Pumpkin Protein Shake

on Oct 30, 2019

Updated Oct 12, 2023

5 from 16 votes

Thick, creamy, and healthy Pumpkin Protein Shake is sure to satisfy your pumpkin pie cravings! It’s made with good-for-you ingredients and is so delicious!

Looking for more breakfast shakes or smoothies? Try this Green Smoothie Recipe, this Cherry Smoothie, or this Mango Smoothie next!

A cup filled with a creamy pumpkin protein shake, topped with a swirl of whipped cream.

Pumpkin Protein Shake

This Pumpkin Protein Shake is thick enough to pass for a milkshake but healthy enough for breakfast! And that’s because there’s pumpkin, vanilla protein powder, and even a frozen banana in the mix. The banana adds creaminess and creates the consistency of a real milkshake.

And one of the greatest things about this Pumpkin Protein Shake? It’s the perfect way to use leftover pumpkin. A lot of pumpkin recipes call for only part of a can, so instead of wasting the rest, save it in the fridge and whip up this shake the next morning!

Quick Tip

Pumpkin purée is made from cooked pumpkin and nothing else. Pumpkin pie filling, on the other hand, is made from pumpkin purée AND sweetener, milk, and seasonings. Just pour it into a pie shell and bake. They’re both wonderful products, but they fill different needs. This recipe requires cooked pumpkin, not the pie filling. Be sure to check the label and get the correct product.

Sliced bananas prepared for freezing.

How to make Pumpkin Protein Shakes

Freeze the banana: While Pumpkin Protein Shakes are quick and easy to make, you’ll need to do a bit of planning to make sure the banana is fully frozen when you need it. I like to prep the bananas right after bringing them home from the grocery store so I don’t forget. Remove the peel, slice the banana into coins, place in freezer-safe containers or bags, and freeze overnight. It’s not hard; you just have to remember in advance to do it. (Remembering is the hard part!)
Measure: While it might seem silly to actually measure out ingredients for a shake instead of just throwing everything in the blender, I highly recommend doing so the first few times you make this, or until you have a feel for the quantities. Throwing random ingredients in a blender can often end up giving you WAY too much Pumpkin Protein Shake or it can taste, well, off. It’s also a good idea to measure if you’re tracking macros or calories.
Blend: If you have a high-powered blender (I recommend a Vitamix® or Blendtec® blender), you can add in the ingredients and blend until smooth. If you don’t have a powerful blender, however, follow manufacturer instructions for what ingredients to add first to avoid cavitation. (Who knew so much science was at play here?)

Healthy ways to use leftover pumpkin:

After making this pumpkin protein shake, you’ll have quite a bit of leftover pumpkin. Below are our favorite healthy recipes to use it in!

More pumpkin recipes:

Pumpkin Cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting
Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars reader favorite recipe!
Chewy and NOT cakey Pumpkin Cookies
Pumpkin Carrot Cake
Pumpkin Coffee Cake

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5 from 16 votes

Pumpkin Protein Shake

By Chelsea Lords

Ever wonder what a pumpkin pie would taste like, blended up into a milkshake? Just wait til you try this (secretly healthy) Pumpkin Protein Shake!

Prep Time: 5

Total Time: 5

Servings: shake

Ingredients

▢ 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or milk of choice)
▢ 1/2 cup frozen banana (sliced into coins and frozen beforehand)
▢ 3 tablespoons pumpkin puree (I recommend Libby's)
▢ 1 scoop (1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon (32g) vanilla protein powder See Note 1
▢ 1 tablespoon almond butter
▢ 1/8 teaspoon EACH: pumpkin pie spice, ground cinnamon
▢ 8 ice cubes

Instructions

Combine all of the ingredients and blend until smooth.
Optionally, garnish with graham cracker crumbs and enjoy immediately.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Protein powder: The protein powder you use makes a huge difference in the taste of the shake. I recommend a whey protein powder that has some kind of sweetener added, such as stevia. If the protein doesn't have stevia, I recommend adding a few drops of vanilla stevia to this shake.