Protein shakes don’t have to just be reserved for your post-workout nutrition — they’re perfect for making a quick, easy, and tasty meal that can be enjoyed at any time of day. Especially when your protein shake tastes ridiculously good like this metabolism boosting double chocolate low carb protein shake. It’s super easy to make as you’ll only need four simple ingredients (plus a bit of ice). Don’t let the simplicity fool you though. Even though this shake only needs a small amount of ingredients, it’s definitely big on offering a ton of flavor. Truthfully, it tastes more like a dessert than anything. Not to worry though as it’s 100% healthy, low carb, and a great way to rev up your metabolism in an incredibly tasty way.

A Protein Shake That Tastes Better Than Dessert

The first source of chocolate that goes into making your shake is a single scoop of chocolate flavored protein powder. When it comes to protein powders, I always recommend our readers go for a whey isolate product.

The second source of chocolate added to complete the double chocolate flavor of this shake is two tablespoons of raw cacao powder. Not does cacao powder contain next to no carbs, but it’s also a rich source of dietary fiber, protein, and healthy fats. On top of that, cacao powder (like all natural cocoa products) contains methylxanthines that provide you with numerous great health benefits. These health benefits extend to everything from neurodegenerative disorders to cardiovascular disease to even helping with increasing insulin sensitivity. (1) And if you’re worried about the slightly bitter taste of cacao powder, you don’t have to be — mixing it with the protein powder and almond milk works perfectly for making sure this shake is ridiculously tasty.

Speaking of the almond milk, you’ll be using one cup of unsweetened almond milk as your liquid base for the shake. I love pairing almond milk with ingredients like cacao powder because they’re both well known for providing some incredible cardiovascular health benefits. Almonds in general are one of my favorite low carb snacking option, as they’ve been found to help lower LDL cholesterol and high blood pressure. (2) What this all means is that not only is this shake a great way to squeeze in more protein, but it’s also a great way to help keep heart disease at bay.

Last but not least, you’ll need to add in one tablespoon of MCT oil. While this ingredient is admittedly optional, I strongly recommend that you do use it. Medium chain triglyceride fatty acids are extremely popular with people who follow a ketogenic style diet, and for good reason. Studies have actually found that weight-loss diets that use MCT oil resulted in even greater rates of weight and fat loss than a diet that was high in olive oil (which is another incredibly popular heart healthy cooking oil). (3) A single tablespoon of MCT oil added into your protein shake is more than enough to reap some of the great weight loss benefits it can provide.