RECIPE: Vanilla Pumpkin Protein Shake

This shake makes me super excited for my favorite time of year--fall! It turned out so yummy it actually deserves its own post ;)

One of my readers requested that I create a pumpkin protein shake. I tried a few recipes that I found online, but wasn't crazy about any of them. A lot of the shake recipes use bananas to sweeten them, and I just wasn't crazy about the combo of pumpkin and banana.

I used Torani Pumpkin Pie flavored syrup in this--if you really can't find it and/or don't want to buy it online, you could probably just use some sort of sweetener (1 Tbsp. of maple syrup would probably be good!) and extra pumpkin pie spice.


Here is the printer-friendly version of the recipe


Vanilla Pumpkin Protein Shake

Ingredients:

3/4 cup milk (I prefer whole milk, but use what you like)
1 serving vanilla protein powder
1/4 cup canned pumpkin
1 Tbsp. Torani Pumpkin Pie flavored syrup (you could substitute with 1 Tbsp. maple syrup and extra pumpkin pie spice if you don't want to buy the Torani syrup)
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
about 10 ice cubes
(optional) 1/4 tsp. each xanthan and guar gum* (see note below)

*I use the xanthan and guar gums in this shake, which are always optional (I like the thick, creamy texture they create). If you don't use them, I would cut back on the milk to about 1/2 cup, and freeze your pumpkin before using to get a thicker texture.

Directions:

Throw all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Top with whipped cream and pumpkin pie spice, if you'd like! Makes 1 large serving (16-18 oz) or 2 small servings.