Keto-Friendly Shakes, Floats, Flavored Sodas, and Slushies

Learn how to make icy cold, keto-friendly
protein shakes, flavored syrups, and fun slushies
(includes recipe for a Keto Root Beer Float)

If you're looking for a quick-and-easy grab-and-go ketogenic breakfast idea, protein-packed meal-replacement shakes are an easy solution to hectic mornings, especially during the warm summer months when you might not feel like cooking before heading out the door.

Weight-loss shakes are also a great supplement option when you're struggling to meet your optimal protein intake for the day. They can be made low in fat, high in fat, or somewhere in between, so they are the perfect addition to any low-carb plan.

For those struggling with temptation, you might also want to get your hands on a few beverage treats, such as an icy cold Keto Root Beer Float, uniquely flavored sodas, or even surprise the kids with a fun, nostalgic, low-carb slushy.

Allowing yourself a safe treat now and then is often the very thing you need to help you reach your weight-loss goals.

If so, this post will show you how to make your summer extra special by making your own shakes, uniquely flavored sodas, floats, and ice-cold slushies.

There's plenty here to keep you from getting bored this summer, but make sure you keep those shakes and keto-beverages varied.

Not only will you have a fast meal replacement or great after work-out snack, freeing up loads of time you won't have to spend in the kitchen, but the whey protein in these low-carb friendly shakes and variations will go a long way toward keeping you feeling full and satisfied.

Of all the macronutrients -- protein, fats, and carbohydrates -- protein has been scientifically proven to keep you more satisfied than fats or carbs.

This definitely was true for me.

With a 20- to 30-gram protein shake in the morning, even though they were low in fat, I could go from 7:00 a.m. until 3:00 in the afternoon without even thinking about food.

This helped me raise my production rate at work, and lessened the amount of time during the day that I was exposed to temptation.

Since I was working as a culinary specialist in a boys home during my weight-loss phase, feeling full and satisfied almost all day, regardless of the food around me, was a must.

I never felt tempted to cheat.

But here's another interesting fact you might not know about weight-loss shakes:

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Dr. Eades Lost His Weight by Drinking Protein Shakes!

There's a lot of controversy regarding weight-loss shakes and bars, but did you know that Dr. Eades, author of the Protein Power Life Plan, lost all of his excess weight by drinking homemade protein shakes?

He ate one low-carb meal in the evening, and the rest of the day, he drank only shakes.

In those days, protein powder wasn't easily available like it is today. And what you could get was seriously deficient in protein.

Most of the powders on the market back then used collagen, an incomplete protein source, which turned out to be pretty dangerous.

People actually died from doing these shake programs.

So, Dr. Eades fortified his homemade shakes to make them safe, as well as effective. He also made sure they provided all of the nutrition by way of supplements that he needed.

He called the program Thin So Fast because he used those shakes to replace most of his meals. 

While not very low in carbs by today's ketogenic standards, due to the addition of powdered milk, his meal-replacement shakes were much lower in carbs than the standard American Diet.

He was able to quickly shed the pounds on 50 to 60 carbs a day, and then moved to a standard low-carb diet for maintenance.

How I Used Protein Shakes While Dropping 100 Pounds

I'm not recommending a Thin So Fast regimen, although you can do that if you want to get the weight off faster. Two to three shakes a day and only one whole foods meal, even a low carb meal, is rough.

I tried it once, and only lasted three days.

Doing a strictly protein-shake regimen takes awareness, plenty of self-discipline, and lots of self control to go that path.

All of your attachments to food and your emotional dependence on eating for comfort and security will quickly rise to the surface when eating is no longer an option.

Plus, a little medical supervision is needed if you're looking at doing shakes for the long term.

Whey protein shakes can make an easy low-carb breakfast when time is short and you need to be on your feet all day and don't have time to stop for a meal.

I used to drink them before going to work at the boys' home because there wasn't time to take a break to eat until after my shift was over.

These shakes were quite filling and helped me keep my blood glucose level within a normal range, something I was struggling with before I went gluten free.

On Kimkins, a low-fat low-carb diet plan, I often had two hard boiled-eggs for breakfast and a protein shake for lunch, made with a little non-fat cottage cheese instead of heavy whipping cream.

I did the same thing while losing an additional 30 pounds on a very low-fat PSMF diet plan (protein-sparing modified fast).

While some people use shakes for snacks, I wouldn't recommend doing it that way, unless you are a vegetarian, doing Intermittent Fasting, or you leave the protein powder out.

Protein shakes for snacks are only a good option if you can't eat enough protein at your meals because you're more likely to get too much.

This is why they were originally called meal replacement shakes.

While protein phobia seems to be the rage within the low-carb community today, with tons of low carbers totally afraid to consume even an adequate amount of protein, eating more protein than you need is the quickest way to gain weight because you'll eat more calories than you can use in a day.

As long as you keep an eye on your protein target and don't go too crazy with the heavy whipping cream, the following meal replacement shakes, flavored sodas, floats, and slushies can be a great benefit to your ketogenic diet.

Basic Protein Shake (Includes an Induction-Friendly Alternative)

This is the foundation recipe for all the shake ideas and variations that follow. It contains only half as much heavy whipping cream than the original recipe.

Most low carbers are already using heavy cream in their coffee. If you are too, then you don't need a lot of cream in your shakes, as well.

On Atkins Induction, you're limited to 2 tablespoons of heavy cream total for the entire day, so if you're in the midst of your first 14 days on Atkins, and you're using heavy cream in your coffee, you can substitute an ounce of cream cheese for the heavy cream called for in the recipe.

If you're on Phase 2 and need a way to slash your fat calories, substitute 1/4 cup of cottage cheese for the 2 tablespoons of heavy cream or use the cream cheese variation I mentioned above.

Once the cottage cheese or cream cheese is blended into the weight-loss shake, you'll never know it wasn't made with heavy whipping cream.

If you're on maintenance or a high-fat diet for other reasons, you can double the cream to raise the fat content of the shake and cut the water down to just 1/2 cup.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup water
• 2 tbsp heavy cream
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp Splenda, or other sweetener
• 1/4 cup high-quality whey protein powder
• 1/4 tsp Xanthan gum or other thickener (optional)
• 4 to 6 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients except the ice cubes in a blender. Pull the plastic plug out of the blender's lid, and then cover the blender and whirl for a couple of minutes to combine well. A food processor would also work for this.

Add ice cubes, one at a time, pushing them through the hole in the lid, and continue to process the shake for several minutes. The shake will thicken along with the vegetable gum, as you blend it.

Vegetable gum will make a thicker shake, but it's really not necessary if you don't already have it on hand and don't mind your shake on the thin side.

Variations I Used During the Weight Loss Phase

Not all of the following shake variations will be legal for Atkins Induction. 

For those that are, I marked them with an *. 

If you're doing Old-School Atkins 92, the cocoa powder in the Chocolate-Cinnamon Shake has 3 total carbs per tablespoon, making it legal for Induction. 

If you're doing keto, you can have any of the shakes listed below, provided you can handle a bit of fruit in your diet. If not, then pick the variations that are safe for Atkins Induction. 

Chocolate-Cinnamon Shake

Replace the water in the basic shake recipe with diet Dr. Pepper or diet Black Cherry Coke. I did this quite often, in fact. Add 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder, an extra teaspoon of Splenda, and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. This was my favorite shake, and the one I made most often.

Strawberry Shake

Replace the water in the basic shake recipe with prepared strawberry Crystal Light (or a similar product). Add 2 or 3 whole frozen strawberries, and replace the vanilla with strawberry extract.

*Orange Cream Shake

Replace the water in the basic shake recipe with prepared orange Crystal Light. Exchange the vanilla with orange extract. If I were making this today, I would probably add a squirt or two of Torani orange-flavored syrup instead of the orange extract.

Kiwi Shake

Kiwi has 8 net carbs each, 10 total, so keep that in mind with this one. Toss as much frozen kiwi into the basic recipe as will fit into your daily plan, and blend. This is a nice variation for those doing Atkins 40 or are approaching maintenance.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake

Replace the water in the basic shake recipe with diet Dr. Pepper. Add 2 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon of peanut butter. Add an extra teaspoon of Splenda or other sweetener to eliminate the bitterness of the cocoa powder.

*Raspberry Vanilla Cream Shake

Replace the water in the basic shake recipe with prepared raspberry Crystal Light. If I were doing this today, I'd add a squirt or two of raspberry-flavored Torani sugar-free syrup.

Other Meal Replacement Shake Ideas to Try

The above ideas are shake recipes that I used to use on a regular basis, but you can easily come up with your own combinations.

Make use of various:

• extracts and flavorings
• sugar-free syrups
• sugar free koolaid (both for flavor and coloring)
• Crystal Light (I use Kroger brand which is less sweet)
• diet sodas
• cocoa powder
• peanut butter
• cream cheese
• cottage cheese
• yogurt
• berries or other low-carb fruits in season

Come up with new, unique, and creative combinations of your own. There is no right or wrong way to make a protein shake. Neither are protein shakes the only keto alternative you have, as the soda variations and Crystal Light slushy will show you below:

Unique Soda Variations

Homemade Flavored Diet Soda

I liked to use generic diet lemon-lime soda to make these with, but you can use any kind of diet soda you like. Strawberry Crystal Light mixed with lemon-lime soda was my favorite.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 glass prepared Crystal Light (any flavor)
• OR 1/2 glass prepared sugar-free Kool Aid (any flavor)
• 1/2 glass of diet 7-up or Club Soda

Combine the Crystal Light or Kool Aid with 7-Up or Club Soda, mixing well. Pour over ice.

Another Variation:

I would add a splash of sugar-free Davinci syrup or 1/2 tsp of extract to my glass of diet soda. This varied the flavors pretty well. For example, I could create my own Cherry Dr. Pepper when it wasn't available in our area by simply adding a squirt or two of cherry-flavored sugar-free syrup.

Today, my favorite is Diet Dr. Pepper with a little bit of raspberry sugar-free syrup.

Low-Carb Root Beer Float

Another thing I do is make a mock Root Beer Float or a Dr. Pepper Float by adding a tbsp or two of heavy cream to a glass of icy cold diet soda. This one really hits the spot because the whipping cream make it taste rich and filling.

Don't stop with just Root Beer, though.

You can use any fruit flavored diet soda, too. I've made this with diet orange soda, diet strawberry soda, and for an extra-heavy cream taste, you can even use diet cream soda.

If I have a bit of CarbSmart Vanilla Ice Cream on hand, I will sometimes use a scoop of that, instead, but if I don't have any low-carb ice cream in the house, the heavy cream works just as well. To make this extra special, you can add a dollop of whipped cream to the top of your float.

This is especially helpful at night when other people are eating a special dessert or snacking while watching TV.

How to Make a Crystal Light Slushy

A slushy is finely crushed ice with a bit of syrup added, similar to a snow cone, but a bit wetter. To make it keto-friendly, simply make up a tray or two of ice cubes using prepared Crystal Light drink mix instead of water:

Low-Carb Slushy Ingredients:

• 6 to 8 cubes of frozen Crystal Light
• OR fresh fruit puree
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup diet 7 Up or lemon-lime soda

Freeze your favorite flavor of Crystal light or fruit puree in an ice cube tray. When solid, place ice cubes in the blender along with the diet 7 up. Blend to combine.

You can even refreeze this stuff to make a snow cone for later.