I don't need this extra blend. The key is to see it really come together and become lighter in color, then grow taller. If your shake is a little icy, blend longer next time! If it's too frothy or whipped, blend shorter next time.
Pour it into a big insulated tumbler and top with your favorite toppings. But I'm just gonna tell you, 20 grams of powdered peanut butter stirred in just BARELY so it's nice and cit a little chunky--- is ALMOST mandatory. It's magic.
The macros below are for the shake alone, to make it easier for you to track what you want and what fits for you. But of course I like mine topped like crazy so there's texture in every bite. It's the best thing ever and I never want to break up with it. I like to add the toppings in the order listed. And sometimes crumble 10 grams of G2G bar as well! (More is better ha!) I don't mix in, or layer. But I eat by dunking my long spoon right down the middle almost trying to avoid the toppings. You'll inevitably get plenty stuck to each bite and then there's still so much good stuff left at the bottom! It's an art. Haha.

Notes

Protein Powder: Feel free to use what you have if you love it! These are simply my very favorite NATURALLY sweetened protein powders after trying a LOT haha.
- My current FAVORITE is the chocolate by Active Stack. It's a hydrolyzed beef protein powder, rather than your typical whey. This means it's dairy-free, and easier on digestion for lots of us. Ingredient list is very short and simple. It tastes like good chocolate milk. I love it. Their vanilla is also very good and I feel like this brand blends up the very CREAMIEST in the shake. My affiliate code "Lillie" saves 10% on their site.
- For a little variety, I love to do a half scoop of that Active Stacks chocolate with a half scoop of another favorite like the CSE chocolate peanut butter, or s'more. Ross loves the maple donut. LOTS of yummy flavors over there if you love variety. You can also use my affiliate code "Lillie" to save 10% off at CSE.
- I also really like the Bad Athletics Coconut, or Salted Caramel. This is another one I like to combine WITH the chocolate active stacks. You can use my code "badlillie" for 10% off of their site.
The macros below are for the shake alone. But for my fully topped version, the macros are 426 cal/45C/12.8f/34.6p/9.2 fiber.
- For the shake alone, with NO TOPPINGS, search "Lillie Eats and Tells The shake- no toppings" on My Fitness Pal.
- For the shake with ALL of my toppings: search "Lillie Eats and Tells The shake- with toppings"
Blender:
- Obviously, use and try to perfect using whatever blender you have! But for me, the Ninja IQ makes this so much smoother and more consistent. It's small enough that I don't mind leaving it on the counter, and feels so much quicker to clean than my big blender. We have a Vitamix as well, but once I got the Ninja IQ (NOT THE BIG NINJA) I've never gone back. We use it multiple times a day, so we have gone through two, but it's worth it to me.
- If using a Vitamix or something similar, blend on low to let it get going, then gradually move it up to medium for about a minute and a half. You want to hear the crunching of the ice stop and let it get to a consistent hum. If it's getting stuck at all, then I raise it to high for a bit to get it all nice and smooth. But I don't like it frothy so I resist blending on high for too long. Obviously blend to your preference! But you want to see the xanthan really pull it all together into one consistent lighter color. You can tell when it's really pulled together.

Nutrition