This creamy, coffee smoothie combines coffee,  Greek yogurt, dates and milk to make a delicious, quick meal packed with carbohydrates, fiber, protein and a kick of caffeine to wake you up and start your day. Perfect for busy mornings or as a protein-packed, afternoon pick-me-up.

I’m a big fan of coffee. Just thinking about that first warm cup gets me out of bed in the morning.  After my first cup, I  exercise, then drink another cup with my breakfast. After that morning routine, I’m ready for my day.

This past week, I did something a little different. My son had an early doctors’ appointment and we were running late. Since I didn’t have time for my typical breakfast, I decided to make a smoothie to go. I opened the refrigerator to grab my ingredients and saw my daughters bottle of cold brew. Though I buy it for her, I never actually drank it myself. I wondered what it would taste like mixed into a smoothie.

If I combined her cold brew coffee with some milk, yogurt and fruit,  I would get my morning caffeine fix and breakfast all in one. I immediately started blending. When it was blended, I poured my creamy coffee protein smoothie into a to-go cup and was on my way.  After the first sip, I was hooked!

The Ingredients In A Coffee Protein Smoothie

When making any smoothie, I generally recommend using between ¾  and 1 cup of liquid, especially if you plan to incorporate protein powder or other dry ingredients. The majority of the time, I use skim milk  as the main liquid. It’s packed with calcium, vitamin D and loads of other essential nutrients. And, since I don’t drink milk by the glass, incorporating it into my smoothies is an easy way to get those nutrients. For this smoothie, however, the main liquid is cold coffee, so it doesn’t require much milk. I used ¾ cup of cold coffee and ¼ cup of skim milk.

Reducing the skim milk down to ¼ cup meant a decrease in the protein content and some of the nutrients I rely on getting from my smoothies. I also didn’t think it would be creamy enough without the milk. Adding vanilla flavored Greek yogurt helped with that. Not only did it make this smoothie super creamy, it added over 15 grams of high-quality protein and some calcium. I added a couple tablespoons of vanilla protein powder to get the total protein content up to 21 grams.

Those ingredients alone would probably make a great smoothie, but they aren’t enough to make a meal. It needed a bit more carbohydrates and some fiber, too. For that, I added a few dates. I chose that fruit because I knew they wouldn’t change the flavor of the smoothie the way that a banana or other fruit would.

How To Make A Creamy, Coffee Protein Smoothie

Most of the time, I just suggest putting all of the ingredients in a high-powdered blender and processing until smooth. For this smoothie, though, I recommend processing the dates first. Put them in the blender with just the milk, protein powder and yogurt, first. Process those ingredients until the dates are chopped into small pieces. Then, add the coffee and ice and blended until it us super smooth and creamy.

This smoothie has a coffee flavor but it’s not too overwhelming. It’s refreshing, super creamy and caffeinated!

Nutrition Information In This Coffee, Protein Smoothie

This smoothie contains 240 calories, 39grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 1 gram of fat and 21 grams of protein. It also provides 20% of the daily value for calcium, 15% of the daily value for potassium and 6% of the daily value for vitamin D.

*The actual caffeine content depends on the type and strength of your coffee you use.

If you love coffee-flavored beverages, you might also like my pumpkin spice protein latte Or, if you just love smoothies, check out my chocolate, peanut butter banana smoothie or my fruity, pineapple banana smoothie.

Print Recipe

5 from 2 votes

Creamy, Coffee Protein Smoothie

This creamy, coffee smoothie combines coffee,  Greek yogurt, dates and milk to make a delicious, quick meal packed with carbohydrates, fiber, protein and a kick of caffeine to wake you up and start your day. Perfect for busy mornings or as a protein-packed, afternoon pick-me-up.

Author: Heather Mangieri, RDN

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup cold, brewed coffee
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, vanilla flavored
• 4 dates
• 2 tbsp whey protein powder, vanilla
• 1 cup ice

Instructions

• Put the Greek yogurt, dates, protein powder and milk in a high-powered blender and process until the dates are chopped into small pieces.
• Add the coffee and ice, then process until smooth and creamy.

Notes

• Recipes Makes : 1 Smoothie

• Nutrition Facts: 240 calories,  39 g carbohydrates,  2 g fiber,  32 g sugars,  1 g fat,  0 g saturated fat,  5 mg cholesterol,  21 g protein,  100 mg sodium, 20% DV for calcium, 15% DV for potassium, 6% DV for Vitamin D.

• Meal Planning Servings: 2.5 CHO; 3 PRO; 0 FAT

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?  Tag @heathermangieri  on Instagram and hashtag it #HeatherMangieriNutrition to all recipes. Or, Pin it on Pinterest for later!

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