I enjoy having variety of flavors in my diet, so when I started the Optifast program I explored lots of flavor combinations. When I have a craving for a specific treat, I try to recreate it as an Optifast shake. And it has worked to satisfy all my sweets cravings so far. It has kept me from feeling deprived and has helped to keep up my motivation to stay on the product.
What types of flavorings work well? It depends on your personal preferences and the flavor of product you chose.
Here are a few recommendations. Some are based off of recommendations from Optifast and some are based off of my own experiments. I prefer those made with Torani syrups and LorAnn Oils but there are a lot of options out there. I haven’t tried any of the nut versions, since I am very allergic to tree nuts, but I have included them here for completeness.
The printable recipe can be found at the bottom of the post.
Amount of extract to use based on Optifast product type
For those using concentrated flavors, use 2-3 drops for 1/8 tsp and 4-6 drops for 1/2 tsp – and vice versa.
| Flavoring Extract | Vanilla Optifast | Chocolate Optifast | Strawberry Optifast |
| Almond | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp | 1/2 tsp |
| Anise | 1 drop | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp |
| Banana or banana cream | 1/8 tsp | 1/4 tsp | 1/4 tsp |
| Bavarian cream | 4-6 drops | 4-6 drops | |
| Brandy | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp | 1/4 tsp |
| Cheesecake or cream cheese | 4-6 drops | 4-6 drops | |
| Caramel | 4-6 drops | 4-6 drops | |
| Cherry | 1/2 tsp | 1/4 tsp | 1/2 tsp |
| Chocolate | 1/2 tsp | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp |
| Cinnamon Spice or cinnamon roll | 4-6 drops | 4-6 drops | |
| Coconut | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp | 1/4 tsp |
| Cookies and cream | 4-6 drops | 4-6 drops | |
| Eggnog | 4-6 drops | ||
| Key Lime | 4-6 drops | ||
| Kona Coffee | 4-6 drops | ||
| Maple | 1/8 tsp | ||
| Mint Chocolate Chip | 4-6 drops | 4-6 drops | |
| Orange or orange cream | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp |
| Peppermint | 4 drops | 4 drops | |
| Root beer | 1/8 tsp | ||
| Rum or Butter rum | 1/8 tsp | 1/8 tsp | 1/2 tsp |
| Strawberry (or other berry flavor) | 1/2 tsp | 1/4 tsp | |
| Tangerine | 4-6 drops | 4-6 drops | |
| Vanilla | 1/8 tsp | 1/4 tsp |
Flavored Optifast Shakes
Equipment
- Shaker or blender
Ingredients
- 6-10 Ounces Water very cold is preferred
- 1 Packet Optifast powder
- 4-6 drops concentrated flavoring or, 1/8 – 1/2 tsp of flavoring extract
- 1/2 tsp noncaloric sweetener adjust to taste
- 1-2 Tbsp sugar-free flavoring syrup optional, substitute for extract and sweetener
- 1/2-1 cup ice optional
Instructions
- Pour water into blender or shaker bottle.
- Add flavoring and sweetener to taste.
- Add Optifast product.
- Add ice if you are making the blended option.
- Shake or blend until product is well dissolved and mixed through.
- Serve and garnish as desired. Recommendation for non-blended option: Serve over ice.
