Ingredients and Substitutions
Baby spinach – I prefer baby spinach for its mild taste and that it usually comes pre-washed at the store. You can use other greens or a mix – mature spinach, kale or baby kale, or even lettuce, if you like.If using kale, be sure to check out this guide on how to prep kale, including how to tame its bitterness a bit.Cucumber – just a few slices, you can omit if you like. No peeling needed. It adds nutrition and a refreshing, cool taste.Apple – I used fuji for its sweetness. Any will work, and a red peel won’t affect the color at all.Frozen pineapple and mango – or any combination of yellow fruits, which won’t muddy down the color of the green smoothie. Frozen is great because it makes for a cold smoothie without having to add ice. The cold also helps make any lingering bitter taste a little less so. Fresh or canned pineapple or fresh mango can also be used (here’s how to peel a mango easily!).Red fruits aren’t too bad in a green smoothie. Stay away from blues, which will give the smoothie an unappetizing brownish concrete color.Bananas – two of them, preferably very ripe, will add a lot of natural sweetness to the green smoothie. Frozen or fresh is fine.Avocado – you can use fresh or you can usually find frozen chunks with the other frozen fruit in your grocery store. Fat is essential in my opinion – you can use whole milk yogurt, a nut butter, or even a little coconut oil to achieve a similar bitter-balancing effect.Water – I like water as the base for green smoothies but you can use a plant-based milk or whole milk if you like (which will also add some fat and protein to the smoothie), or juice (pineapple juice is great in this, especially if you are using canned pineapple, just toss the juice in!).
How to make a Green Smoothie
Equipment Recommendations
I love my Vitamix blender. It’s quite pricey, but very powerful. The version I have (Ascent series) has an automated setting, including one for smoothies, so you can turn it on and it goes automatically. My secret to the BEST green smoothie ever: fat and sugar. Bitter green veggies NEED them. It’s why I roast brussels sprouts with bacon and maple syrup, and why I massage kale salad with a sweet maple and olive oil vinaigrette. Fat and sugar balance out the bitter flavor of green veggies. And when you’re enjoying a smoothie, bitter is the last thing you want! Don’t let the beautiful bright vibrant green color of this smoothie fool you- yes, it’s packed with good-for-you-greens, but it’s balanced beautifully with sweet yellow fruits (that won’t take away from the color), as well as a little avocado for some healthy fats to take away the bitter flavor and balance acidity (while keeping the smoothie completely plant-based/vegan). The result is a super smooth, sweet-but-not-too-sweet, healthy, and delicious smoothie. So grab that blender and let’s get to it! A more budget-friendly option is a Ninja Blender. Really, any blender will work for this smoothie- just let it go for a little longer for an ultra-smooth texture! I also love serving my smoothies in stemless wine glasses with reusable bamboo straws (which look beautiful and are eco friendly and not super annoying like paper straws!).
Other healthy fruit and veggie breakfast ideas
Banana Pudding Smoothie BowlStrawberry Chia Seed PuddingSpinach and Cheddar Microwave Quiche in a MugCrustless Spinach, Tomato, and Feta QuicheOlive Oil Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes and Feta
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