In an effort to cram even more activities (i.e. Sleep) into my morning routines, I’ve started making protein smoothies to drink in the car on my drive into the office every morning.  The original recipe I found on Dashing Dish.  Her smoothie recipes are amazing, simple, and packed full of smart nutrition.  This recipe speaks to the heart of my eating plan philosophy: the largest volume of food for the smallest amount of calories, carbs & sugars, with the most protein possible.

Here is Katie’s original recipe:

Ingredients
1/2 cup  Cottage Cheese* (or 1 Cup Reduced Fat Greek Yogurt)1
1 scoop Protein powder (something that has around 100 calories per scoop – I love Designer Whey™ Protein Powder)
1-4 pkts Stevia or low calorie sweetener of choice
5-10  Ice cubes (depending on how thick you like it, use less for a thinner consistency)
1/2-1 cup Water (alter this according to desired consistency)
Optional 1/2 tsp xanthan gum (you can get this from most grocery stores in the gluten free section! Just a pinch of it makes your shake so thick and creamy)
4-6 WWP+

*1 Cottage cheese may sound strange, but TRUST me… this is what makes the ‘MILKSHAKE’ consistency! Also, if you are sensitive to dairy, you can use tofu to get the same consistency!

Now when I first read Katie’s plea to stick with the cottage cheese, I was one of the skeptics the asterisk was created for.  I’m glad I trusted her because she was right.

Here is my tweaked version of the recipe:

Ingredients
1/2 cup fat free cottage cheese (80 calories)
1 scoop (32 grams) Trutein Vanilla protein powder (120 calories)
4 pkts Splenda
large “stadium” cup of ice
4 pumps sugar free, fat free flavored syrup (hello Starbucks!)
3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (40 calories)
1/2 tsp. Xanthan gum (DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!)

Directions:
In base of blender, place 1/2 of the ice, cottage cheese, xanthan gum and top with remaining 1/2 of ice.  In a shaker cup with tight fitting lid, place Splenda and protein powder, add milk & flavored syrup.  Place lid on top TIGHT and shake till combined, add to blender over ice.

Pulse blender on low until just combined, stop blender, break up any air bubbles or chunks with a spoon.  Replace lid and blend on high 30-45 seconds until fully blended smooth.  Add up to 1/4 milk or cold water if needed.

First of all – the Xanthan gum is used as an emulsifier and thickening agent and in my opinion is what gives this shake the “wow” factor.  A little bit goes a long way so don’t let the sticker shock at the grocery store turn you off.  The reason I layer the xanthan gum over the cottage cheese but under some of the ice is strategic – this stuff will GUM UP the sides of your blender if it spatters (pun intended).  Layering in the ice takes care of that for the most part.

Feel free to modify how much ice you use in your smoothie but remember, the more ice you use, the more smoothie you will end up with.

Trutein is my favorite brand of protein right now.  It has a whopping 25 grams of protein for only 120 calories per serving.  It has 1 gram each of sugar, carbs & fat.  That is a hard combination to beat when you start comparing nutrition labels.  Plus, it’s a combination of whey, casein & egg white proteins and for tons of reasons I’ll save for another post, it’s the best for me and my personal needs.  You use what YOU feel best for YOUR needs.

I encourage you to visit Katie’s blog and take a peek at all the varieties she recommends and gives recipes for.  There are so many different ideas out there you could have a different shake every day (and I have!).

I’ve recently become a closet Food Gawker and Pinterest voyeur. I don’t post much on my own but I’ll lay in bed at night and putter around both sites. Mostly looking for inspiration in the kitchen and quite often I find myself getting lost among postings of cupcakes, frosting tip ideas and DIY’s galore.

One night recently I favorited a post on Glazed Doughnut Muffins because seriously, how could you resist this:

I finally had the time today to get in the kitchen and pull it all together. I only made one slight adjustment to the recipe. It calls for “milk” – all I had was skim milk and in my mind, baked goods need some milkfat in them – so I subbed 1/4 cup of the milk for heavy whipping cream. I’m sure they’d have been alright with plain skim milk, but it made me feel better to make them just a bit more fattening than they already were.

I also had to bake them significantly longer than the recipe suggested, so if you try them, test afer 15 minutes then keep a close eye on them and yank them outta the oven once a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

For the Muffins:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup milk

For the Glaze:
3 tablespoons butter; melted
1 cup confectioners’ sugar; sifted
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons hot water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with muffin liners or spray with nonstick cooking spray.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter, vegetable oil, and sugars till smooth. Beat in eggs, one at a time. With the mixer on low speed, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and vanilla until just combined. Stir the flour into the butter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure everything is thoroughly combined.

Spoon batter into cups, filling the cups, and smooth tops. Divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups. Bake until muffin tops are a pale golden and springy to the touch, 15 to 17 minutes, rotating halfway through baking time. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool 10 minutes before glazing.

To make the glaze, In a medium bowl mix together the melted butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and water. Whisk until smooth.

When muffins have cooled slightly, dip the muffin crown into the glaze and allow the glaze to harden. Once hardened, dip a second time and allow to harden then serve.

Yields: 12 muffins

Note: Muffins will keep at room temperature for about a day.

Source: Sweet Pea’s Kitchen