I know I know, drinking protein shakes/smoothies are such a controversial thing in the nutrition world, but if I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again - do what works. This has never rang more true for me in this season of life where I can go a whole day without stopping to eat, failing to hydrate, or even peeing. What easy for me is to scoop some food into a blender, add some protein powder to it and call it good. Especially in the middle of scorching Texas summer when the thought of heating up food and eating it sounds pretty terrible. Thus, I’ve been on a protein shake kick and I’m not made about it one bit!

I created this Pina Colada Protein Shake because I love tropical fruit and in particular bananas and pineapples! Little know fact about me, I really don’t like any other fruits of any kind besides those two - I KNOWWWWW. It’s terrible. And I know berries are low sugar, and I know they have antoxidants and blah blah blah, I just DON’T. LOVE. THEM. Not like the sugariest most yummy fruits in all the land, my little bananas and pineapples! Throw some mango in there and we’d be GOLDEN.

I’ve also been working out…HARD. And really actively trying to put on a good amount of muscle, and I can never seem to eat enough protein or carbs, so this is the quickest way for me to get some instant nourishment post workout!

Smoothie Tip #1) Because Tim and I both drink one protein shake a day, we buy a crap ton of bananas. CRAP TON translates into two big bunches a week. We let them brown a bit and then cut them up into smaller pieces and freeze them to have plenty for the week. The other bundle we either eat as a family, or we’ll freeze if we don't make it through them quickly.

Smoothie Tip #2) When you freeze the bananas split them into smaller chunks and make sure you freeze them flat if possible. They can freeze in big chunks otherwise and it makes it harder to blend!

Smoothie Tip #3) Don’t overfill your blender. JUST TRUST ME ON THIS ONE LOL.

I recently found out that dairy doesn’t sit well with me, so I’ve been using this Bone Broth Protein Powder (use the code MODERNMAMAS for 15% of your order) for most of my smoothies. We are also potentially going to be ordering a Whey Protein Isolate to try (I learned from this post on Fed + Fit how to source a lactose free protein powder). Bottom line, if you’re a smoothie lover like me and need a fast way to get some nutrients in, I think you’ll love this quick and easy shake!

Pina Colada Protein Shake

Ingredients:

• 1 small frozen banana

• 1/3 heaping cup of canned pineapple chunks

• 1/3 cup pineapple juice (reserved from can)

• 1 cup coconut milk

• 1 serving unflavored protein powder of choice

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

2. Serve immediately and enjoy!