Easy Protein Coffee Recipe (No Blender!)

Get your day off to a great start with this easy protein coffee recipe. Protein powder in coffee has been my secret to keeping me fueled all day long. With over 20 grams of protein in one serving, this protein coffee is the energizing drink your busy day needs. And there's no need to pull out your blender - whip this up in 5 minutes with minimal prep and little cleanup.

What does protein coffee taste like?

It actually tastes very much like....coffee. The flavor of your protein coffee will largely depend on your protein powder of choice. For me, that's my favorite collagen peptides! It's delicious and perfect to sip on any time of day because the protein will help prevent that caffeine crash afterwards.

Looking for more healthy drinks? 
Check out herbal coffee, honey hot chocolate, and Starbuck's honey citrus mint tea.  

Jump to:

• Recipe Overview
• Ingredients for Protein Coffee Recipe
• Substitutions and Variations
• How to Make Protein Coffee
• Helpful Tips for Protein Coffee
• Storage and Reheating Instructions
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Printable Recipe

Recipe Overview

• Prep and Cook Time: 5 minutes to prep
• Cooking Method: No-cook
• Dietary Info: GAPS, Keto, Primal, Ancestral diet
• Tools Needed: Quart-size mason jar
• Skill Level: Easy

What is an ancestral diet? Read my post on what nourishing foods are based on the traditional dietary principles of the Weston A. Price Foundation.

Reasons to Love Protein Coffee

• Great any time of day - The added protein helps to maintain a steady energy level throughout the day. You can serve this with your morning breakfast or afternoon snack - it's filling and refreshing at the same time.
• Flexible Ingredients: Use cold brew coffee or leftover brewed coffee from this morning. Same with cream. Anything goes here.
• No blender needed - Just add everything to a large jar and shake it until you make it! Save your blender for when it really matters.

Ingredients for Protein Coffee Recipe

Learn how to make protein coffee with 3 simple ingredients. This easy recipe literally takes less than 5 minutes and there's no need to pull out your blender. See the recipe card for exact quantities.

• Coffee: Any coffee will work here. Cold brew coffee, leftover coffee from yesterday (!), freshly brewed coffee, instant coffee (!!), espresso - you name it. To make 2 servings of protein coffee, you would need 2 cups of coffee, and so on. I use chilled coffee during the warmer months and hot coffee in the winter but feel free to use whatever temperature you prefer.
• Milk or cream: There's also much flexibility here too. To keep the coffee light, I go with regular milk but you can use half and half or even heavy cream.
• Protein powder: As far as I'm concerned, there's only one good option here: my favorite collagen peptides. It packs in 20 grams of protein per serving! It's flavorless, bio-available, and 3rd party tested (no, thank you glyphosate). It's the best on the market and I've been a loyal fan for close to 10 years. (Use discount code PREPARE10)

Substitutions and Variations

• Flavored protein powder - I'm partial to my collagen peptides but you can use your favorite protein here. My second choice would be whey protein, but this recipe will work for plant based protein as well. Vanilla protein powder sounds wonderful, as does chocolate protein powder.
• Add a sweetener - If you like your coffee on the sweeter side, add your favorite sweetener like maple syrup, raw honey, or coconut sugar. Start with a small amount and adjust to taste. Check out the list of my favorite natural sweeteners.
• Enjoy hot or iced - This same recipe works well with hot coffee. Just pour directly into mugs and stir in the protein powder.

💭Tips to Make it Nutrient-Dense
Use raw milk instead of homogenized and ultra-pasterurized milk. Raw milk retains more of its natural nutrients and enzumes, providign a richer and more nourishing base for your protein coffee. Every sip becomes a superfood. Quality foods like raw dairy is one of the tenets of a nourishing diet. 

How to Make Protein Coffee

The complete printable recipe is below in the recipe card for your convenience. Follow these simple step-by-step instructions for the best results.

Helpful Tips for Protein Coffee

1. Avoid churning butter - If using heavy cream instead of milk, save that for the very end after the protein powder has been fully dissolved. Then pour in and gently shake until creamy and frothy.
2. Bring out the blender - The collagen peptides dissolve effortlessly in chilled coffee but depending on how coarse your protein powder is, you may need to use a blender.
3. Use a frother - I find that shaking the jar well creates lots of froth, but you can use a milk frother to give it that velvety creaminess.

Troubleshooting

• Protein powder isn't dissolving? Use an immersion blender or regular blender to fully break down the particles. You can also add all the ingredients to a shaker cup and see if that helps. Lastly, it may also help to dissolve it in hot coffee or water first then add it to the rest of the coffee.

💭Meal Prep Suggestion: Scale up this recipe and double batch it. Store it in the fridge in a half-gallon size mason jar to enjoy throughout the week. 

Protein coffee pairing suggestions:

Storage and Reheating Instructions

How long does protein coffee last in the refrigerator?

To store: Store it in the jar in the fridge for up to 1 week. If using raw dairy, you may want to finish it quicker as raw milk has a shorter shelf life.

Storage containers: These wide-mouth mason jars for leftovers or these Weck juice jars with lids.

To reheat: If you want to reheat the protein coffee, do so over gentle heat in a small saucepan.

Frequently Asked Questions

Looking for more high-protein recipes? Here are some ideas:

Did you make this Protein Coffee Recipe? Please leave a ⭐ recipe rating in the recipe card below and leave a review in the comments. Thank you!💚

Printable Recipe