Chocolate Berry Protein Shake {Vegan}

Death. 

It's a factor in life.

 You know it will happen to everyone and everything eventually, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you are prepared for it. We've been at the ranch for almost nine years now and in that time I have been able to see the miracle of life many times, but also come to know the heartbreak of death. Earlier Saturday afternoon, my mom and I went to the vet to put Hedgie to sleep. A few months after I got Hedgie, he got cataracts which took his sight and I noticed that he seemed to be having what appeared to be seizures. The last 2 weeks though, I knew something was wrong because he stopped eating, was shaking, and seemed really lethargic. The vet looked him over and said by the state his teeth he was much older than we were aware of. Since the vet and most of the other staff had never seen or treated a hedgehog, he became quite popular even in his sickly state.

He's 4lbs heavier than her yet he likes using her as a pillow.

Gus Gus also has a vet appointment since he hasn't seen a vet in his little life and he also has a little wheezing problem that I first noticed a few months ago. It almost sounds like asthma except he doesn't wheeze all of the time and acts like a normal spoiled kitten, but just to be safe him and Charlie will be going to visit to vet tomorrow afternoon. I doubt they will appreciate it, though.

My mom's birthday is tomorrow so she is treating herself to a 2 hour massage. She isn't the biggest dessert fan besides cookies and sometimes apple pie so she just asked for some cream cheese filled strawberries that I'll dip in chocolate. I'll probably post a pic on instagram.


Now getting to the recipe...

A few weeks ago while surfing through instagram, I saw a picture of a shake using Vega One protein powder, which at the time I had never heard of. Vega One is a plant-based vegan protein powder that is all natural. Friday night after work, my mom and I stopped by Central Market to grab some food when I saw some sample packets for Vega One so I grabbed 3 packets. Well, I guess some time ago the company changed the formula and many customers were not happy and thought that it wasn't worth the price , but there were also many who loved it regardless. One big reason why I wanted to try this brand of protein powder is because it contains no whey powder.  I can not stand the taste of almost every protein powder I have tried and no matter how many ingredients I add I can always taste the powder. Even a few of the dairy free ice creams I have tried were mostly made with whey protein so I sadly ended up throwing the 2 pints out.

The only bad thing about this powder is that is has a hefty price tag. My mom bought a few containers (30 oz) after she saw that I liked the powder and since she had some credit saved {from buying but then having to send back some products} on amazon so the containers were only about $20 each which is a big price difference compared to what we would have paid.

• $28.98 for 15.4 ounces on Amazon
• $55-69 for 30.1 ounces. 
• The packets are about $3.50-3.99 for 1.5 ounces and you can buy a few here or Central Market if you want to sample it the flavors. 

My mom also uses or has tried these protein powders:

• Lifetime Life's Basics Plant Protein
• Jay Robb's Whey Protein - She has several flavors
• Garden of Life: RAW - the texture can be a little grainy.
• Body Fortress Whey Protein Powder

Chocolate Berry Protein Shake {vegan}
created by Rayna of The Curious Country Cook
Serves: 1

1 banana, frozen
1 1/2 cup dairy free milk -used vanilla almond milk
1/2 cup blueberries, frozen
1/2 cup strawberries, frozen*
1 packet (1.5 oz) Chocolate Vega One Nutritional Shake Powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Cut the frozen banana into chunks before adding to a blender. 

Add the rest of the ingredients and blend on high until smooth.

Notes:
-I've made this twice and the first time I used just blueberries, but I think I prefer using both strawberry and blueberries. I bet blackberries would be just as good in this too. 

-Depending on how thick or thin you prefer your shake you can add more liquid. 

-You can use a fresh banana and berries, you will just want to add ice to thicken up the shake and keep it cold.