I’m a green smoothie wannabe. A hopeless fan girl. Like, I really, really wanted to be one of those surfette, yogi girls who indulged in a glorious, emerald green smoothie on a daily basis and has the gorgeous bod and glowing skin to show for it. But here’s the thing, despite wanting to be a fabulous green goddess who flits around town endlessly running really fun errands – glorious smoothie in hand – I have a long history of kind of hating green smoothies. I know! In this day and age?! It’s basically criminal. My husband can attest to the countless bags of spinach, bushels of bananas, and blenders full of frozen berries that lost their lives at my hands and were sucked down with little to no pleasure. I was convinced the perfect green smoothie – at once beautifully grassy and virtuous looking (I hate a muddy looking smoothie), but also sweet and refreshing, with enough staying power to keep me full for hours – was an impossible dream. Until now.
I give you a green smoothie for people who hate (me!) green smoothies. It’s savory and sweet, crazy frothy, protein packed (peanut butter!), the prettiest green, and guaranteed to be blended up on repeat. With only five ingredients – spinach, banana, peanut butter, raw honey, and almond milk – it’s also easier on the wallet than smoothies requiring loads of fancy add-ins. Let’s break down those five ingredients, starting with the star of the show, spinach. This smoothie calls for frozen spinach, but not that hard, block stuff you buy in the frozen section. Every couple of weeks I buy a huge bag of fresh spinach and freeze it myself in a ziploc bag. It lasts forever and somehow stays nice and leafy, making it easy to grab handfuls of when smoothie making commences. Plus, using frozen spinach results in a colder smoothie. A fresh banana is next to be dropped in. I use fresh because I’m convinced that freezing bananas alters their flavor in an unpleasant way. Fresh bananas are also easier on your blender. To recap: Frozen spinach = good. Frozen banana = bad.
Next into the blender goes a tablespoon of natural, salted peanut butter. If you only have unsalted peanut butter in your pantry, then I suggest adding a tiny pinch of sea salt. Seasoning a smoothie seems odd but it makes a big difference. For a touch of additional sweetness, I add a teaspoon of raw, organic honey. I love the mellow flavor of raw honey, but maple syrup or agave nectar can be subbed in for a completely vegan version. The last two additions are a cup each of unsweetened, plain almond milk and ice. Califia Farms and Trader Joe’s are solid choices for almond milk but definitely do some taste testing to find one that you like best. The cup of ice gets everything nice and thick and icy cold. So there you have it, a green smoothie that will hopefully turn any green smoothie hater into a lover. Cheers to drinking our greens and actually enjoying it!
- 1 large handful frozen spinach*
- 1 medium banana, 6 - 7 inches, peeled**
- 1 tablespoon salted, natural peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon raw honey (sub maple syrup or agave nectar)
- 1 cup unsweetened, plain almond milk
- 1 cup ice
- Place all ingredients in a high speed blender. Blend until smooth.
- Smoothie is best eaten immediately but will keep well in the fridge for a few hours.
** Update: this smoothie is also great with ½ a ripe pear substituted for the banana and a tablespoon of almond butter swapped out for the peanut butter.