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You guyssssss. I did something ridiculous.
I’m doing this low carb diet, right? Yes. You probably knew that, even though most of the recipes I share here are very much not low carb! This blog didn’t start out as a low carb blog and I have no intentions of turning it into one. So, my promise has always been that I would never share a low carb recipe here unless even carb lovers would enjoy it. Like, for example, my cauliflower salad or my bacon cheeseburger salad!
Aaaaaand so that’s what I’m doing now.
I made a protein shake taste like a frosty and I don’t know how it happened, but it’s magical and it makes me happy. Even my kids ask to drink these things for snacks, which is probably not a great idea since it has espresso in it. Heh.
So, I want to be very clear and not oversell this shake – it’s not ice cream. It will never be ice cream. It is not an exact Frosty copycat recipe and it was never meant to be. In fact, when I made this, I had no idea it was going to taste like a Frosty. I was more trying to create a mocha frappe recipe. I’m all about the drive thru shakes and drinks, apparently.
But, this absolutely does taste like a Frosty! It’s got that malted milk thing going on that I love and it’s not overly chocolate. It does melt really quickly, because it’s blended with ice and not actually frozen. Although, my mama tells me that you can pop these in the freezer and it comes out even more like ice cream! I haven’t tried it myself though.
So, anyway, I’ve been drinking these shakes for lunch. I love them because the protein powder fills you up and keeps you full and the espresso gives you a little burst of energy. Plus, they’re sweet, like you’re eating something sinful, which is always satisfying.
I make these in my Blendtec blender and I use this protein powder. This is my preferred brand of Stevia.
My shake clocks in at 23 grams of fat, 360 calories, and 25 grams of protein. With just 4 net carbs, it’s perfect for my keto diet. Your exact numbers will be different depending on the brands of products you use, of course.
Low Carb Frosty
Ingredients
- 2 cups ice
- 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder dissolved in 2 tablespoon hot water
- 1/8 teaspoon liquid stevia
Instructions
- Add everything to a blender and process until smooth. Drink immediately or freezer for later.
Nutrition Information:
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Danielle says
Hi! I’m so excited to try this recipe tomorrow. I’m very new to keto and earlier this evening I mixed chocolate protein powder and heavy whipping cream in a blender and the result was delicious, so I decided to scour the internet to see if anyone else had done something equally fun and apparently you have!
Quick question. Do you think this would work just as well with instant coffee? I’m not sure how different it is to instant espresso powder.
Karly says
Hi Danielle! I think it would probably work fine with instant coffee, as long as it dissolves well.
Vincent Louis Rohloff says
Recently diagnosed with diabetes, I’m still learning about the wonderful world of shakes and smoothies. One question I have is can you substitute honey for stevia?
Thanks!
Karly says
If you’re trying to watch carbs, honey is full of them and will definitely affect your blood sugar. Otherwise, I’m sure you could use honey in this recipe, but the amount will be a lot more and it will change the taste.
MaB says
You say it’s only 4g net carbs but your nutrition information lists 10g carbs and 4g fiber, so it’s 6g net carbs.
Karly says
The recipe plugin’s auto calculations tend to be a bit different from my own. You can use whichever you prefer or calculate yourself using an online tool. Based on the exact ingredients I used, my shake came out to 4 net carbs.
Becca says
Could you leave the espresso out and have it still taste alright? I can’t have caffeine but this looks delicious!
Karly says
I haven’t tried this without the espresso, but I’m sure it will alter the flavor a bit. Worth trying to see how you like it though.
Elle says
Karly, it’s only a SLIGHT exaggeration to say that you just saved my life. I’m 8 days into Keto, and sooooo flippppping tired of eating eggs. Just made this for breakfast and was holding my breath waiting for it to be terrible. It is seriously SO GOOD! I’m a new woman! I can carry on! ? Sharing with all my Keto friends. Thank you!!
Karly says
Yay, Elle!! So glad that this was a winner for you. 🙂 Keto on!
Becky H says
I’m copying this. Please clarify: 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk 1/4 heavy cream –
do you mean 1/4 cup heavy cream? I’m putting that in my notes.
Thanks for sharing!
Karly says
Whoops! Yes, that should be 1/4 cup of heavy cream. 🙂
lisa says
Hi!! Love your blog 🙂 What protein powder do you use?
Amanda says
This is SO good! Thank you for this!
Stacy Smith says
I’ve starting low carbing with some friends this week. So making this weekend!
I’m glad it’s got chocolate in it!
Joanne says
I love it when healthy things accidentally end up tasting like totally unhealthy things. It’s the best!
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
A frosty shake like this is the perfect way to switch up a protein shake! Yum!
Karen @ On the Banks of Salt Creek says
I don’t know that I could manage a low carb diet. I can however manage to eat Frosty’s or anything that tastes like them.
Amy says
That is a great recipe! Thank you for sharing. I just started my low carb lifestyle after multiple failed attempts. I did a program called 21 day sugar detox that really helped me out. http://www.lowcarbreviewsite.com/21-day-sugar-detox/
Laura ~ RYG says
Maybe Olaf can give you a nice warm hug for me??! Who doesn’t love a good Frosty and the we shall not say it out loud fast food chain? Scrumptious. But love carb with protein too, need this! Going to be scene in a bathing suit in 2 weeks. Trying to do the low carb thing, it’s hard!