Dirty chai protein shake — it DOES sound bad!!!!! I have to be honest though, this yummy protein shake isn’t really a DIRTY chai. A real dirty chai latte is a chai latte with espresso added. My version of a dirty chai protein shake is a chai protein shake with some coffee flavor added. I personally like this version because while I really love coffee flavor, I am not a fan off coffee itself, but the caffeine is helpful to me because of my strange sleep schedule.

Anytime I come up with a protein shake I like, I try to share it because I know there’s some yucky protein shakes out there. I get really excited when I find some combination of things that doesn’t taste like a protein shake. With trying to be so mindful about living a healthier lifestyle, making good choices about what I eat, what kind of exercise I am getting, how I feel, etc, sometimes it’s nice just to be able to make a shake, know automatically it’s a good choice, and it tastes good. Period.

There are a few additional two items I wanted to mention in this post that help make my shake making experience significantly better. My blender died a few weeks ago (I was relieved. I hated my old blender ). I never realized how much of a pain it was until I bought a new one. I purchased the  Cuisinart SPB-650 1 HP Blender online, not really having much of an idea of what I was ordering. I lucked out. I really did. I love this blender. Most importantly it blends so well. I use frozen almond milk in my protein shakes and this blender blends like nobody’s business!!!! In a shorter amount of time as well. The other thing I really like about it is just a convenience thing. It is so easy to take apart and clean. Simply unscrew the part at the bottom, put the pitcher in the dishwasher and I carefully wash the bottom part with the blade by hand with hot soapy water. If you only use your blender once in awhile, I guess it doesn’t really matter. But if you use it every single day like I do, the convenience of taking it apart and making sure it’s clean is huge.

All that being said, my brother (who has the least healthy lifestyle of anyone I know…love him dearly!) has had to start eating a little better and has also started drinking protein shakes every day. He decided to purchase a hand blender and he swears by it. He says he now actually looks forward to shakes because he likes the texture so much better.

One more thing: I also discovered that not all protein powders are the same. I assumed that they are tasted well, like protein powder. I have found one brand that I like that doesn’t taste like the usual protein powder. When you open it, it actually smells like vanilla beans. I can’t speak for the other flavors, but since I stumbled onto this stuff accidentally, it’s all that I use. I use Orgain organic protein powder in the sweet vanilla bean flavor. I am going to continue to find good shake recipes using this protein powder as the “base” and add different things to it. When I find something good, I’ll be sure to let you know.

Ahead of time you should fill an ice tray with almond milk and once frozen, put them in a freezer bag and keep them in the freezer for convenience. I do two trays at a time so I don’t have to replenish my stock so soon. Using the cubes of almond milk gives it more of a milkshake consistency.

Here is the recipe for my Dirty Chai Protein Shake recipe:

You’ll Need:
5 frozen ice cubes of almond milk
2 scoops Orgain organic protein powder (sweet vanilla bean)
1 Tbsp. instant coffee (you may want more if you really love coffee)
2 Tbsp. Pacific Chai (spice chai latte) instant chai mix
1 cup almond milk

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend well, making sure almond milk cubes have been completely blended. Pour and drink. Enjoy your dirty chai protein shake!