Avocado Chocolate Protein Shake: Thick, Creamy and Ready in One Blend

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Half an avocado is the secret to a chocolate protein shake that tastes like a milkshake instead of chalk. It makes the shake thick and silky without any ice cream, and a frozen banana and a couple of dates do the sweetening.

The video is a quick 26-second clip of the shake coming together, set to music, so the full recipe lives here. It takes one blender and about two minutes.

What goes in it

• 1/2 medium avocado
• 8 oz milk — any kind will do
• 1 frozen banana
• 2 to 3 dates
• 1 tablespoon almond butter
• 1 cup of ice
• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder

Put everything in the blender, blend until smooth, and drink it right away.

Why put avocado in a protein shake?

Texture, mostly. Protein powder shaken up with milk tends to be thin, and a lot of shake recipes fix that with ice cream or yogurt. A ripe avocado does the same job. Its fat gives the shake body and a smooth finish, and the chocolate and banana cover its flavor so completely that most people never guess it is in there.

It also turns a shake into something closer to a meal. Avocado brings healthy fats and fiber, the almond butter adds a little more, and together they make it more filling than protein powder and milk alone. It is the same reason Becca leans on avocado in her avocado and greens smoothie.

A few notes before you blend

• Use a ripe avocado. It should give a little when you press near the stem. An underripe one tastes grassy and will not blend as smoothly. If you are unsure about one that has been sitting a while, here is how to tell if an avocado is bad, and when it only looks bad.
• Freeze the banana ahead. Peel it and slice it before it goes in the freezer. That frozen banana is a big part of the thick, cold texture.
• Soften hard dates. Pit them, and if they are dry, soak them in warm water for a few minutes so they blend in rather than leaving chunks.
• Any milk works. Dairy, almond, oat — use what you have in the fridge.

What to do with the other half

The recipe calls for half an avocado, which leaves the other half. Keep the pit in, wrap it tightly, and put it in the fridge for tomorrow’s shake or a slice of toast. If you have a few going soft at once, Becca’s avocado chia seed pudding is another good way to use them up.

A stainless steel avocado scoop makes quick work of getting the flesh out cleanly. And if you would like to make this with fruit picked from our own trees, our 4lb Hass box and 6lb Hass box ship free when we are harvesting — and between seasons you can join the waitlist on either page and we will email you when fruit is back. Until the trees are picking again, the avocado scoop, the Hawaiian shirt and our hats ship year-round.

This post is part of our guide to choosing, ripening and using avocados.