How to make the best green smoothie recipe! A simple green smoothie for beginners that is healthy, tastes amazing, and it’s made with 4 ingredients in less than 5 minutes! Plus my tips on meal prepping smoothies!
This post is sponsored by my friends at Vitamix. As always, all opinions, photos, videos and the recipe are completely my own!
I drink a green smoothie every day, and have for almost a decade! So this post, explaining “how to make a green smoothie” with all my tips and tricks has been something I’ve wanted to write since I started this blog! This is a long and comprehensive post and video, so settle in while we get started!
I’ll start by sharing how to meal prep smoothies! I’m always prepared to make a delicious green smoothie in a moment’s notice. Because every minute in the morning before the kids wake up is precious! I don’t want to waste any time measuring protein powder, chopping fruit, etc.
Next, I’ll share my favorite green smoothie recipe! It’s a simple green smoothie for beginners that is naturally sweetened with fruit (no added sugars) and loaded with greens and protein!
How to meal prep green smoothies
I think that green smoothies are the best when they’re served fresh, straight from the blender. So I meal prep smoothies by having all the ingredients on hand and ready to go. This means I always have my freezer stocked with frozen fruit and greens and pre-portion all of the add-ins like protein powder!
1) Freeze Bananas
In my opinion, bananas are an essential ingredient to make the best green smoothies for both natural sweetness and a creamy texture. So make sure to purchase bananas designated to freeze for smoothies when you go grocery shopping!
Let the bananas ripen then cut them into halves or thirds. Flash freeze on a baking sheet, then transfer to an airtight, freezer-friendly container to store!
2) Use frozen fruit & greens
This green smoothie recipe calls for 1 cup of frozen fruit in addition to one frozen banana. Using frozen fruit and greens is key to the thickest, creamiest green smoothies. You’ll notice I do not use ice in any of my smoothie recipes, because it waters down the flavor and gives smoothies an icy texture – which I am not a fan of.
I recommend stocking up on frozen fruit in the winter when produce isn’t readily available. During the summer, purchase seasonal produce on sale and flash freeze it in the same way as the bananas!
Fruit to use in a green smoothie
Here are some suggestions for fruits to use in this green smoothie recipe. In this post I used half mango and half pineapple, which is my favorite combination! Be aware, that if you use darker fruits like blueberries, blackberries, cherries, etc. the color will change and you will likely make a brown smoothie that is delicious but not green in color! 🙂
- mango
- pineapple
- strawberries
- blueberries
- raspberries
- peaches
- cherries
- oranges
- grapefruit
Greens to use in a green smoothie
If you are making this simple green smoothie recipe as a beginner, then I recommend sticking with spinach as the green of choice.I buy multiple 2.5 lb bags of fresh spinach from Costco every time we go (usually every other month) and toss them right into the freezer when we get home from our trip. That way I know the spinach is fresh and that I’m stocked for the months ahead. Here are other suggestions:
- spinach
- kale
- swiss chard
- romain lettuce
- beet greens
- carrot tops
- collard greens
- celery
Blend Greens and freeze in cubes
If you don’t have a lot of space in your freezer, you can take the fresh spinach (or other greens of choice) and blend with a small amount of water until the mixture is smooth. Then freeze in ice cube trays and store frozen cubes of greens in an airtight container in the freezer. I used to do this when we lived in a condo and didn’t have an extra freezer in the basement!
3) Pre-portion add-ins
Measuring out the add-ins for my green smoothies has been a game-changer for me! I wake up early and nurse my baby, exercise, shower, eat breakfast and drink my coffee all before my 5 kids wake up for the day. So I have the morning routine down to a science to get the most alone time possible before 7:30 AM!
So, I measure out the smoothie ingredients into these small containers and prepare two weeks worth of smoothies at one time! I even have a drawer right under my Vitamix blender where I store the containers for easy access. All I have to do is pop the lid and dump the ingredients in, no measuring required!
Best Green Smoothie Add-ins
I started putting add-ins into my green smoothie recipes when my third baby was born. A few scoops of nutritional boosters gave me increased energy throughout the day and made the green smoothies taste even better! So here are some of my suggestions!
- Protein Powder – this is my favorite plant-based, whey-free protein powder in vanilla and chocolate.
- Collagen Powder – a neutral tasting protein boost! Also good for gut health!
- Maca -for increased fertility and hormone balance.
- Chia Seeds – added protein without powders.
- Ground Flaxseed – a dose of Omega 3s!
- Bee Pollen – boosts immunity.
- Acai Berry powder – antioxidants!
- Raw cacao nibs – a healthy way to add a little chocolate!
- Nuts or seeds
- Coconut Oil – increases metabolism, keeps you full for longer!
- Cinnamon – anti-inflammatory and delicious!
- Amazing Grass Green Superfood– great way to add even more greens!
How to make a green smoothie!
Ok, now that we’ve talked about all the delicious ingredients that go into making a green smoothie, let’s actually dive into how to make a green smoothie recipe!
Step 1: Use a Vitamix blender!
If you’ve been around my blog for a while then you know that I exclusively blend with a Vitamix (and have for a decade)! So it’s not surprising that I will tell you that the best way to achieve silky smooth green smoothies is to use a Vitamix blender!
I bought my first Vitamix because I was sick of chewing my green smoothies (can anyone else relate)?! I wanted a blender that would pulverize anything and everything I put into my smoothies and the Vitamix was the answer. If you don’t have a Vitamix yet I highly recommend getting one ASAP!
Check out my Vitamix Buying Guide where I give my exhaustive reasons for choosing a Vitamix blender a decade ago, and my top recommendations about which model to buy!
Step 2: Add liquid ingredients
When making a green smoothie, it’s important to always add the liquid ingredients into the blending container first. This ensures the other ingredients don’t get stuck under the blades! It also creates a vortex that pulls everything into the blades for a smooth blend!
Best liquids to use in a green smoothie recipe
I always use some sort of non-dairy milk in my green smoothies because I think it gives them the best taste and texture. However there are many different liquids that could be used:
- Almond Milk (my personal favorite)
- Coconut Milk
- Any percentage of dairy milk
- Rice Milk
- Oat Milk
- Cashew Milk
- Coconut Water
- Water (not recommended, but can be used)
Step 3: Add the frozen greens
Next, add your frozen greens of choice on top of the liquid.
Step 4: Add Frozen Fruit and Add-ins
Putting the frozen fruit on top of the greens helps push all the leaves into the blades and prevents them from sticking to the sides.
Step 5: Blend!
Now it’s time to blend our green smoothie! Start blending on low speed and gradually increase to high. Blend on high speed for 50-60 seconds or until the green smoothie is smooth!
ENJOY!
Pour the green smoothie into one to four cups and enjoy! In my opinion, this recipe makes two good-sized adult servings or 4 kid servings!
FAQs about Green Smoothies!
To be as helpful as possible, I want to take a minute and answer a few frequently asked questions about making this green smoothie recipe for beginners!
Is a green smoothie good for you?
Yes, yes and YES! This green smoothie recipe has loads of protein, a good dose of fiber and is packed full of nutrients! It’s a great healthy and filling breakfast or snack!
Can you taste spinach in smoothies?
No! If you make this green smoothie recipe as it is written you will not be able to taste the spinach at all!
Is spinach or kale better for smoothies?
Spinach and kale are both great choices for green smoothies, however I prefer spinach, Kale has a stronger taste than spinach, and can be detected by my veggie police children! 🙂
How do I sweeten my green smoothie?
You do not need any sweetener to make this simple green smoothie recipe! The fruit imparts all the sweetness necessary for even the youngest members of my family to enjoy!
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Best Green Smoothie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups unsweetened almond milk
- 2 cups spinach* frozen
- 1 medium banana frozen
- 1 cup fruit of choice**
- Optional add ins: protein powder bee pollen, collagen, etc.
Instructions
- Put ingredients into the container of a Vitamix blender in the order listed.
- Start blending on low speed and increase to high.
- Blend on high speed for 50-60 seconds until mixture is smooth.
- Pour into glasses and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- *If you are a beginner when it comes to green smoothies, I suggest using all spinach for the best flavor and texture. You can also use kale, lettuce, etc.
- 2 cups of spinach equals 85 g, or 3 oz fresh spinach.
- **My favorite fruit combination is ½ cup frozen mango and ½ cup frozen pineapple, but feel free to use your favorite fruits! Suggestions; apples, grapes, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, oranges, etc.
- Nutritional information is calculated using spinach, 1/2 cup pineapple, 1/2 cup mango and 1 scoop of Orgain Vanilla Protein Powder.Â
Nutrition
More green smoothie recipes
Here are some of my favorite healthy green smoothie recipes!
- I drink this chocolate peanut butter green smoothie every day!
- This citrus green smoothie is great for winter!
- Have extra zucchini? Make this creamy zucchini smoothie!
- You can add spinach to this strawberry banana smoothie, pineapple smoothie, mixed berry smoothie and this mango smoothie recipe to make them green!
- Add spinach to this pumpkin smoothie which tastes like a liquid pumpkin pie but it’s so much healthier!
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Trini
This recipe turned out perfect! Thank you Laura. I change up the frozen fruits sometime which makes for a different delicious tastes every time.
Issy
Absolutely love this recipe, can you make nite before and drink next day ?
Tess
I followed the recipe exactly but my green smoothie turned purple. How do I get it to look like yours? I used berries as my fruit so I now know that won’t work.
Laura
Hey Tess. Yep if you use any purple or red colored berry you will end up with a brown green smoothie! 🙂 Pineapple and mango are what I used to yield a green, green smoothie.
Barbara
I agree that the taste of spinach, or should I say, not tasting the spinach, is great! But you need to rotate and not use spinach all the time because of the tendency to form kidney stones. Maybe one week, use spinach and the next week use kale.
M.N.
Added kale instead of spinach, half cup of each blueberries and raspberries as well as chocolate whey powder and a spoon of chocolate overnight oats left over from yesterday’s breakfast. DELICIOUS!!
Clara
I used coconut water and mango, it turned out great!
Sarah
Hi I saw you video and I bought all the stuff to make it but it’s only me drinking it so should I use only have the recipe
Sheila Barnes
Thank u very much for the information on making the green smoothies. This is my first time making them.
Sergei
HiLaura. I tried your smoothie, it’s simple and delicious. Thank you
Laura
Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Loretta
Hello! I would like to make a bulk amount of the dry supplemental ingredients, can you provide the ratios of each ingredient?