Through trial and error, I've settled on a favorite muscle-gaining/breakfast smoothie. The recipe is shared below.
Short Answer
1/2 serving of unflavored, nonfat greek yogurt
1 serving of chocolate protein powder
5/4 servings of oatmeal
1 banana
1 serving of peanut butter
[optional] 1 serving of mixed kale and spinach
water for base
ice
This is the "short answer" because the optional preparation process and the brands for the ingredients aren't specified. If you want more details, check out the long answer below.
Long Answer
Ingredients in a nutshell
113g of Chobani unflavored, nonfat greek yogurt
34g Garden of Life Chocolate Protein Powder
50g of Quaker oatmeal
1 banana (roughly 4oz on average)
32g of Smart Balance peanut butter
[optional] 85g of mixed kale and spinach
10oz of water for base
4oz of ice
Of course, you can play around with the brands; I chose these particular brands because there are no preservatives, artificial sweeteners, or trans fat. Here are two tips for a better experience:
1) Grind your oatmeal
2) Refrigerate your peanut butter
As you know, blending oatmeal into your smoothie may make the consistency clumpy. To resolve this, put the oatmeal into the blender by itself and press the grind option (blend works, too). This will grind the oatmeal into a fine powder:
Before
After
This is preferred because it makes the shake smooth: there are no clumps and the powder actually absorbs some of the water, making the smoothie nice and thick. For convenience, I prepare and store an entire tub of grinded oatmeal so I don't have to do this every time I blend my smoothie.
As for refrigerating your peanut butter, it makes it less sticky so it slides off your spoon easily when you're scooping it in.
Why I Picked These Ingredients
Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt makes the smoothie creamy (in a good way), is high in protein, and contains probiotics, which promote digestion. Since I've consumed greek yogurt daily, I've felt better overall and have noticed that my digestion has improved significantly. Here's a fun and useful fact: Élie Metchnikoff, a Nobel Prize winner in medicine, attributed the longevity of Bulgarian peasants due to their yogurt consumption.
Garden of Life Raw Organic Chocolate Protein
I chose this because it doesn't contain preservatives, artificial sweeteners, or synthetic ingredients, unlike most protein powders. Also, it's well-priced and 100% vegan (if this matters to you). While some may dislike the flavor, I personally think it's pleasant especially when mixed into a smoothie. However, if you're worried about this, I highly recommend Jay Robb's whey protein which tastes amazing and also has safe ingredients; the only reason I don't purchase this is because of my budget.
Oatmeal
Oatmeal is an incredibly cheap, healthy source of carbohydrates as it contains soluble fiber which may lower cholesterol. Also, it promotes the consistency of the smoothie.
Banana
Bananas are a great source of carbohydrates and potassium, an essential electrolyte for the human body.
Peanut Butter
Peanut butter makes the smoothie thick and is high in monounsaturated fat, which is supposedly the healthy fat. I chose Smart Balance because it is cheap and does not contain trans fat.
Kale and Spinach
These are optional ingredients because they may degrade the flavor of the smoothie. However, I personally don't taste the difference because the flavors of the other ingredients are so prominent that they override the flavors of the spinach and kale. Before turning down these ingredients, consider their many health benefits.
Nutritional Breakdown
For you hardcore weightlifters, here's the macronutrient breakdown:
Macronutrient ratio
Nutritional breakdown
As you see, this shake makes for a great weight gainer as it is calorie dense and the macronutrient ratio is on point. 45:30:25 fits my body the best but, if you want the standard 50:25:25, simply play around with the ingredients (e.g. more oatmeal, less protein powder, more peanut butter).
I drank one or two of these suckers a day while bulking and got results.
Enjoy :)