DIY Protein Shake

There are lots of protein shakes you can get at Holland & Barret's or Tesco, but since I'm picky about where what I ingest comes from, I thought I'd have a go at making my own.

There's a great healthy foods shop on my local high street (if you're ever in the neighbourhood, stop by Nature's Genius). I get all these ingredients from there except the yoghurt and frozen berries.

Making the Powder Mix

Ingredients

20g Pea Protein

10g Spirulina

10g Linwood's Linseed, Pumpkinseed, Sunflower Seed and Goji Berry

If you're making your own recipe, it can be as simple as just the protein powder of your choice or as complicated as several dry powders mixed together. I thought it would make sense to combine the shake with some general nutrition, so I include spirulina and a milled seed, nut, and goji berry mix from Linwood's. I chose pea protein because I think of whey protein as a processed food and pea has the otherwise highest protein content except for soya. They say a good diet is diverse, and I've already included a lot of soya in this recipe.

I suggest using the recommended dosage for everything, unless you need to be frugal or don't like the taste of something. In my mix I cut the Linwood's down to 10g to save money.

In a medium mixing bowl over a scale, measure out a single serving of everything you're putting in the mix. Stir it together, then spoon the mix into your final container, paying attention to the number of spoonfuls so you can use the right amount in your shake.

Now you can mix together enough to fill your container. You don't have to make this blend beforehand, especially if your mix is simple. I find it's fiddly and time consuming sorting out the right measurements in spoonfuls for so many things. Another benefit to premixing is that you're more likely to measure accurate servings when making the shake.

Making The Shake

Ingredients

Homemade protein mix

Supplements

3 large spoonfuls of yoghurt or 1/4 block of silken tofu

Soya milk

Fresh or frozen fruit

You'll need a blender with more than 1L capacity if you want to make me than one glass at a time.

Spoon your yoghurt/tofu into the blender, then pour in the soya milk until it reaches the 300mL mark. Add any miscellaneous supplements then blend on low.

I add acidophilus for gastrointestinal health; all the women in my family have developed IBS at some point and I'm showing symptoms lately. I'd throw us a pity party, but I only have one toilet.

Now slowly spoon in your powder mix using the amount you figured before. When it's blended through, turn the blender up higher, and get your fruit out.

My fruit mix is a blend of frozen berries from Waitrose. Berries have a lower glycemic index than other fruits, so I choose them for this shake because I'm trying to keep my sugar intake down.

Add your fruit a little at a time making sure you don't go too fast or you'll get one of those annoying air pockets around the blades.

Once its blended through, you can pour and enjoy! You should probably rinse out the pitcher right away, or out gets a little difficult to clean properly.

Has anyone else tried making their own shake mixes? How did yours work out?