For most people, January is not a time for smoothies. January is a time for hearty oatmeals or whole-grain muffins or even a greens-packed egg dish. Smoothies are usually for warm weather, but I can’t get enough of them right now. They’re easy to make, easy to eat (drink?) on the go, and easy to make in advance. (Are you sensing a trend here?) Life has been so busy recently that I’ve been getting into the not-so-great habit of skipping breakfast entirely, and smoothies have become a lifeline for me in trying to stave off hanger-induced rage at 11a.
While recipes for smoothies are kind of unnecessary (just follow this easy template!) I post A LOT of smoothies on the Internet and have gotten a fair amount of questions on what I put into my green smoothie.
It changes most mornings, mostly depending on what I have in my freezer, but this recipe is my favorite, my go-to when I need something quick that I know will be healthy and tasty. It’s kind of an amalgam of these mango-spinach and avocado-pineapple variations, with spinach, mango, pineapple, almond milk, peanut butter and chia seeds. My most common variations are swapping out the almond milk for coconut water and swapping out the peanut butter for almond butter, but you could use flax seeds instead of chia, and of course add all sorts of potions and powders. (I’ll sometimes throw a scoop of collagen peptides* in there, but I actually prefer the collagen in my morning coffee!)
You could of course adapt it even further, using kale instead of spinach, using different fruits (or even vegetables — I’ve heard frozen cauliflower is a great low-carb substitute for frozen bananas) — the possibilities are endless. But this is my go-to, the smoothie that I turn to for a perfect breakfast every time.
*Do any of you take collagen supplements? I’ve been trying it for the past month, and have noticed minor improvements to my hair, nails and skin. I’m hoping that a few more months produces more pronounced results, but curious to hear other people’s experiences!
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My Go-To Green Smoothie
Ingredients
- 4 ounces frozen chopped spinach
- 12 ounces vanilla unsweetened almond milk
- 1 frozen banana
- 4 ounces frozen mango chunks
- 4 ounces frozen pineapple chunks
- 2 tablespoons chunky peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
Instructions
- Blend the spinach and almond milk until it is smooth and evenly green (this ensures your smoothies don’t have chunks of spinach in them).
- Add in the banana, mango and pineapple, and blend until smooth. Then add the peanut butter and chia seeds and blend for 1 minute, until everything is well incorporated and smooth.
Notes
- You could add all of the ingredients at once, but I find that my smoothies end up chunky and not well-blended that way. (Granted, my blender is a $20 margarita maker … ) If you have a nicer blender, you may be able to get away with that.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2
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