Buttermilk shakes!

Clearing out your cupboard does wonders for experimentation. I had half a pint of buttermilk to defrost, and in reading the nutrition label I discovered that one cup has 100 calories and eight grams of protein -- which puts it on par with yogurt. Being out of eggs, buttermilk pancakes were not an option. And buttermilk biscuits seemed much too unhealthy for this time of year.

So, in light of it being a hot, humid day, having just gotten back from a run, and preempting my eve-of-the-exam trip for ice cream, I decided on a milkshake. The tang of the buttermilk made for a much more complex chocolaty flavor than a regular milkshake, and allows you to control the level of sweetness. The flavor was richer than plain milk, and lighter than ice cream. I would definitely buy buttermilk just to make this again!

Chocolate buttermilk shake:

• 1 cup half-frozen buttermilk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1.5 tsp cocoa powder
• 1.5 tsp brown sugar (or maple syrup or honey or white sugar)
• chia or other seeds for fun (totally optional)
• (I'm sure this would be delicious with a banana or frozen berries -- I happened to be out)

Blend the buttermilk until it's creamy. Blend in the other ingredients. Enjoy! Now get back to work!