Lately I’ve gotten into a pretty bad habit of having something sweet after dinner most nights of the week. Now by something sweet I mean either So Delicious dairy-free ice cream or a handful of dairy-free chocolate chips. I don’t like not feeling like I’m in control of my body, and when I get on the couch with a little dessert that usually means I’m giving into my sweet tooth. To be honest, I never really had a craving for sweets until recently so this is new to me and I decided I wanted to kick the habit before it got even harder to break.
Let me be specific here, it was probably 4-5 nights per week that Mike and I were indulging. I wanted to cut this down to 1-2 nights. Not for any huge reason in particular other than not wanting to raise my blood sugar in the evening right before bed and feeling more in control of my body and what I eat. Ok, I guess those are pretty big reasons!
You guys know I enjoy protein shakes a few times a week. While I fully believe that we should eat real, whole foods, if time is an issue and I need to eat something quickly I’m all for making a quick shake. One evening I was wishing I had some chocolate chips to munch on and got the crazy idea to try making a dessert-like protein shake to try instead. It ended up being so yummy! While this is pretty darn healthy in my book, it doesn’t mean that I’ll be having one of these every time I’m craving something sweet. But it’s nice to have something to fall back on that is yummy and feels like I’m eating a dessert.
Before we get to the recipe, let’s talk about the benefits of what is in this delicious concoction.
Protein:
Protein keeps blood sugar levels steady (which is what we want!).
Fat:
Fat has less of an impact on blood sugar than carbohydrates do. When eaten with a meal, fat slows the absorption of said meal which results in less of a blood sugar spike.
Fiber:
Fiber also slows the absorption of nutrients, glucose in particular. Glucose is sugar and we want it to be absorbed slowly.
So, I wanted to make a dessert protein smoothie that had these components.
The recipe:
1 cup almond milk (I use Califia Farms unsweetened)
1 scoop of chocolate protein powder (This is what I use)
1 tbsp unsweetened almond or peanut butter- or nut butter of your choice! (Can also use coconut oil as a fat if you don’t want nut butter)
1 tbsp ground flax seeds – this is the fiber and thickens the smoothie! (I use these)
Ice – the more ice you use, the thicker it will be.
1 tbsp cacao nibs – to sprinkle on top of the shake (These are my fave)
Blend the ingredients together (minus the cacao nibs). Poor into a glass and sprinkle cacao nibs on top. Enjoy!
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