Cool down, refresh, and refuel with this bright and flavorful Lemon Ginger Berry Protein Smoothie. Perfect for hot summer afternoon snacks – or post-workout. Thank you to KURA protein powder for sponsoring this post!
For the past few years, I’ve probably gotten at least one email a week asking me if I want to sample/review a protein powder. A couple of them I’ve accepted (and then not loved, which is why you haven’t heard about them), but the vast majority I’ve declined. Most protein powder out there seems to have stevia (blech, hate the taste), or an artificial sweetener, or a gross chalky taste, or other weird additives. I don’t use protein powder super often, as you guys know I’m all about the real food, but I do like to have it on hand to toss into smoothies made with almond milk or coconut water or another low-protein liquid, or in the occasional baked good/snack (like my Nutty Protein Granola Bars).
By the time KURA reached out to me a couple months ago to try out their protein powder, I’d just about given up on finding a decent flavored one, but decided to give them a shot anyway. I was happy to see that it did not contain any added sugar (just that naturally occurring in the milk lactose), and also didn’t have any stevia or artificial sweeteners, flavors, preservatives, or colors. The flavor options were simple, too, which I liked since that meant it would be easy to mix them into things. Vanilla, Chocolate, and Berry.
Each serving has 14 grams of New Zealand dairy protein; I love that it’s from New Zealand as their dairy is basically the gold standard worldwide: antibiotic free, grass-fed, and high quality. KURA also has 26 additional vitamins and minerals (100% of the RDA for Vitamin D, C, B12, and more), 5 grams of fiber, over 5 grams of omega-3s (4 times that found in a single serving of salmon), and – my favorite – added probiotics and prebiotics. Probiotics are awesome for gut health and one of the very few supplements I occasionally recommend to my AnneTheRD clients, so I love when they are added in to products.
When I received the protein powder, though, I was still skeptical – I figured it would be chalky or have a weird flavor, like the ones I’ve tried recently. Well, what do you know? This is officially the tastiest protein powder I’ve tried. A nice, smooth flavor, no weird aftertaste, and no chalky or gritty situations. Hizzah!
I’ve tried all three flavors now and really like all of them. The chocolate is awesome in my Chocolate Cherry Espresso Smoothie, and the vanilla goes well with basically anything, but the berry is probably my #1 fave at the moment because it pairs so well with all the great fresh summer berries. I was surprised I liked the berry one so much because normally berry-flavored stuff tastes fake to me – but this doesn’t! So, for today’s recipe, let’s get our berry on!
I wanted something really refreshing and flavorful for this hot weather, so I used a mix of coconut water and pure green tea (unsweetened) as the liquid base. If you don’t have green tea on hand or don’t want caffeine, you can just use all coconut water or replace the green tea with another tea, like white tea or chamomile – up to you! I really love ginger in smoothies and drinks, so I tossed some of that in, too, plus some bright and tart lemon juice. Strawberries added some sweetness (another kind of berry would work great here as well), and the last ingredient was a little turmeric – an awesome spice that has been touted recently for its anti-inflammatory properties.
The final result was just as refreshing and delicious and I had hoped. The perfect sweaty summer afternoon pick me up – or post-workout snack.
I hope you enjoy it, too! Here’s the recipe. 
Lemon Ginger Berry Smoothie
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Prep Time: 5 minutes
Keywords: blender smoothie snack gluten-free vegetarian
Ingredients (1 large or 2 small smoothies)
- 1 cup coconut water
- 1/2 cup pure green tea, unsweetened (or, omit and add another 1/2 cup coconut water)
- 1 scoop KURA berry flavored protein powder
- 1/2 cup strawberries or other berry
- 1 to 2 inch piece fresh ginger
- 1 and 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric (optional)
- 2 cups ice (less if using frozen berries)
Instructions
Thank you again to KURA for sponsoring this post and for the opportunity to try out their products! If you’d like to try KURA yourself, you can buy individual packets or large bags (1 pound/12 servings) over on Amazon. Use the code KURAFANN for 10% off your order!
Lemon Ginger Berry Protein Smoothie Recipe originally appeared on fANNEtastic food | Washington D.C. area Registered Dietitian | Recipes + Healthy Living + Fitness on August 5, 2015.
The post Lemon Ginger Berry Protein Smoothie Recipe appeared first on fANNEtastic food | Washington D.C. area Registered Dietitian | Recipes + Healthy Living + Fitness.