How to Make A Green Smoothie: Easy Beginner’s Guide (+ Recipes!)

In a previous post I shared the 25 amazing benefits of green smoothies and now it’s time to get down to the business of how to make a green smoothie (that actually tastes good)!

Now, if you’re not at all familiar with green smoothies, they are simply raw food smoothies that contain a green vegetable (usually leafy greens).

And another thing to know about green smoothies is that they’re not always green!

Depending on the ingredients you put together, your green smoothie might end up looking brown or purple.

But regardless of the color, all healthy (homemade) green smoothies are great for sculpting the body from the inside out.

So, in this post you will get the how-to’s of making green smoothies as well as 3 recipes to boost your energy, detox your body and support weight loss!

Note: this post contains some affiliate links and I may earn a commission is you use them.

BASIC GREEN SMOOTHIE INGREDIENTS

There are just 3 basic ingredients that you need to make a green smoothie:

• Liquid base
• Green Vegetables
• Fruits

Let’s have a closer look at each ingredient to see what you can use to make a delicious green smoothie.

1. Liquid Base

The simplest option in this category is good ol’ water.

However, you can get more more flavor and health benefits by using:

• Coconut water
• Fruit juice (ideally homemade, unpasteurized)
• Unsweetened, plant-based milks (coconut, almond, hemp, macadamia, cashew, rice or oat milk)
• Chilled green tea
• Chilled red raspberry leaf tea (great for women’s health, including our hormones)

2. Green Vegetables

Now, this is where things start to get interesting.

Technically speaking, you can use any green veggie in your smoothie.

However, when you’re starting out, spinach is the best choice.

Not only is spinach easy on your blender, but it has a neutral flavor that won’t overwhelm your green smoothie.

Once you’re comfortable with spinach, you can experiment with other leafy greens like:

• Bok choy
• Chard
• Collard greens
• Kale
• Romaine lettuce

And if you’re more of the adventurous type, you can also use the stronger-tasting greens listed below:

• Arugula
• Beet greens
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Carrot tops
• Dandelion greens
• Lettuce
• Sprouts
• Turnip greens
• Watercress

Just keep in mind that if you use these strong-tasting veggies, you’ll have to work harder to mask their flavors.

Now, you’ve probably noticed that everything I’ve listed so far is leafy greens.

Yes, leafy greens are green smoothie staples.

However, feel free to throw in other veggies like beets, cucumbers, carrots or cauliflower, as you become more comfortable with these smoothies.

3. Fruits

The most important rule for using fruits in a green smoothie is that they must be ripe.

Not only are ripe fruits more alkalizing to the body, but they have the natural sweetness that nature intended for you to enjoy 🙂

That natural sweetness helps mask the taste of the greens (especially when you start using the more bitter or earthy greens).

Using ripe fruits also means you don’t have to add in artificial sweeteners to make your green smoothie taste appealing.

Here are the best and easiest fruits to start with:

• Apples
• Avocados
• Bananas
• Berries
• Cantaloupe
• Cherries
• Kiwis
• Lemons
• Limes
• Mangos
• Papaya
• Pears
• Peaches
• Pineapples
• Watermelons

One last thing about fruits: you can use them fresh or frozen.

When using frozen fruit, I strongly recommend thawing them out first on the kitchen counter for about 1 hour, depending on the temperature in your kitchen.

Or you can thaw them out overnight in the fridge.

When they’re thawed out, the fruits have a lot more flavor compared to when they’re fully frozen. 

This small step will greatly improve the taste of your smoothie 🙂

OPTIONAL GREEN SMOOTHIE ADD INS

Add ins are a great way to increase the nutrient content of your green smoothie as well as play up the flavor.

Add ins are definitely optional, but once you find your favorites, they will become staples!

Here are some green smoothie add in ideas to play with:

• Acai powder
• Adaptogenic powder (maca, ashwagandha and turmeric work well)
• Bee pollen
• Beet root powder
• Cacao powder
• Chia seeds (this thickens the smoothie)
• Chlorella powder
• Coconut butter
• Coconut oil
• Flax seeds (this thickens the smoothie)
• Goji berries
• Green superfood powder 
• Hemp seeds
• Matcha green tea powder
• Nut butters (almond and peanut)
• Pomegranate powder
• Spirulina powder

HOW TO MAKE A GREEN SMOOTHIE TASTE GOOD

Now it’s time to bring everything together and talk about the ratios of each ingredient that you should use.

To make two servings of a green smoothie you need:

• 2 cups fruit
• 2 cups tightly packed leafy greens
• 1 1/4 cups liquid

That’s it! This basic formula will give you a great-tasting smoothie that you can enjoy in various ways.

Pro tip: get yourself some beet root powder – like this one – and add ½ to 1 teaspoon into your green smoothies. It add natural sweetness and also supports healthy circulation, energy and more (source).

3 SIMPLE GREEN SMOOTHIE RECIPES FOR BEGINNERS

Green Energy Booster And Revitalizer

Each recipe below makes 2 servings.

Ingredients

2 medium bananas (sliced)

1 1/4 cup water

2 cups spinach

1 cup frozen mango (or peaches)

1 cup frozen pineapple

¾ tsp of this beet root powder or this maca powder (optional)

How to Make

1. Add the ingredients to your blender in the order listed above.
2. Blend until smooth and well combined.

Blueberry Lime Green Detox Smoothie

Ingredients

2 medium bananas (sliced)

1 1/4 cup coconut water

2 cups baby spinach

2 cups frozen blueberries

Juice from ½ lime

How to Make

1. Add the ingredients to your blender in the order listed above.
2. Blend until smooth and well combined.

Greens and Berries Energizer

Ingredients

2 medium bananas (sliced)

1 1/4 cup plain coconut milk

2 cups spinach

2 cups frozen blueberries or raspberries

 ¼ inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled (optional)

How to Make

1. Add the ingredients to your blender in the order listed above.
2. Blend until smooth and well combined.

CONCLUSION

As you can see, with some leafy greens, fruits and water (or nut milks) you can make a delicious green in 5 minutes.

I hope this post has helped eliminate the confusion (and mystery) that sometimes surrounds green smoothies.

If you have any questions or general comments about how to make a green smoothie, feel free to drop a comment below 🙂

Related Posts:

How To Make Strawberry Banana Smoothies: A Quick Guide With Easy Recipes

How To Make A Green Smoothie Bowl: Easy Tips and Recipes

The Best Weight Loss Smoothie Ingredients To Burn Fat Quickly

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