I don't talk about it much here but I'm a bit of a workout junkie. Every morning at 6 a.m. you will find me at the gym lifting heavy things with my friends. Afterwards I normally drink a quick recovery shake made from a powder but it's time to make something a bit more homemade. Especially because a daily smoothie is an easy way to get more greens in and I can use a few more in my diet day-to-day.

So I set out to make something with a similar nutritional profile to the shake mix I have been using. And I think I've done it in a mere 4 ingredients.

The result packs in 21g of protein and 43g of carbs (needed after a workout) without the use of some crazy whey protein powder. Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti protein powder, it's just not for me. Most are filled with crap I don't understand, and I hate being dependent on something I have to order in containers the size of a small child.

Instead I'd rather use something pretty accessible, like pasteurized liquid egg whites. I know, it sounds gross but TRUST ME. There's no taste. It's like adding protein water to your blender!

As for the texture... not slimy! When blended with other ingredients the egg white actually helps make a more smoothie like consistency.

I first made this combo with unsweetened dark cocoa powder (my favorite) but I picked up some cacao powder (cold-pressed cocoa beans) on a recent trip to the Dominican Republic and was not disappointed!

Here's what I did...

Ingredients

3 cups (85g) baby spinach or "Juicing Greens"
1 ripe banana
3 tablespoon (15g) unsweetened cocoa (or cocao) powder (or to taste)
½ cup pasteurized liquid egg white from the carton
Ice

Instructions

Put all ingredients except for the ice in the blender.

Process until smooth. Blend in the ice and serve!

It comes out a beautiful shade of army green.

I'm kidding, of course. It look gross but it's tasty and makes a quick on-the-go recovery shake for my busy mornings!

📖 Recipe