I did a keto Q&A the other day on instagram (and then it immediately crashed for 10 hours, naturally). But during the short period of time it was actually up, I received a lot of great questions. Many of them were ones that I honestly just don’t think about after 7-ish years of playing around with veg-keto, so it was nice to get other perspectives. One question I was surprised to receive with some frequency was “what kinds of vegan keto smoothies can I have?”

If you’ve followed any of my meal plans, you will have noticed that I like to use smoothies in place of breakfast a lot. I find them to be an easy way to start off with a lot of protein, healthy fats and greens. They’re portable enough to bring to work, can be made the night before and really only take five minutes anyway. So, they’re kind of perfect for those mornings when you want to sleep in and don’t want to have to budget time for making any sort of breakfast for yourself.

This particular shake is an ode to the famed “Shamrock Shake” from a certain global fast food chain that appears around March 17th. Of course, this version is dairy free (and just generally vegan), sugar-free and loaded with nutrition! Instead of using food dye and flavoring to achieve that minty taste and color, this keto-friendly shake relies on spinach and fresh mint.

Notes on Making Vegan Keto Shamrock “Shake” (dairy free, sugar-free, high-protein):

• You can adjust the consistency of this shake by playing around with the proportion of ice to non-dairy milk. For instance, the recipe with 1 cup of non-dairy milk is thin enough to be consumed through a straw, but with the 2 cups of ice, it’s easier to eat with a spoon. Using 1/2 cup nondairy milk and 1 cup of crushed ice gets you something in the middle.
• You can use whatever protein powder you like for this. I happened to use Vega Sport in vanilla, but there are plenty of low-carb vegan protein powders out there (click here for a list!).
• If you are using an unflavored protein powder, add in a 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract.
• If you can’t tolerate avocados (or don’t have them on hand), replace the 1/2 cup of mashed avocado with coconut cream.
• Variation: Matcha Shamrock Shake – blend in 1 tsp of matcha powder with the shake ingredients. Mint, vanilla and matcha is a delicious combination that I drank regularly back in my barista days.
• Variation: Grasshopper Smoothie – stir in 10g of sugar-free chocolate chips and drizzle a sugar-free chocolate sauce on top.
• The green sprinkles are made by shaking some unsweetened, shredded coconut in a sealed jar with a little bit of spirulina.
• The cream on top is just coconut cream!
• The garnish here is completely unnecessary and not included in the nutrition info!
• Nutrition Note: While I strive to provide accurate nutrition information, different brands and varieties of ingredients have different nutritional profiles, so your calculations may differ.

Vegan Keto Shamrock “Shake” (dairy free, sugar-free

Print Recipe

This shamrock shake-inspired vegan keto smoothie is the perfect way to start your day! Or top it with coconut cream and sugar-free chocolate sauce for a decadent dessert!

Course Breakfast

Cuisine vegan keto

Servings 1

Calories 352

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup 28g vanilla protein powder of choice (I used Vega Sport)
• 2 cups 60g loosely packed spinach (less if you aren't obsessed with spinach)
• 1/4 cup 7g loosely packed fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 cup 115g mashed avocado OR full-fat canned coconut milk
• 1 cup nondairy milk of choice OR ~2 cups 240g ice cubes (for a much thicker drink)

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to a high powered blender and blend until smooth.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 352kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 24.9g | Fat: 24.5g | Fiber: 10.9g