Get ready to take your morning routine up a notch with this delicious and energizing Green Smoothie!
These babies are loaded with whole foods nutrition from spinach and chia seeds, and they mask the veggie greens right in the creamy fusion of coconut milk, delicious banana, tangy oranges, and juicy pineapple, creating a smooth yet sweet sip every time.
So, brace yourself to treat your taste buds with this tasty sip which not only gives pleasure to your taste buds but also makes you healthy with a lot of goodness!
It is also super versatile (see substitution suggestions below) to help you adapt it to your pantry for AHH-MAZING green smoothie times.
Something that can get you out of bed in the morning just to make it! What makes this recipe different than all of the others?
- It’s super simple — only five ingredients too.
- It is nutritionally perfect and also, so filling.
- Unlike the others, it actually tastes good, hitting on mild bitterness and natural sweetness just right.
A green smoothie is only great if made so, you have to know how to choose the ingredients and in the right proportions. The balance keeps the textural and flavor harmony perfect.
The former recipe strikes a great balance of flavors and is perfect for someone new to grounding down their smoothies.
Think of it as a base recipe that you can make work with what you like. Once you do this, you are prepared to taste this green drink!
Green Smoothie Ingredients
This recipe offers a flexible array of ingredients, blending fruits, veggies, and healthy fats into a harmonious concoction that’s both simple and delicious.
Milk: Opt for cashew milk, oat milk, or almond milk for a creamy texture. However, feel free to use your preferred dairy or dairy-free milk alternative.
Vegetables: spinach serves as an effortless addition to green smoothies, boasting superfood status and budget-friendly appeal, especially in those ample containers of baby spinach.
Fruits: The recipe calls for an apple, avocado, and a banana, offering a well-rounded mix of fruits and healthy fats. If you wish to experiment with substitutions, refer to the ingredient alternatives listed below.
How to Prepare A Healthy Green Smoothie
The easiest method to make a green smoothie. All you have to do is throw them all in a high-powered blender and blend until thick and creamy-it usually only takes about 30 seconds.
Tips & Substitutions:
For more, check out my comprehensive post on how to make the healthiest green smoothie.
Get a Little Crazy With the Greens: While the majestic kale, spinach, or chard are obviously smoothie essentials, the more conventional celery, mustard greens, romaine, etc. are equally deserving of a spot in the shake queue.
Choose A Nutritious Liquid Base: Drink water or milk ( regular or non-dairy) instead of adding extra sugars with fruit juice.
Adjust Consistency: Increase Consistency — Add Another ¼ Avocado Increase liquid if you want thinner.
Variation in your Fruits: Start with a 2:1 fruit-to-vegetable ratio and move gradually to a 1:1 to a healthier fruit smoothie with less sugar. Note: Can be made with any frozen fruit such as Banana, Strawberries, mangos, or pineapple as a base
Add Healthy Fats: Avocado is the best form of healthy fat, but ANY other nuts/seeds or almond butter will offer similar benefits if avocado is not available.
How to Layer Smoothies for the Blender
This is critical for proper blending to be very smooth, pay attention to the order of the ingredients in this fruit milkshake.
For the newbies, I would like to emphasize again here, that because of the absence of liquid, it is important to layer your ingredients properly in the blender jar and make sure there is no jamming while blending them into a smooth texture. Use the guide below for layering:
Meet the Creamy Ingredients: Add something smooth and creamy like yogurt, or nut butter for added taste and texture.
Hard Fruits/Veggies: Apples, beets, and carrots are always great to add at this step because they are great juicing ingredients to break up the leafy greens.
Mix in nuts, seeds, or dried fruit for another heft of nutrition and some added crunch.
Add the Ice or Frozen Fruit: Lastly, add some ice or frozen berries to the top which will become the final layer of your smoothie and is the best way to cool and thicken your smoothie as well as weigh down everything else so it blends a little bit easier.
Should I Opt for Fresh or Frozen Ingredients?
Freezing all the fruit fresh before blending makes for a thick creamy texture that stays icy cold (without ice) and does not water the flavor down.
You can always keep a tray of fresh pineapple chunks frozen away for something like this, OR OR, you could be a hero and keep a big bag of frozen pineapple from Costco (there is no one less shy than you around!) in your freezer. It’s incredibly cheap and a great tool to keep up your sleeve during smoothie season.
If we are in pineapple or banana season – usually summer through fall – get pineapple and bananas, then slice them and freeze them in a single layer on a baking sheet until solid.
This way, you can easily freeze the fruit and now they are ready to help with your smoothies months from now.
Kale and frozen spinach are two other convenient options. Fresh spinach is one of the easiest plants (has this been said before?) to throw on a skillet at the end of the week and use in a multitude of dishes or tossed in a simple salad, but frozen spinach is that same go-to nutrition powerhouse one step further – but pre-washed, pre-chopped, and still completely nutritious.
With a bag of frozen spinach in the freezer, you never have an excuse not to have the ingredients on hand when you feel like treating yourself to a homemade green smoothie.
Just like the frozen pineapple, the frozen spinach cools the smoothie down. Be sure to use 1/2 the amount when substituting for fresh spinach.
What causes my smoothie to be too thick?
Your green smoothies might be thick from the viscosity of chia seeds, which in liquid expands your smoothie thick.
If, however, you prefer a smoother consistency, then you can eliminate the seeds or tweak the recipe by adding more coconut milk or ice to get the consistency you like.
What Is the Best Blender for Making Smoothies?
We have direct experience with two of the most powerful of these, which are the Blendtec Blender and the Vitamix Blender. In some tests, 598 juliennes a banana in only the blender, the Lowman, the equivalent of a kit, both whirled themselves with a velvet thud.
At the end of the day, the decision really just comes down to your taste.
When Is the Best Time to Drink a Green Smoothie?
Green smoothies are extremely versatile and can serve as a perfect option for breakfast, a lush mid-morning snack, or a refuel after a hard workout.
Green smoothies can be eaten for breakfast, as a snack in the late morning, or post a workout meal.
Or, you can treat yourself to a mid-afternoon smoothie, a snack full of nutrients whenever you need an energy boost or a vitamin infusion with a bowl of fruits and vegetables.
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