My Daily Super Shake. First Ingredient: Black Beans!

Like many people, I drink the same breakfast smoothie almost every morning and have done so for the past two years. Unlike many people, the base ingredient in my smoothies are Black Beans! While you may not have ever tried a smoothie which included beans or ever thought you would want to, I assure you this odd addition is well worth the shock factor. When I figured out I could use black beans to super charge my morning smoothies, it was truly a revelation. The addition of black beans turned my breakfast smoothies from a morning protein shake akin to a snack, into a full fledged meal. I urge you to read on and hopefully give it a try, it honestly does not taste as weird as it sounds!

My super smoothie is inspired by my following of the Slow Carb Diet and Tim Ferriss’ recommendation to start the day off with shot of protein (30 grams within 30 min of starting your day is the idea). After planning out my requirements and researching potential recipes and additions, I created this unique, extremely healthy and delicious(?) super shake. This is not your average “protein shake” as it contains a balanced mix of whole foods, protein, a full spectrum of nutrients and probiotics along with some healthy fats to start you day off with some brain fuel. And as I said before, the most shocking ingredient in this smoothie, which actually makes this shake a full meal and honestly tastes perfectly fine, is BLACK BEANS!

This shake is my entire breakfast almost everyday. It is quick and easy to make and keeps me full until lunch time, commonly fueling me through a morning workout and a pre lunch cardio session.

After refining my super smoothie over many months and 100’s of attempts, I have created what I have found to be the best breakfast smoothie you can drink. It is a nutrient dense, high protein shake that is full of healthy carbs and fats. The shake also benefits from doses of probiotics and creatine.

Here is the recipe in the order of how you should add ingredients to your blender for best blending results. (Order does matter!)

Breakfast Smoothie Recipe

1. BEANS
   • Add a half can or a little under 1 cup of well rinsed black beans.
2. POWDERS
   • Add 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder.
     • I use the ON Gold Standard Chocolate Protein Powder from Costco. I find it to be reasonably priced and high quality with a decent taste.
   • Add 1 scoop of super green powder.
     • I use Vibrant Health, Green Vibrance which I get on Amazon. It is a full replacement for all the nutrients you need, including weird, but super healthy things that you would rarely get from your natural food sources.
   • Add 1 tablespoon of Laird Cacao Superfood Creamer®.
     • This is half for the taste and half for the healthy fats. It is coconut based and really helps the smoothie balance out the cocoa and green flavors.
   • Add 2 tablespoons of peanut powder.
     • I use Organic PB Fit peanut powder from Costco or Amazon, which is cheaper and easier to blend into a smoothie than regular peanut butter. It is also a better source of protein per calorie, given the much lower fat content.
   • Add 1 heaping teaspoon of pure creatine powder – about 3-4 grams
     • Creatine is one of the most widely used and researched supplements in the health and fitness realm. It is commonly used to support muscle growth and recovery, but emerging research is showing lots of other potential long term benefits of creatine, most interesting to me around slowing or preventing neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s disease. See this article for more info on creatine benefits.
3. FROZEN ITEMS
   • Add 1 cup of frozen blueberries.
   • Add 1 cup of frozen spinach. Or about 2 cups of fresh spinach.
4. WATER
   • Finally add 1.5 to 2 cups of cold water. The range depends on how liquid-y you prefer your smoothie!
5. BLEND!

The resulting smoothie is a complete meal, full of some of the healthiest foods on earth. It is great for promoting both fat loss and muscle building, and is full of all your required vitamins and minerals, and other nutrients that promote long term health.

Here is the summary of key nutritional facts for my smoothie:

My super shake clocks in at 605 calories, 8 grams of fat, 84 grams of carbohydrates (with 33 being from fiber and 24 from sugar), and a solid 54 grams of protein!

While this is inspired by the Slow Carb Diet, it does not quite fit the bill due to the addition of blueberries. But the goal for my smoothie is to create a healthy, tasty and consistent breakfast. Blueberries are one of the healthiest foods on the planet and taste delicious! Thus, I make an exception to the no fruit part of my diet and include them in my smoothie.

I have made the shake without blueberries and it is drinkable, much more so if you add a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. This makes the smoothie fit the slow carb diet and would be great for people with the sole goal of fat loss. Adding the apple cider vinegar adds some tartness and balance to the shake, but has little to no sugar and has its own health benefits. If your goal is to just be healthy or gain muscle then I’d recommend just leaving the blueberries in.

Another substitute you could make is the type of bean used. I highly recommend using black beans. I have experimented with all kinds of beans, with some undesirable results. Kidney beans ended up being the second best option if you can’t use black beans. I found no other bean being viable taste-wise.

When I first started down the path of bean smoothie life, Alena openly mocked my smoothies to everyone who would listen to her. Finally, after much convincing and urging to give it a try, I have converted her! She now joins me in my daily breakfast bean smoothie adventures.

I urge you as well to give my breakfast bean smoothie a try, or at least if you have your own favorite smoothie, try adding in some black beans to make it a full meal. Let me know what you try and how it goes.

Come join me in my bean smoothie renaissance!

Cheers!

Alan Evans

Update/Warning: If your blender is not high powered your results may vary. Our Nutri-bullet broke one day and we tried the smoothie using a more generic blender…and it was a disaster. The spinach was not blended up enough so the consistency was a chunking soupy disgusting mess. So if you have a weak blender, maybe try no frozen spinach and even a lower bean ratio?