This delicious protein pumpkin smoothie combines the best of both worlds- cozy fall flavors and protein. With over 40 grams of protein and a burst of spiced pumpkin flavor, it's easy to reach for this healthy fall recipe all season long.

Pumpkin spice season is here and one of my favorite part time jobs as a registered dietitian is finding ways to include those stand fall flavors in nutritious and delicious recipes.

Adding to my list of healthy fall recipes like pumpkin cheesecake chia seed pudding and apple crisp granola, I bring to you this delicious protein pumpkin smoothie. It tastes just like dessert but is lower in added sugar and higher in protein than many other pumpkin spice recipes.

With over 40 grams of protein coming from vanilla protein powder, cottage cheese, and milk, this protein smoothie gives you all of the pumpkin spice flavors that you want but with the protein boost that your muscles crave. You’ll love sipping on this healthy fall recipe all season long!

Protein pumpkin smoothie

What makes this protein pumpkin smoothie so good?

You will likely find yourself sipping on this healthy pumpkin smoothie all season long because it is:

A cottage cheese smoothie:. Blending cottage cheese in smoothies is one of my favorite ways to boost the protein and flavor of a smoothie. Cottage cheese has a very mild flavor and I think its the perfect ingredient for healthy, dessert like recipes.
Filled with a fruit serving: Did you know pumpkin is a fruit? The more you know, the easier it is to hit your fruit servings. With 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree, this smoothie can help you include more colorful foods in your diet.
Full of pumpkin-spice flavors: The key to this smoothie is the pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon which gives this smoothie the classic fall flavors. Feel free to add in a dash of nutmeg if you want even more flavor!
Loaded with over 40 grams of protein: This protein smoothie recipe gets protein from protein powder, cottage cheese, and milk which gives it a grand total of 40 grams of protein!
Delicious to enjoy on the go: Simply blend this recipe and go! It’s ready in under 2 minutes, comes together in one blender cup, and has enough fiber and protein in it to keep you full for hours.
Easy to modify for toddlers: This pumpkin smoothie recipe can be easily modified to work for toddlers who have lower protein needs than we do. To make this a toddler friendly smoothie, skip the protein powder and simply make this a cottage cheese pumpkin smoothie instead.

Can you add cottage cheese to smoothies?

If you can add greek yogurt to smoothies then you most certainly can add cottage cheese to smoothies as well. In fact, cottage cheese fruit smoothies are my preferred type of smoothie to serve to my toddler because it adds naturally occurring protein to the smoothie without any protein powder.

Depending on the brand, a 1/2 cup serving of cottage cheese can add 10 to 20 grams of protein to your smoothie recipe along with important nutrients like calcium. Plus, cottage cheese has a very neutral flavor thats easily disguised in fruit and cottage cheese smoothies. Kids love it!

While this recipe does combine protein sources from cottage cheese and protein powder, you can easily make this recipe with cottage cheese only if you want to lower the protein content to serve to kids. If you haven’t started putting cottage cheese in smoothies, this recipe will convince you to!

Tips to make a creamy smoothie:

Now, let’s get to the important tips. I personally love thick and creamy smoothies with an almost spoon worthy texture. Interested? Here are my tips for a creamy smoothie:

Use frozen fruit instead of ice: This recipe has a slightly thinner texture than my other smoothie recipes because it uses unfrozen pumpkin puree blended with ice. If you want to make this smoothie recipe thicker, freeze your pumpkin puree and skip the ice!
Add protein powder: Protein powder will not only boost the protein content of your smoothie but it will also add volume and enhance the texture.
Blend, blend, blend: Always thoroughly blend your smoothies if you want them to be light and creamy.
Use a powdered pudding mix: I know, this one may come out of the blue but trust me when I say that powdered pudding mix in your smoothie WILL give you a creamier smoothie. If I want a smoothie that I can eat with a spoon, I think powdered pudding mix is the secret ingredient.

If you want more tips on how to make a creamy smoothie, check out this blog where I give you more of my favorite tips and tricks.

Peaches & Cream Cottage Cheese Smoothie

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Ingredients and Instructions:

Ingredients:

Here are the ingredients you will need to make this protein pumpkin smoothie:

Pumpkin puree: Pumpkin is rich in vitamin A and vitamin C which support eye and immune health. While you can always make your own pumpkin puree at home, you can also make it easy and buy the canned puree from the store. Up to you!
Cottage cheese: I used low-fat good culture cottage cheese because it adds almost 20 grams of protein per serving.
Milk: I used low-fat milk to lower the calorie content but add some protein.
.Vanilla extract: This will enhance the dessert like flavors of your pumpkin smoothie.
Vanilla protein powder: I recommend using a vanilla flavored protein powder to sweeten up your pumpkin smoothie and make it taste like dessert. My favorite protein powders are this one or this one. If you want a lower protein smoothie for toddlers, skip the protein powder.
Pumpkin pie spice: This makes your smoothie taste like a healthy dessert! Don’t be shy with your spices, they really make this smoothie.
Cinnamon: Necessary for all pumpkin pie spice recipes.
Maple syrup: Feel free to use honey as your sweetener as well. This can be added to taste or skipped if you prefer a less sweet smoothie.

Protein Pumpkin Smoothie Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1

Add your pumpkin puree, milk, cottage cheese, protein powder, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, maple syrup, and ice to a blender or blender cup.

LTN Tip- If you want to make this smoothie EXTRA delicious, freeze your pumpkin puree and skip adding the ice. This will give your pumpkin smoothie a more robust flavor as well as thicken up the texture.

Step 2

Blend until smooth and adjust flavors as needed.

Step 3

Pour your smoothie into a glass and top your protein pumpkin smoothie with optional whipped cream (highly recommended!). Enjoy.

How are other recipes using pumpkin puree?

Depending on how many servings you choose to make of this recipe, you may end up with leftover pumpkin puree. If you want to use it up and not waste what’s leftover, here are some other recipes using pumpkin puree:

And more! Make these pumpkin recipes your own and tag me on instagram with any fun ideas you come up with!

Recipe FAQ:

How many grams of protein are in this recipe?
1. This protein smoothie recipe has over 40 grams of protein but this number could vary with brands that you use.
Do I have to add protein powder?
1. You do not! The vanilla protein powder definitely makes this pumpkin smoothie recipe taste more like a pumpkin cheesecake and gives it a fluffier texture but you could skip the added protein powder and just make this a cottage cheese smoothie recipe instead.
Is pumpkin puree healthy?
1. It is! Pumpkin contains fiber but it also incredibly high in vitamin A, vitamin C, as well as other micronutrients like potassium.

Other protein smoothie recipes you will love:

Looking for other protein smoothie ideas? I have a few on my blog that I think you will love:

Blueberry Raspberry Greek Yogurt Smoothie

Get the recipe

Cottage Cheese and Strawberry Smoothie

Get the recipe

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Protein Pumpkin Smoothie

Protein pumpkin smoothie