Last week's post was about ways to get more veggies (and fruits!) into your week to keep you fuller for longer, especially at meals and times when I usually have the hardest time getting them in. The post included a sneaky list of veggies you may not have thought of adding to a smoothie, to help you eat the rainbow, bulk up those grab and go meal options!

This week I'm following up with my go-to protein smoothie recipes for a pre-workout breakfast or a quick lunch or snack on the go!

My go-to protein smoothies!

1.Chocolate Covered Cherry:

• unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or whatever "milk" you use)
• scoop of choc protein
• 1 tbs coco power (no sugar) or raw cacao powder
• 1/2c frozen cherries (about 85g)
• Veggie of choice: handful of leafy greens, frozen zucchini or broccoli. Start small and move up as you start trusting it!

Blend well, can be thinned with additional liquid if needed.

2. Blue PB&J:

• unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• scoop vanilla protein
• 1-2 tbs PB
• 1/2 c frozen blueberries
• Frozen zucchini (work your way up even to 100 g!)

Blend and thin if necessary.

3. Sweet & Green:

• unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• scoop vanilla protein
• 1/2c- 1c frozen sweet green grapes- I have the "cotton" candy kind saved up! or green melon
• small amount spinach or kale
• few med. sized hunks of frozen avocado
• frozen zucchini

Blend and thin if necessary.

Tip: As written, these recipes are on the lower carb end, intended for a smaller or less active person or as a snack for an individual who has higher energy requirements. They are intended to provide solid energy as a time-saver but certainly NOT replace multiple meals per day. To replace an entire meal, as in having this smoothie for breakfast and only this smoothie, especially for a larger person, you would most likely need to add additional carbs, or make sure you are getting those in somewhere else as a snack. The simplest way to do this is increase the serving of fruit you are using, or add a little bit of cooked sweet potato or a fruit that is higher in carbs like banana. The yummiest method I've found though, which also adds a "cake" or "muffin" flavor in any smoothie, is to instead include a 1/4c (or more) dry old fashioned oats!

For example:

4. "Blueberry muffin" smoothie

• Unsweetened milk of choice
• Vanilla protein
• Zucchini
• Blueberries
• Oats!

5. "Carrot cake" smoothie

• Unsweetened milk of choice
• Vanilla protein
• Shredded carrot (unless your blender is super solid- aka a vitamix/ninja type, then you can throw in some bigger chunks and it will break it down for you)
• Banana
• Warming spices such as cinnamon or nutmeg (just a little)
• Oats

Play around with any of these, or make your own! You can also add vanilla extract to either one of these if you REALLY want to kick up that baked flavor, but just add a very very little bit!

What would YOUR protein smoothie have in it??

Next up, we'll be talking about a few after dinner "treats" that will stay within your macros, satisfy any dessert cravings you might have, and most importantly: help keep you full all evening and night to prevent night time snacking and eating!

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