Chocolate Banana Protein Shake

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Since being pregnant I’ve been striving to get 80-100 grams of protein a day. Protein is vital to a healthy pregnancy and baby development. My midwife is a stickler about getting enough protein everyday and one of the ways she recommends doing it is by making a protein shake (or two, depending on how far along you are) everyday.

It makes it easier to get a lot of protein in one place and not feel like you are eating all day long. You can also add different things to it for even more protein, like Greek yogurt (Chobani has the most protein per serving I found so far).

One thing to watch for though is to make sure that the protein powder you use has very little or no sugar in it.

The one thing that stands out the most to me about getting enough protein everyday is the difference it has made for me personally as far as swelling. If I have all that I am supposed to, I barely swell at all, even after being on my feet all day. If I don’t, I can tell, as my ankles get puffy. It really makes a difference!

There are lots of different recipes online for protein shakes. The one that I use I found on Pinterest. It is low sugar and high protein. Here is the link for the original, but as you can see I tweaked it for my own use.

Chocolate Banana Protein Shake

1 cup 2% milk (about 8 grams of protein)

1/2 frozen banana

ice cubes

1-2 scoops of protein powder (I am using 2 scoops of vanilla flavored powder and getting 52 grams of protein from it)

2 tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth.

Enjoy!

24 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 8

Today the things I'm thankful for may seem silly, but I am grateful for them :)

  Coffee and chocolate are two of my very favorite things :) And when they are together--almost Heaven on earth!
 Coffee is one of my best friends. Unfortunately, I am usually not a very nice person in the mornings until I get my coffee. My siblings have been known to warn others about me before I have my "morning devotions" ;) I've also heard things like "creature from the Black Lagoon" and "Mrs Grinch" whispered as I made my way to the coffee pot. Sad, but true...things are getting better though. I'm also an afternoon coffee lover. I look forward to my coffee in the afternoon so much everyday. When I lived at home one of my favorite times of the day would be when we would all stop for coffee. It just isn't the same sipping coffee alone.
 Believe it or not, I drink my coffee black, with no cream or sugar. My brothers drink it how they say they like their girls: blonde and sweet. Oh brother....

Ah chocolate, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways! I love thee in cakes, in cookies, in ice cream and all by thyself. I love you in almost every form you come in. I'm not sure who brought chocolate to the New World, but I am so glad they did.

Apparently I'm not too silly dedicating a blog post to coffee and chocolate--Tchaikovsky wrote two pieces in The Nutcracker Ballet one titled "Coffee" and the other "Chocolate". Maybe he felt the same way about them as I do. Below are both pieces, so grab a cup of coffee and some chocolate and enjoy!

Whole Wheat Brownies

This is a great brownie recipe that my mom created. It uses 100% whole wheat flour, so you don’t feel quite as guilty indulging in them, but I wouldn't consider them a health food ;) They are wonderful with vanilla ice cream, or just by themselves with a big glass of milk. They can be made even healthier by using homemade butter, freshly ground flour, and fresh yard eggs…

Whole Wheat Brownies

1 c. butter, softened

2 c. sugar

5 eggs

½ c. cocoa

1 t. vanilla

1 c. whole wheat flour*

Cream together butter, sugar and eggs. Add remaining ingredients and pour in a 9inX13in baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

You can also stir in nuts and chocolate chips when you add the flour.

*We normally use the Golden 86 or Prairie Gold varieties. White flour can also be used.