Green Smoothie Recipes: A Delicious Compromise

I was making a smoothie some months back, and at the last minute, decided to throw in some of Alina’s kale that was about to wilt…and HOLY MOLY! It was so good! You couldn’t taste the kale! I thought I had come upon a great idea, but turns out green smoothies are quite the phenomenon in the raw food diet world. As I mentioned, there is no exact recipe on how a green smoothie can be made. Just throw in your favorite fruits, add some greens and liquid, and viola! Smoothie verde!

Ingredients: Strawberries, Banana, Pineapple, OJ, Spinach

Here is a list of ingredients that I have used in my {and Alina’s} smoothies. Below the ingredients are some helpful tips. Read these and save yourself the time from learning the hard way, like I did!

Fruits: um, anything works here! Sorry I am not very specific, but seriously…anything works here!
Veggies: spinach, kale, red and/or green chard, collard greens, broccoli
Liquid: I have only used orange juice {or concentrate} or water, but milk is an option too.
Other Additives: plain yogurt, flaxseed meal, brewer’s yeast, wheat germ, agave nectar {for sweetness, like honey}, protein powder

Green Smoothie Tips:

~ Process {wash, dry and cut into smallish pieces} the greens you will not be using right away and throw them in the freezer. These puppies have short shelf lives and I find it hard to get through an entire bunch before it starts to wilt.
~Kind of important if you don’t like a bunch of pulp {or a sliver of kale} running through your smoothie: Add your greens and liquid and blend FIRST, then add the rest of your ingredients. Then: blend, blend, blend.
~ If you are using any frozen ingredient, omit ice. If you are using all fresh ingredients, add some ice cubes to ensure your end result is a smoothie, versus a juice.
~ The very sweet, tart taste of orange juice is very effective in covering up the some of the bitter greens {such as collards}. If you’re a family that doesn’t keep juice around on a regular basis {like mine. This OJ carton has been in our fridge for awhile. I got it on sale, thinking Alina would like it diluted into her water. Nope. The girl loves her water straight up, just like her Momma} get orange juice concentrate. Just make sure to look at the ingredients to be certain you have nothing but orange juice. I only buy concentrated orange and apple juice because of this.
~ Blueberries are delicious, but will also make a blue smoothie. Not green. Play with the ingredients to see what colors you can come up with. Add carrots or pumpkin puree and see what color you get!
~ Start with more fruit in the beginning, if you aren’t a lover of bitter greens, then gradually increase the amount of vegetables until you are somewhere around 60% fruit and 40% veggies. If you are seriously worried about bitter greens, start with spinach first.

Don’t let the idea of veggies in your smoothie freak you out. Green smoothies really are a delicious compromise that even your children will delight in! It really isn’t a difficult concept- mix the green stuff with the sweet stuff and get a healthy, great tasting treat!

Enjoy! And happy blending!