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Sweet strawberries and cool, creamy coconut are the perfect pair for a delicious (and low carb) breakfast or snack. If your go-to protein shake is chocolate or vanilla, it's high time for you to shake things up 😄 and try this fresh fruity treat.
We all love strawberries in the form of shortcake, pie and other sugary desserts. But sometimes you just need a little healthy reset, right? And the best part is, that reset can be just as sweet, fruity and delicious.
It's the kind of smoothie you'll want to make again and again. And I've got good news for you - you can meal prep little smoothie bags so you can blend up one of these in about a minute.
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5 things you'll Love About Strawberry Coconut Cream Shakes
- You can make this in less than 2 minutes.
- This shake contains healthy fats (thank you organic coconut cream!)
- It's low in net carbs: It contains 21.2 grams of carbs, but also has 7.2 grams of fiber! Which brings the total down to 14.5 grams of net carbs.
- It's an easy way to get a lot of protein in your diet - 30 grams!
- Delicious way to sneak in some nutrients from veggies.
Here's What You Need 🍓
- frozen, unsweetened strawberries - The picture shows whole strawberries, but I like to use sliced frozen strawberries when I can, they will blend up better
- frozen avocado - here's a tip: when you have some overripe avocado, cut it up and put it in a freezer bag. It's excellent in protein shakes and smoothies, and you won't have to throw any away.
- coconut cream - you can also use full-fat coconut milk. I use canned coconut cream because it's very rich and creamy, like heavy whipping cream. Trader Joe's is my favorite brand to use since there are no preservatives or artificial ingredients.
- vanilla protein powder - I usually use whey. If you're dairy free, scroll down to see some great substitutes.
- beet root powder - I usually buy this online. I have been able to get the best price there. I'll include a link for you below.
- milk - to keep this low carb, you will need to use an unsweetened, non-dairy milk. I love cashew milk, almond milk, or coconut milk.
- one more thing you might want to add: If your strawberries are less sweet, you will probably find that you want to add a little something to boost the flavor. My favorite thing to add is a True Lemonade packet (not a sponsor). I love these because they are only 10 calories per packet; have no artificial colors or flavors; and are sweetened with stevia. It adds the perfect tangy/sweet flavor to a strawberry shake, but still keeps it low in carbs.
How to Save Coconut Cream
You only need 2 tablespoons of coconut cream for this shake, so what do you do with the rest?
You could put it in a container and stash it in the fridge, hoping that you'll find some recipe that sounds good that uses coconut cream, that you actually have the ingredients to make... then a few weeks later you just end up wondering what it is and throw it away.
OR - you could do what I always do: pour it into silicone ice trays and freeze it! It's a great way to have perfect little cubes of coconut cream to add to smoothies, or you can use them in other recipes - when you're ready for it, it will be there for you!
p.s. Can you tell from the picture how hard it is to pour coconut milk while looking through a camera? There were a lot of spills! 😂
How to Make This Dairy Free
It's so easy to make this a dairy free or vegan shake. All you need to do is sub the whey protein powder for a non-dairy protein powder like one of these:
Beets. Blenders. Battlestar Galactica.
This is the brand of beet powder we have at our house. I love it because the only ingredient is organic beet root. And you get a lot for the price too.
And I've had a few blenders over the years, but by far my favorite blender is my Vitamix. This is the kind of blender that you buy once, and you'll never have to get another one! It's a real powerhouse, and I love it. You will hand this one down to your kids before you have to replace it.
My favorites
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → Strawberry Coconut Cream Shake - let's do this!
It could not be easier to whip up this shake. For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card. But check out these pictures to see how easy it is.
It doesn't look like it will make a lot, but it does. You will end up with over a quart of shake - about 34 ounces!
Step 1: Combine frozen strawberries, avocado, coconut cream, protein powder, and beet powder in a blender.
Step 2: Slowly pour in unsweetened coconut milk just below, or up to the level of the ingredients in the blender. It may be a little more or less than 2 cups. Don't go higher than that, or it might have a thin, watery consistency. You can always add a little more (if you need to) as you blend it.
Step 3: Blend on high speed until all ingredients are creamy and smooth.
Step 4. Add a sweetener/flavor packet if desired. I highly recommend True Lemonade strawberry!
Quick Tip! ❄️
If you have any leftover coconut strawberry smoothie, they make great popsicles. Pour into a popsicle mold and freeze. The high fat content = extra creaminess when frozen!
Make Protein Shake Packs for Meal Prep
- Freeze some coconut cream as described above.
- Freeze some avocado and strawberries, or buy some from the grocery store (you can even find frozen avocado!)
- Get out some quart sized freezer bags, and open them up.
- To each bag add strawberries, avocado, coconut cream cubes, beet root powder, and protein powder.
- Label it, seal it, and keep them in the freezer.
- When you want a shake, add contents of a freezer bag to the blender. Just add milk and blend. Fastest breakfast ever!
Strawberry Coconut Cream Protein Shake Recipe
My Strawberry Coconut Cream smoothie is a really good balance of protein, fat, and carbs to keep you going strong for hours. That little bit of beet gives this just the right shade of pink - it looks like a strawberry milkshake from a restaurant!
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 1 large shake - about 34 ounces 1x
- Category: breakfast
- Method: blender
- Diet: Low Calorie
Ingredients
- 1 cup frozen strawberries
- ¼ cup frozen avocado, diced
- 2 tablespoons canned coconut cream
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- 1 tablespoon beet powder
- 2 cups unsweetened low carb milk,( see notes below)
- 1 packet low or zero calorie sweetener, (see notes below)
Instructions
- Combine frozen strawberries, avocado, coconut cream, protein powder, and beet powder in a blender.
- Slowly pour in unsweetened coconut milk just below, or up to the level of the ingredients in the blender. It may be a little more or less than 2 cups. Don't go higher than that, or it might have a thin, watery consistency. You can always add a little more (if you need to) as you blend it.
- Blend on high speed until all ingredients are creamy and smooth.
- Taste and add a sweetener/flavor packet if desired. I highly recommend True Lemonade strawberry!
Notes
You can easily replace the strawberries with raspberries for a delicious variation - keep the beet powder to really bring out the red raspberry color.
Milk options: To keep it low carb, use an unsweetened, non-dairy milk. We really like cashew milk, almond milk, or coconut milk.
Low carb sweetener options: I always add a packet of True Lemonade to my strawberry shake. Read about it in this post, or check out the link.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving, about 32 ounces
- Calories: 388
- Sugar: 9.6 g
- Sodium: 359.4 mg
- Fat: 14.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 21.7 g
- Fiber: 7.2 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Frequently Asked Questions
The trick is to use it in combo with a few other great tasting ingredients to help tone down the flavor. Protein powder is most often used in protein shakes, and you can improve the flavor of shakes a lot by including milk, fruit, and nut butter to improve the flavor.
Yes you can. The key is to look at the higher carb ingredients and find low carb substitutes. Cow's milk contains more carbs and calories, but unsweetened almond milk has very few calories and tastes great in protein shakes. Fruit is often high in carbs and calories, but berries are lower in calories. Frozen avocado adds very few carbs, and gives your protein shake a rich and creamy texture.
Blender Breakfasts You Will Love
Roundup! 🤠🐎
Did you know this recipe is part of my Delicious Recipes with No Sugar roundup? Come by to see all the recipes - you might find some new favorites!