High Protein Vegan Vanilla Milkshake

High Protein Vegan Vanilla Milkshake

Today we are making a High Protein Vegan Vanilla Milkshake! Now, you may be used to chugging shakes made of whey protein (or vegan protein powder) to get your 20 grams of protein per shake after hitting the gym. But there are other sneaky ways to get in your daily dose – did you know that protein is important for the immune system in terms of creating the antibodies for your immune function? Aside from helping to build lean muscle, protein is important in a variety of ways for overall health.

So this creamy milkshake is made of a secret ingredient that you might not be able to guess – any ideas?! What’s a high-protein, mostly neutral-tasting vegan ingredient used in cooking? It’s tofu! Tofu, which comes from soybeans, has many different varieties and is great for protein intake on a plant-based diet, especially because it contains all nine essential amino acids, which is considered a full amino acid profile. There’s silken tofu, which is used in desserts and is the softest type, and then there’s extra-firm tofu, on the other end of the spectrum and is used for stir-fries, due to its firm texture.

Who said muscle growth only happens through animal-based protein? This vegan shake uses silken tofu for a smooth milkshake base, without the use of ice cream. I also used pure vanilla bean, scraped into the milkshake, for this divine french vanilla flavor – it’s a must-try! This quickly became my favorite beverage after I was able to replicate that french vanilla flavor and get in some plant protein. Pure maple syrup sweetens the drink, and vanilla extract adds that floral flavor that we know and love. Let’s get onto this 10-minute recipe!

Why You’ll Love This High Protein Vegan Vanilla Milkshake

Secret High-Protein Ingredient: Tofu plays an important role as the key ingredient in this vegan protein shake, and it’s a great option for making the base of the milkshake creamy without any refined sugars, animal products or gourmet vegan ingredients such as a pint of Ben & Jerry’s. Silken tofu is more commonly in dessert recipes, but is usually a hidden ingredient because you can’t always tell it’s there. Which makes it that much easier to use it in this milkshake and get away with it! All the while, you’re getting in a lot of plant-based protein as compared to the amount of protein in a regular old banana smoothie.

Budget-Friendly: This recipe is also budget-friendly and devoid of artificial flavors and additional processed ingredients. You don’t have to buy expensive protein powder to make this protein smoothie! There are many vegan protein powders on the market nowadays, such as a vegan protein blend of brown rice protein, pea protein powder and more.

However, there are also issues with the question of high quality ingredients being used. For example, heavy metals have been found in many powders, or digestive health issues that have been caused from whey, and a whole slew of articles you can find online on what’s “clean” for a balanced diet and what’s not. Now, that’s totally up to each person on what type of products they want to buy, and it’s nice that there are alternative ways to also get in protein!

Substitutions

Silken Tofu: Tofu is an amazing plant-based source of protein, with silken tofu having about 12 g protein coming just from this one ingredient in this recipe! Silken tofu can be found in many supermarkets next to the extra-firm tofu, or also in Asian-specific stores. This is the softest type of tofu and is commonly used in dessert recipes. However, it doesn’t have as much protein as the extra-firm variety.

Oat Milk: Oat milk works great in this recipe because of its slightly sweet and nutty flavor. However, you can substitute your favorite vegan milk with a neutral taste. For example, cashew milk, almond milk or another plant-based milk. To keep it refined sugar-free, choose your favorite vegan, unsweetened milk of choice that does not contain any added sugar.

Maple Syrup: You can control the amount of sweetener as desired in this drink so there is not as much sugar or artificial sweeteners as a milkshake would have. Substitute with another liquid, natural sweetener, like agave nectar. I have also made this recipe with 2 tablespoons of monkfruit sweetener here, instead of maple syrup!

Vanilla Extract: For best results, use pure vanilla extract, without added artificial colors and dyes (like caramel color). You can use artificial vanilla flavor as well. However, it may come off as more bitter and not as smooth or sweet as the pure version. I’ve tried this with a quarter of a freshly scraped vanilla bean and it had a french vanilla flavor. This was so delicious and had all natural flavors!

High Protein Vegan Vanilla Milkshake Recipe Notes

• For an extra-indulgent recipe, top this with vegan coconut whipped cream! Gay Lea brand makes delicious coconut-based whipped cream. Other brands such as ReddiWhip make almond or soy-based creams as well.
• For a chocolate flavor, add in some raw cacao powder. Adjust the amount of liquid and additional sweetener according to your taste preference.
• For additional protein, throw in some chia seeds and hemp seeds while blending.
• To make this recipe fit for ketogenic diets, substitute the maple syrup with a low-carb sweetener and the oat milk for a low-carb milk. Silken tofu is already very low in carbs for one serving.

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If you make this High Protein Vegan Vanilla Milkshake, then leave a comment and star rating! Don’t forget to tag your photos @peanut_palate on Instagram. Enjoy!