I’ve mentioned a couple of times in the past few days, that as a short-term new year’s goal, I would like to drink one green smoothie everyday in the month of January. I’m a HUGE fan of green smoothies, so this typically wouldn’t be too difficult for me. However when it’s freezing outside, the last thing I want is a snack or meal made with ice. I do feel so good and way less bloated when I make veggie-filled smoothies a part of my meal plan, though. So for the sake of feeling great, I will endure the chill of the smoothie!

A tutorial: How to make the PERFECT green smoothie and a recipe for one of my favorite green smoothies, Blueberry Apple Green Smoothie | Hungry Healthy Girl

This post is for those of you looking to incorporate more fruits and veggies into your diet, but get totally turned off by the thought of drinking something green and in the case of the Blueberry Apple Green Smoothie….. dark blue green. It doesn’t look too pretty, but let me tell you, it is delicious! There are so many variations of the green smoothie; different liquids, fruits, veggies and add-ins that you can use. I’m going to share with you ideas for building your green smoothie and then you can play around with some of your favorite ingredients to make it your own.

A tutorial: How to make the PERFECT green smoothie and a recipe for one of my favorite green smoothies, Blueberry Apple Green Smoothie | Hungry Healthy Girl

Liquid: The liquid is the first thing that you will add to your blender. My liquid of choice is usually unsweetened vanilla almond milk and I like Silk brand because it doesn’t contain any of the controversial ingredient, carrageen. Any type of milk or yogurt will work here; coconut milk, soy milk, cow milk, kefir, chocolate milk, rice milk and the list goes on. Water works too.

Greens: If you’re a green smoothie virgin; you’ll want to use spinach because it is not as strong as kale, collard greens, chard, romaine or green leafy herbs like cilantro, parsley and mint. All of these are great choices and I personally like to combine my greens…. a bunch of spinach, some kale and a little chard. When adding your greens, a handful is about 1 cup and if you’re using spinach you can pile it on because the flavor is so mild.

Fruits: There are so many options when it comes to fruit. If you’re a banana lover like myself; an extra ripe banana will sweeten your smoothie perfectly and add such a lovely flavor. Apples are also a really great choice for making your smoothie taste nice and sweet. I like for my fruit to be frozen because it will make your smoothie extra thick. I commonly buy extra ripe bananas, unpeel them and freeze them in a huge baggie. Be sure to unpeel them before freezing…. I speak from experience! Some of my other favorite fruits in green smoothies are pineapple chunks, strawberries, blueberries and mangos. I also typically add 1-2 stalks of celery and about 1/4 of a cucumber to up my green intake.

Nuts, Seeds and/or Superfood Add-ins: You want to add in some healthy fats because they will help you to properly absorb all of the vitamins and minerals that you are taking in. Dr. Oz recommends 1 tablespoon of Chia seeds daily and these are my favorite superfood to add to my smoothies. I also like adding ground flax seed, hemp seeds, hemp oil, coconut oil, flax oil, 6-8 almonds or walnuts and/or a tablespoon of nut/seed butter. Now you don’t want to add all of these at once….. choose one or two.

Extras: If I’ve used an extra ripe banana or an apple, I usually don’t need to add any extra sweetener. If your smoothie needs to be sweetened up a little; add pure raw honey, maple syrup, raw pitted dates, raisins or stevia. If you’re feeling fancy, top your smoothie (after blended) with dried fruit, cereal, granola, chopped nuts, shredded coconut, or additional fresh fruit and eat with a spoon.

Method: After all ingredients have been added to your blender, blend away. You may have to stop and start your blender several times, pushing ingredients down as you go. If you like your smoothie extra thick and a little slushy (and you didn’t use frozen fruit) add a cup or two of ice (after blending other ingredients) and combine.

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Blueberry Apple Green Smoothie

Naturally sweetened meal or snack full of good for you ingredients!
Author: Kim

Ingredients

  • 1 cup liquid, I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk.
  • 1/2 cup blueberry yogurt, I used Stonyfield blended blueberry yogurt.
  • 2-3 cups greens, I used spinach.
  • 1 apple, cored (I didn't peel mine, but if you don't have a Vitamix, Blendtec or Ninja you may want to consider peeling your apple.)
  • 1/2 cup blueberries, frozen
  • 2 teaspoons Chia seeds or ground flax seeds, use up to 1 Tablespoon if desired
  • 1/2 tablespoon almond butter, any nut or seed butter will work
  • 1-2 cups ice, optional

Instructions 

  • Add ingredients in the order listed above to a high-speed blender and blend.
  • Add ice, as desired after you have blended other ingredients and blend.

Notes

The specific ingredients are optional. Switch out with your favorites to make it your own. For example, if you can't eat almond butter use sunflower seed butter or leave out completely.
Serving: 1smoothie, Calories: 399kcal, Carbohydrates: 68g, Protein: 12g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 11mg, Sodium: 456mg, Potassium: 896mg, Fiber: 12g, Sugar: 48g, Vitamin A: 5807IU, Vitamin C: 33mg, Calcium: 592mg, Iron: 3mg

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