This Green Smoothie recipe is a delicious detox!
Want a great way to start the day or finish a workout? This Green Smoothie recipe is perfect because it has only has 5 ingredients, is a yummy “get healthy fix”, and can be ready in mere minutes!
© CentsLess Meals
Green Smoothie Recipe
PIN IT to your BREAKFAST Board to save it and share it!
Be sure to follow CentsLess Meals on Pinterest!
Why We Love Green Smoothies
Green smoothies are all the rage for detoxing and weight loss. What better way to get your daily dose of vitamins and minerals? Why not try a 10-day green smoothie challenge? One green smoothie a day may be just the health and wellness boost that’s needed! If you’re watching your weight or just looking for a quick cleanse, this green smoothie is just what you need to kickstart a healthy new diet! For a more substantial breakfast try a green smoothie with a blueberry or cranberry orange muffin!
What’s In A Green Smoothie?
GREENS
Every green smoothie needs a green base. Some recipes use a powdered green tea mix or matcha green tea that is already loaded with healthy ingredients. But making a green smoothie from scratch is easy and economical, too! This one is packed with antioxidants from the superfood kale, but feel free to use frozen or fresh spinach instead. Add spirulina, too if desired!
DAIRY
Although leafy greens are a great source of calcium, extra taste and nutrition comes from yogurt. Feel free to use kefir or a non-dairy alternative yogurt, instead. There are some delicious ones on the market these days, made from cultured coconut, soy, or even calcium-rich almond.
FRUIT
Potassium is found in bananas, and mango, pineapple, or a mixture of all three fruits tastes great with a kale smoothie! For the best color, avoid using berries. But if color doesn’t matter, go ahead and add some yummy berries to the mix!
MIX-INS
The basic recipe is essential and so delicious, but sometimes we also like to mix it up a bit!
- Try adding apple to the smoothies gives it a punch of fiber and flavor!
- Or add in some chia seeds, flax meal, or even hemp seeds and get your vegan on!
- We like wheat germ or protein powder too, which can turn this smoothie into a homemade meal replacement shake! Easy to grab and go!
How To Make A Green Smoothie
Nothing can be easier than throwing together a super healthy and super tasty green smoothie!
- Blend the kale with juice until smooth.
- Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.
PRO TIP: If smoothie is too thick, add a little more juice until the desired consistency is achieved.
Perfect Smoothies Every Time!
- What makes this smoothie as good as the ones at the smoothie bar? We think it is the right blender. A Vitamix, Ninja, or Magic Bullet has the power needed to grind leafy veggies into purée. Fine dice your fruits and veggies before adding to the blender to ensure they completely blend.
- Smoothies taste best when they are ice-cold, so try to use frozen fruits and small chunks of ice when blending. Smoothies can be frozen, too! Freeze in zippered bags with the date written on the outside. They should keep their flavor for at least a month.
- Or, freeze green smoothies in ice cube trays and pop one out to add to green tea, oatmeal, or even a serving of yogurt for an extra boost of nutrition!
Other Delicious Recipes To Try!
- Egg Muffins – easy, make ahead breakfast.
- Sausage, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwich – perfect to grab-n-go!
- Overnight Blueberry Breakfast Cake – for your next bruch.
- Egg and Sausage Breakfast Casserole – a hearty breakfast entree.
- Easy Breakfast Tacos – put a spicy twist on breakfast!
Green Smoothie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups packed kale
- ⅔ cup orange juice or as needed
- 1 cup vanilla yogurt
- 1 banana
- 2 cups frozen pineapple
- ½ cup ice
Instructions
- Blend kale and orange juice until smooth.
- Add remaining ingredients and blend until thickened and creamy.
- If your mixture is too thick, add orange juice as needed.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
©The Shortcut Kitchen. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
So Delicious!
So happy to hear you love this smoothie Alex!
So I’m enjoying a smoothie this morning with a cup of raspberries, some blueberries, and a whole lotta spinach and carrots. And it is pretty good! (added ice)
LOOKS SO GOOD NOT SURE HOW TO SAVE THE RECIPE. IF YOU COULD E-MAIL IT TO ME: cuddleyvt57@yahoo.co
My son and I are allergic to bananas. Are they really necessary?
This recipe is fantastic! I tried it for the very first time tonight and used fresh peaches, bananas, and raspberries. I also substituted apple sauce for water. It makes it a little more thicker, but still delish! Thanks for sharing!
An alternative that Dr. Oz suggested (and that I was already making except for the spinach .. added that and LOVED it!) is the banana, spinach, ice, water, scoop of PROTEIN powder and a small spoonful of natural peanut butter. I use chocolate protein powder and this is delish! Yes, the green is a bit much but you don’t taste it at all and it is soo good! You can also use plain greek yogurt in place of the water/protein to get the fluid/protein combo. I’ve made these for years sans the spinach (who knew it wouldn’t taste!) and have put just about any type of fruit/berry in it. Love the idea of grapes! Blueberries are wonderful but have a lot of little seeds, same with raspberries which lend a LOT of flavor but the seeds do get in the way as I always drink my smoothies with a straw due to sensative teeth. I have found that the banana is what “smoothes” it all out no matter what you ad AND it gives the sweetness you are looking for. Best part? You know those bananas that get too ripe and you always end up throwing away if you don’t feel like making banana bread? Freeze them! 20 seconds or less in the microwave and they are peelable and ready for the blender! Hope you all try them and find them as tasty and enjoyable as I do! Try it, you’ll like it!
Catherine, I just bought some protein powder and I’m going to try it out!! I bought vanilla flavor but I hope it will still be okay 😉 Thanks for the tips, they are wonderful!! What a gem of knowledge you are!!!
~JB
Are you using fresh spinach or frozen
I use fresh spinach. I am not sure if you can use frozen. I was wondering about that, I’ll look it up and let you know if I find anything out!!
~JB
Thanks so much for the recipe. I’ve started making them for me and my family and they really are good.
thanks!
We *love* green smoothies in our house…especially my 2 1/2 yr old! My almost 9 year old is the least fond of them, but will still drink his 8 oz more often than not. My 2 1/2 yr old will drink 20-24 oz if I let him! DH and I usually have 32 oz. If you’re just getting into them…the best greens to go for besides Spinach (which has next to NO taste!) are kale and napa cabbage (it’s a green, sort of oval shaped cabbage that most produce sections have). Collard greens are good too, but you’ll want to use less of them…they have a slight bite to them that makes the “green” taste come out more. Grapes are another great add to smoothies in place of bananas. We buy 40-50 pounds of red, black, and green grapes when they’re on sale in the summer and then freeze them for use in the winter. The kids think it’s like eating grape ice cream or mini popsicles! 🙂
LOL, the top warns us NEVER to eat banannas! All food is good when consumed in healthy moderation and balanced with physical activity.