A new recipe has to be both "fun and flavorful" for award-winning pastry chef Christina Tosi to serve it at Milk Bar. So when the famed bakery founder concocted a new lineup of high-protein treats, she landed on three sweet confections that take the proverbial cake to join the menu for a limited time.
From Starbucks to snack companies, more brands are rolling out high-protein recipes to entice health-focused customers. Milk Bar is leaning into the trend with a special limited-time menu available starting Friday in-store at flagship locations, plus a blueberry pancake-inspired cookie will also be available for online orders, baked fresh and delivered right to customers' doors all month long.
"If we're not obsessed with it, we don't expect you to be obsessed with it, and it never makes it to the menu at Milk Bar," Tosi said of the new launch, adding, "We will never ask you to sacrifice flavor and fun when you are taking a bite of something that comes out of our kitchen."
"We were like, 'One [new flavor] won't be enough' -- then it kind of feels like a one trick pony -- and quite frankly we also wanted to celebrate different flavor stories," Tosi told "Good Morning America" of how Milk Bar landed on the new menu item flavors, which range from blueberry to coffee-flavored treats.
Tosi teamed up with Premier Protein to develop these recipes using both whey protein powders and ready-to-drink protein shakes in various baking applications.
First up, a Blueberry Pancake Super Cookie that's made with Premier Protein's vanilla 100% Whey Protein Powder, which Tosi said gives it a perfectly soft, chewy texture and 10 grams of protein per cookie.
Next, the Mega Milkshake Caramel Cake, an in-store exclusive at New York City, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., stores. The Mega Milkshake Caramel Cake is a soft sponge cake made with the vanilla protein powder that's topped with a caramel drizzle. Tosi said she designed this item with a tres leches cake in mind: Customers can customize the cake to their taste preferences by adding a sweet liquid -- in this case a high protein shake -- that soaks into the sponge and moistens the cake to create a gooey, rich dessert.
Tosi recommends the Vanilla flavor to pour overtop, but said fans can also choose from Chocolate or Café Latte, each containing 30 grams of protein per drink. Once the liquid settles into the cake, customers can place a lid on top, shake it up and enjoy.
Finally, the four-time James Beard Award-winning chef reconstructed an Italian classic with the new Power-Packed Tiramisu Truffles, which, "based on the ingredients, was very in our ethos," she said.
Each truffle has a sweet and tangy mascarpone filling that's enveloped by a coffee-flavored truffle base soaked in a Premier Protein Café Latte shake -- giving it almost a cookie dough texture -- dipped in chocolate and dusted with a chocolate protein powder coating.
The full protein menu is also available for delivery on DoorDash, UberEats and GrubHub.
Because Tosi said she believes in this collaboration menu so much, customers can visit Milk Bar locations between 3 and 4 p.m. all month long and try any of the three protein treats for free, plus they'll get a free shake.
Milk Bar will also offer nurses who show their ID at any location during the month of August an extra 20% discount on any item as part of Premier Protein's Shakes for Shifts platform.
Similar to the Mega Milkshake Caramel Cake on the new menu, Tosi told "GMA" the high protein shakes are delicious to sweeten up your coffee, or even as a boost in your favorite bowl of cereal.
If she were to add another high protein recipe beyond the ones below, Tosi suggested "cereal milk soft serve," especially for anyone that has one of the increasingly popular at-home ice cream machines like the Ninja Creami. "Let the cereal soak and get all the goodies at the bottom -- make ice cream," she said.
Blueberry Pancake Cookie
Makes 18 cookies
Ingredients
2 sticks unsalted butter, super soft
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup water
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups Premier Protein Vanilla Milkshake 100% Whey Protein Powder
1/2 cup milk powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup dried blueberries
1/2 cup toffee pieces
Directions
Heat oven to 350 F, then line and grease 2 baking sheets and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together butter and sugars, stirring together until homogeneous, about 1 minute. Mix in eggs, maple, and water, and stir until smooth and homogenous, about 2 minutes.
Measure all dry ingredients into the same mixing bowl. Toss only the dry ingredients on top together with the spatula first, before truly stirring them into the wet ingredients below. Mix all until well combined. Stir in blueberries and toffee pieces and mix until they are evenly distributed through the dough.
Scoop or roll your dough into balls (1/3 cup or 2 3/4-ounce ice cream scoop in size) and place 2 to 3 inches apart on your prepared sheets. Bake at 350 F for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown on the edges. Cool completely on the baking sheets.
Caramel Milkshake Cake
Makes 1/4 sheet pan or 6 portions
Ingredients
1 stick unsalted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup dulce de leche
3 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon vinegar
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1/4 cup Premier Protein Vanilla Milkshake 100% Whey Protein Powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Vanilla Premier Protein shake
Additional dulce de leche for drizzling
Directions
Heat the oven to 350 F then line and grease a quarter sheet pan and put to the side.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high for 2-3 minutes until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as you go. Add the dulce de leche and beat on high for 1 minute.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating on medium-high until smooth after each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go.
Combine the milk, oil, vanilla, and vinegar separately, and with the mixer on medium-low speed, slowly stream the combined liquids into the mixing bowl, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go. Mix on medium for 2 minutes to ensure the mixture is homogenous.
In a separate bowl, combine the cake flour, protein powder, baking powder, and salt, then add it to the mixer, mixing on low speed to combine all ingredients into a smooth batter, 1 minute.
Pour and spread batter evenly into the prepared pan and bake 30-35 minutes -- the cake will rise and puff. At 30 minutes, poke the cake lightly on the edge with your finger. The cake should bounce back slightly and the center should no longer be jiggly. If the cake doesn't pass these tests, continue baking for 3-5 minutes.
Cool completely at room temperature.
Remove the cake from the pan and cut into 2 rows and 3 columns and place in a bowl. Drizzle extra caramel sauce atop, pour one Premier Protein Vanilla Shake over each portion.
Recipes reprinted courtesy of Milk Bar.
