I am not one of those people who enjoys drinking my meals. So when my friend told me that for the past few months she’d been making and enjoying a protein shake for lunch, I thought, yuck not me. But, I am now among the converted.

I tried it largely because many days I do a version of intermittent fasting. I make a cup of coffee when I first wake up. Yes, tis true, I put cream in it, but I sort of don’t register this as breaking my fast. Some will argue, but so be it. That cup of coffee with cream around 8 am fills me up until around 10:30 or 11 am. And here’s something interesting: It’s not that I’m trying not to eat, I’m literally just not indulging in the habit of breakfast, and so find I’m not hungry those first few hours of the day.

So, most days I eat my breakfast – yogurt, a half slice of cinnamon coffee bread (I make myself), a spoonful of almond butter and two spoonfuls of tahini – around 11 am. That means I’m once again not hungry at the proverbial lunch hour. Instead around 2 pm I have an edge of appetite and make myself a protein shake. It’s just perfect to fill that little hole in my stomach with something filling, nourishing and tasty. There are a zillion protein shake recipes online. Take a look.

My shakes (only been doing it a few weeks) are a variation on a theme. Typically, I use a third of a banana, to keep the carbs low and add some berries, which are already low in carbs. I add a few spoonfuls of plain greek yogurt, a cup of almond milk, the green in the picture above was made green by adding some red Swiss chard, (you can add any green veg that doesn’t have a strong taste, many use spinach), then, while the serving size appears to be one scoop, I’m using half a scoop (after all, I am not protein deficient) of my Plant Fusion vanilla protein powder, 4 ice cubes (the ice cubes add heft) and I blend it all in a blender my mother likely gave me when I moved into my first apartment after college.

There are a lot of protein powders out there. I bought this one I’m using above in Whole Foods but I see they also sell it on Amazon, which is the link I included above. I bought PlantFusion because I read all the nutrition labels of all the choice, and this one seemed to hit the trifecta of low carb, healthy ingredients and price.

When I told my friend I was making using that old blender my mom gave me, she said, “Why don’t you get a Nutribullet?” Whereupon I replied, “Why should I? This is doing all I need!” The defense rests.

So if you’re tired of what you’re eating for lunch, or you’re experimenting with different ways of eating, you might consider trying a protein shake for your breakfast or lunch, whatever suits you. My prejudice of not wanting to drink a meal has disappeared. It’s so tasty, satisfying, filling and nutritionally sound. It’s been a wonderful discovery for me, and I don’t see that stopping anytime soon.