i saved up my american express rewards points and treated us to a fancy pants blender (it’s called vitamix and i think it’ll go up against any blender on the market and win, no matter what the middle of the night infomercials tell you). it’s AMAZING!!! i’m accustomed to blenders that barely blend, get stuck every few seconds and never turn out a truly chunk-free smoothie.
my first venture into pro smoothie making was a lazy-girls version of this one. so good! i know green smoothies are even more healthy and hugely popular right now, so yesterday i added a couple leaves of dino kale and….YUCK! ACK! UGH! i know ya’ll aren’t drinking this nastiness, so please do tell….what are your green smoothie secrets? please, fill me in! wishing you a weekend with lots of yumminess & good sleep (and only delicious smoothies). xo
i've found that it's important to add lemon juice to green drinks. also, keep it salty, celery, romaine, kale, spinach, fennel, beets, carrots, apple, cucumber + lemon. overall i'm not big on mixing sweet and creamy with greens.
Sorry it tasted so bad! But they can really be good. Here is a version I love by Joy The Baker… http://www.savorhomeblog.com/2012/01/kale-spinach-pear-smoothie.html
I sometimes use fuji apples instead of pears. I also might add a strawberry or two for some extra sweetness. Don't give up just yet! And I have got to get that blender…
my boyrfriend and i are new to this as well and our first mixture was AWFUL! i'm pretty sure we added too many ingredients. a few weeks in and i think we've finally got it right. our trick to lose the gross taste has been using ginger, cucumbers, beets, apples or pears. i read that the juice/smoothie should always be a ratio of 2:3 of fruit to vegetables for maximum health benefits so that's good to keep in mind. good luck =)
this is my fave!
I always mix an apple and a bit of lemon (sometimes a bit of ginger) into my kale, but I use a juicer. The apple adds the perfect subtle sweetness to mask the kale, and a little lemon is delish. Careful on the ginger, a lot goes a long way lol.
thanks so much everyone! i've always only juiced green veggies, never blended, but it didn't occur to me that i would use the same tcombination (in large part because i'm used to a blender that could barely tackle a frozen banana, let alone a beet!). excited to try your suggestions, will let you know how it goes!
You definitely need to add fruit into that! I'm guessing adding the leaves into Bri's version made it feel thick and fibrous and not in a good way. If you have other fruits, they'll bulk it up too and you won't notice as much.
I have a vitamix as well and they're amazeballs. Powerful enough to make your own peanut butter. They're the blenders jamba juice uses, so you know they mean business!
Lemon really is the answer! It adds that perfect bit of tang. This week, my go-to green juice is kiwi, spinach, and meyer lemon. SO delicious.
And please, more updates on the Vitamix! I've been trying to decide whether or not I want one… leaning closer to the yes side!
here are two smoothies that i drink almost daily:
*fruity: banana, 4 kale leaves (destemmed), orange, berries, 1 spoonful raw coconut oil, 1 spoonful raw honey, 1 spoonful hemp seed, ice (add a bit of water if needed)
*creamy and chocolatey: banana, 4 kale leaves (destemmed), coconut or homemade almond milk, 1-2 tbs. raw cacao powder, 1 spoonful nut butter, 1 spoonful raw coconut oil, 1 spoonful raw honey, ice
delicious!!!!!
A banana and some cinnamon with that kale or spinach and almond milk – delish! Kale also took some getting used to for me because of the bitterness – I eased into it by doing a 50/50 kale/spinach split. Breakfast of champions – cheers!
oh my gosh, you all are amazing!! thank you thank you thank you! these sound SO good!!!!
Ugh, yeah I know. They taste like liquid salad. To make them a bit tastier try adding apples…thats what i do to trick myself in to drinking them. Also ginger is great to add to anything, great for the immune system.
<3 Kate
http://www.theforgetfulwife.com
try blood orange and a lemon!
just de-stem the kale and add 3 blood oranges + 1 lemon per bunch. this is my fave!
xx
rachel
http://www.onepartgypsyblog.com
my favorite combo is: a few handfuls of spinach (you cannot taste it, I promise), 3/4 cup frozen pineapple, 3/4 cup almond milk, sprinkle of sunflower and flax seeds, water if you like it a little thinner, and a few drops of stevia if you need it a little sweeter.
the nice thing is you can customize this, use any fruit you like, add a frozen banana or 1/4 avocado if you like your smoothies really creamy, almond butter instead of sunflower seeds for some healthy fats, and I will sometimes add a scoop of vegan protein powder if I'm working out anytime soon.
Try a spoonful of Catie's Organic Greens mixed with almond milk, frozen bananas and frozen (or fresh!) berries – it's got a bit of a different taste, but I promise it's pretty good!
It sure LOOKS delicious…
I haven't been able to drink green smoothies yet. I hope you find a good one and can share once you've mastered it.
Hey! I don't actually know as I haven't made one… although I do love my Mom's Vitamix!! But I saw this recipe on somebody else's blog and thought you might give it a try!
http://lifecurrents.dw2.net/?p=7301
Also, this purple one looks fun!
http://blogs.babble.com/family-kitchen/2012/03/29/purple-power-up-green-smoothie/
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/vegan-food/guide-amazing-green-smoothie-combos/
I love green smoothies! Adding a frozen ripe banana helps tremendously – it makes them super sweet and creamy. Frozen mangoes are another great addition. Start off with baby spinach, and your taste buds will eventually get used to the greens, even kale
Hi Sarah,
With this yummy green smoothy my boyfriend and me start every day and it gives you a true green-energy-kick!
What:
- Spinach [deep frozen > 6 cubes or fresh > fill approx. 1/2 your mixing can]
- 1 avocado
- 1 apple
- 1 orange
- 1 kiwi
- 1 banana
- 3 or 4 celery strips
- 3 tablespoons linseed
- 3 teaspoons coconut flakes
- 1 glass [250ml] water
How:
Chop all the rigid stuff as small as possible. I prefer to blend the deepfrozen spinach, celery chunks and water first, then I add the rest.
Blend it as smooth as possible and enjoy!!
Cheers!
Linda
I too have a vitamix and my fave version of the green smoothie was the one I first saw the dude in Whole Foods make one day during a demonstration. Ingredients are: kale, pineapple, mango, some red grapes…and crap! Now I feel like I'm forgetting last ingredient! (off to google). But the fruit completely masks the flavor of the kale!
My favorite is actually a red blended juice – beets, fresh apple, fresh ginger and lemon juice. It's heaven!
I add spinach to pretty much any smoothie. You can't taste it.
If you have a juicer try juicing the kale first and adding some cucumber and lime with some chunks of frozen pineapple for sweetness. Baby spinach does better than kale in the blender.
One of my favorites is making almond milk ice cubes and blending a handful with some liquid almond milk and strawberries- add agave or maple syrup to taste. Congrats on your Vitamix! You have to let us know how it performs.
LOOK at that color! So cute with the striped white/pink straw and mason jar…mason jars make any drink feel prettier
x
Kate L. Harris
[email protected]
http://www.wbyharris.com
i think green smoothies are fantastic, but I don't think they're supposed to taste very good unless you add a ton of fruits which I don't like doing because that's A LOT of sugar. I normally juice my greens -kale-celery-collard greens-cabbage-cucumber …. and then I will put it in the blender with a tablespoon of vanilla brown rice protein just to give it a sweeter taste, but I'm one of those weirdos who loves the taste of greens, haha!
Don't fret! Green smoothies can be rough at first. You need to ease yourself into it. Soo here's what I started with to EASE myself into kale smoothies:
Serves 1
handful of baby arugula
about 3/4 cup OJ
half frozen banana ( or if this is still not sweet enough, start with frozen mango)
1/2-3/4 cup frozen pineapple
blend, and add water to desire consistancy.
Next step up: sub spinach for the arugula
And then we you ABSOLUTELY gulp this stuff down, move to the final green machine:
Serves 1
3 romaine leaves (unless they are huge, then 2)(i will sometimes use spinach instead)
2 kale leaves, stems removed
1/4 cup parsley sprigs (small! handful)
1/4-1/2 frozen mango
half a frozen banana or 1/4-1/2 frozen mango
half inch piece of ginger, peeled
sqeeze of lemon juice
3/4-1 cup water
BLEND!!! YUMMMM
I know I'm a bit late on this, but Oh She Glows has some amazing green smoothie recipes for beginners and pros. She even has a website devoted to them: http://greenmonstermovement.com/
Enjoy!
Apple juice, orange juice, kale. Amazing.
Hello! My favourite 'green' smoothie is so simple and easy to make PLUS its incredibly refreshing on a hot summer day. I use the Magic Bullet to prepare it but you can use a blender.
I add one banana, half a mango (or more if you like, just throw it in there and its better if its really ripe because its nice and juicy), a generous handful of fresh spinach leaves, and about 1-2 cups coconut water. I use the native coconut water (I'm from the Bahamas) but the Naked Coconut Water is a pretty good choice as well. Then, throw in some ice cubes (the more the better) and blend until smooth. Pour in a glass and sip your taste-buds straight to vacation.
Also, if you find that you like it, which I hope you do, you can experiment by adding a diced gala apple or fresh papaya or even a dash or two of light coconut milk.
Enjoy!!
All hail the Vitamix! I love mine. This is my recipe for a starter green drink; as you get more used to it, you can vary the greens! I like spinach or kale with blueberries and lime. Whatever the berry/green combo you use, the lime or lemon is ESSENTIAL, otherwise it tastes like something went badly wrong.
http://raisinporpoise.blogspot.com/2012/01/constitutional-amendments.html
Also check out these people–they are amazing green drinkers!
http://www.rawfamily.com/recipes
Ick, I'm sorry you had such a bad smoothie experience. I've never made a gross one myself, but then again, I only stick to fruits. I figure if you only juice fruits, it's highly unlikely to come up with a bad tasting drink.