The easiest ways to use bone broth protein beyond hot chocolate are overnight oats, hot and iced lattes, smoothies, and quick bakes like mug cake and pancakes. One scoop adds 14g of protein and 0g sugar. To get good results, stir it into a little liquid before adding the rest, stop the blender as soon as it's smooth, and pair it with oat flour and an egg or banana when you bake.
In this article
We keep 23 tested recipes on our recipes page. This guide sorts the best of them by meal, tells you which flavor to use for what, and links straight to each full recipe so you can pick one and make it tonight.
How to use bone broth protein: four rules
These came out of our kitchen testing, and they matter more than any single recipe. The full notes are in the "before you start" box on the recipes page.
- Hot drinks: heat the milk until it steams, not boils. Stir the scoop into 2 tablespoons of the hot liquid first, then add the rest. It comes out smooth every time.
- Cold drinks: milk in the shaker first, then the scoop. Shake for fifteen seconds.
- Blender: liquid first, and stop as soon as it's smooth. Collagen foams if you keep going.
- Baking: the Mix adds flavor and protein, not structure. Pair it with oat flour and an egg or banana, keep the heat moderate and the bake time short.
People often ask if heat ruins the protein. It doesn't. Heat changes a protein's shape, but the amino acids your body uses are still there. Our guide to bone broth protein in coffee explains it in more detail.
Which flavor to use for what
- Classic Chocolate (caffeine-free): desserts, oats, smoothies and anything for kids.
- Mocha (coffee flavor, caffeine-free): lattes, frappes and puddings you can have at night.
- Caffeinated Chocolate (60mg caffeine per scoop): morning coffee drinks and before a workout. Adults only.
- Chai (our newest flavor; warm spice and vanilla, no tea, caffeine-free): lattes, iced shakes, oats and waffles.
Breakfast: overnight oats, pancakes and waffles
Breakfast is where one scoop does the most work. In a small study in the Journal of Nutrition, adults who spread their protein evenly across the day, about 30g at each meal, had higher 24-hour muscle protein synthesis than when they ate most of it at dinner (Mamerow and colleagues, 2014). Most of us eat the opposite way, so breakfast is the easy place to start.
- Chocolate Overnight Oats: brownie-batter oats stirred together in a jar the night before. About 22g of protein with yogurt and almond milk, about 28g with dairy milk.
- Chai Overnight Oats: the same base with chai spice. I make three jars on Sunday night so the boys' school mornings run themselves.
- Wake-Up Overnight Oats: breakfast and your first caffeine in one jar, made with Caffeinated Chocolate.
- Chocolate Protein Pancakes: a weekend stack with about 24g of protein per serving of three pancakes.
- Chai Protein Waffles: crisp and spiced, about 26g of protein per two waffles.
One tip for oats: whisk the scoop into the milk before the oats go in, so you don't get dry pockets. The base ratio is 1/2 cup oats, 1 scoop, 3/4 cup milk and 1 tablespoon chia.
Lattes and coffee drinks, hot and iced
I'm a nurse and a mom of three boys, so I don't own a recipe that takes longer than finding a missing shoe. Three of my weekly favorites are in this group.
- Morning Boost: one scoop of Caffeinated Chocolate straight into your coffee. On 5 a.m. days it's the only breakfast I get before rounds, and it counts.
- Iced Mocha "Proffee": my post-shift coffee. Shake it, pour it over ice and coffee, and you have about 15g to 20g of protein.
- The Classic Chai Latte: warm chai and vanilla with nothing to steep. It's the one I make at 8 p.m. after bedtime.
- Evening Mocha Latte: coffee-shop mocha flavor with 0mg caffeine.
- Shake-and-Go Iced Coffee and Dirty Chai: one for the commute, one for chai people who still want their coffee.
- Mocha Protein Coffee Creamer and Protein Coffee Ice Cubes: make them on Sunday and use them all week.
If you're trying to cut back on coffee, check how much caffeine is in chocolate, mocha and coffee before you pick a flavor.
Smoothies and frappes
Bone broth protein goes into a smoothie without making it taste like soup, because what you taste is the chocolate, mocha or chai. Put the liquid in first and keep the blend short, 30 to 45 seconds.
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Smoothie: tastes like a peanut butter cup, with about 19g to 26g of protein depending on the milk.
- Mocha Banana Frappe: a frozen banana stands in for the sugar and cream.
- Chai Smoothie Upgrade: banana, pear and a handful of spinach that end up tasting like a cold chai latte.
- Iced Chai Shake: milk, ice, one scoop, shake. No blender at all.
- Pre-Workout Banana Blend: banana, a little caffeine and 14g of protein, about 30 minutes before the gym.
Snacks and desserts
- Frozen Fudge Pops: my boys think these are dessert and don't fight over them. Each pop has about 10g of protein.
- Chocolate Mug Cake: my school-night dessert. Ninety seconds in the microwave, about 21g of protein.
- Mocha Chia Pudding: a make-ahead pudding you can eat at your desk.
- Mocha No-Bake Energy Bites: about 6g of protein per bite, and they keep in the fridge all week.
Can you bake with bone broth protein?
Yes, with one adjustment. Collagen-rich protein has nothing like gluten's structure, so if it's the only "flour" in a recipe you get something gummy or flat. Our baked recipes handle that with oat flour plus an egg or banana, about one scoop per 1/4 cup of oat flour, moderate heat and short cook times. Chai bakes get extra cinnamon because spice fades in the oven.
How the protein adds up
The Mix gives you 14g a scoop, and the rest depends on what you mix it with. According to USDA data, a cup of whole dairy milk adds about 8g of protein and unsweetened almond milk adds about 1g. That's why most of our recipes list two numbers.
| A day of recipes | Protein (with dairy milk) |
|---|---|
| Chocolate Overnight Oats | About 28g |
| Iced Mocha "Proffee" | About 20g |
| Classic Chai Latte | About 24g |
That's about 70g of protein from three easy recipes, before lunch or dinner. One caveat from the nurse side: bone broth protein is rich in collagen amino acids like glycine and proline but naturally low in some essential ones, such as tryptophan. Keep eggs, dairy, meat, fish or beans in your meals too.
The numbers for every flavor are on Rae Basics at a glance. When you're ready, pick a flavor of Bone Broth Protein Mix and make the first recipe tonight. If hot chocolate is still your favorite way to drink it, read is bone broth hot chocolate good for you and five ways to make high-protein hot chocolate. Chai fans have a whole guide to the caffeine-free chai protein latte, and for midlife mornings, see high-protein breakfast ideas for perimenopause.
Quick answers
How do you use bone broth protein?
Whisk one scoop into 8 to 12 oz of warm water or milk, or shake it with cold milk. It also works in coffee, smoothies, overnight oats and simple bakes. You don't need a blender for drinks.
Will it make my smoothie taste like soup?
Not with a flavored mix. Classic Chocolate, Mocha, Caffeinated Chocolate and Chai taste like their flavor. The broth is the protein base, not the taste.
Can I cook or bake with bone broth protein?
Yes. Pair it with oat flour and an egg or banana for structure, keep the heat moderate and bake for a short time.
Why does my protein drink foam in the blender?
Collagen-rich protein foams when it's blended too long. Add the liquid first and stop after 30 to 45 seconds.
Which recipes are good for kids?
Anything made with Classic Chocolate, Mocha or Chai, which have 0mg caffeine. The fudge pops and mug cake are family favorites. See our guide to bone broth hot chocolate for kids.
Sources
- Mamerow MM, Mettler JA, English KL, et al. Dietary protein distribution positively influences 24-h muscle protein synthesis in healthy adults. J Nutr. 2014;144(6):876-880.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central. Milk, whole (FDC ID 171265). About 7.7g protein per cup.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central. Beverages, almond milk, unsweetened (FDC ID 174832). About 1g protein per cup.
