Blend up this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie for an energizing breakfast, or recovery after a workout. Fruity and full of chocolate flavor, it feels decadent while still being good for you!

Blend up this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie for an energizing breakfast, or recovery after a workout. Fruity and full of chocolate flavor, it feels decadent while still being good for you!  | foxeslovelemons.com

What’s in a name? After reading way too much about the importance ascribed to celebrity baby names (I will always read People magazine as a guilty pleasure in doctor and dentist waiting rooms), apparently, quite a bit.

While the stakes of naming a recipe are quite a bit lower than the stakes of naming a celebrity baby, the name of a recipe CAN still make or break it in the eyes of the internet.

Without going into too much detail of the science behind search engines, just know that I hem or haw over these names quite a bit.

But, on this blog, flavor will always be queen. That’s why this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie recipe ended up in a different place, name-wise, than I was planning on.

You see, I really wanted to make a RED VELVET protein smoothie. The main flavoring of a red velvet cake is simply cocoa powder, but of course, the color comes from an absolute ton of artificial food coloring (unlike my blueberry lemon smoothie, which is naturally bright purple and my lemon smoothie that gets it’s rich yellow color for turmeric).

I didn’t want to use food coloring, but try as I might to get beets to naturally flavor this smoothie red, it just wasn’t going to happen (plus I wasn’t a huge fan of the flavor the beets brought to the party).

And I wasn’t about to sacrifice the flavor of the smoothie just for the color. So, I got the flavor to a place I was really happy with and decided to simply re-name the recipe. Maybe not all smoothies can emulate cake as much as my carrot cake smoothie.

While I can’t really call it red velvet since it’s not red at all, just know that it kind of tastes like red velvet. And that it tastes REALLY good.

Blend up this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie for an energizing breakfast, or recovery after a workout. Fruity and full of chocolate flavor, it feels decadent while still being good for you!  | foxeslovelemons.com

The bulk of the smoothie comes from fruit like bananas and strawberries (or you could use raspberries). It’s sweetened slightly with agave nectar and vanilla extract.

Then comes the protein. I promised you high protein, and you’re getting high protein.

Not only is there cottage cheese and almond milk in here, but we’ve also got Chocolate Protein Powder going on.

So, while it’s not the red velvet smoothie I was originally after, I’m in a happy place with this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie. I’ve been whipping them up mid-morning after working out. Enjoy!

Blend up this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie for an energizing breakfast, or recovery after a workout. Fruity and full of chocolate flavor, it feels decadent while still being good for you!  | foxeslovelemons.com
Blend up this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie for an energizing breakfast, or recovery after a workout. Fruity and full of chocolate flavor, it feels decadent while still being good for you!  | foxeslovelemons.com

High Protein Cocoa Smoothie

Yield: Makes 1 large smoothie
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes

Blend up this High Protein Cocoa Smoothie for an energizing breakfast, or recovery after a workout. Fruity and full of chocolate flavor, it feels decadent while still being good for you!

Ingredients

  • 5 strawberries, hulled and sliced
  • 1/2 ripe banana, broken into a few pieces
  • 2 scoops chocolate protein powder
  • 1 cup ice
  • 1/3 cup almond milk
  • 1/3 cup cottage cheese
  • 1 tablespoon agave nectar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Mini chocolate chips, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

  1. In blender, combine strawberries, banana, protein powder, ice, almond milk, cottage cheese, agave nectar and vanilla; blend until smooth. Serve immediately, garnished with mini chocolate chips, if desired.

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