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Perfect Green Smoothie

May 24, 2017 | 23 Comments

Jump to Recipe | Print Recipe

Green smoothie poured into quart size wide mouth mason jar | Vegan green smoothie recipe | https://passtheplants.com/

Nearly every time I go to the grocery store one of those huge plastic containers of baby spinach finds its way into my cart. I always have big plans of how I’m going to use it up before it goes bad. My success rate is about 20%. But I see that rate going up exponentially now that I have landed on the perfect green smoothie.

Really, Beth? The perfect green smoothie? Major side-eye coming your way.

I realize that this is a bold claim to make. But my claim is substantiated by three pieces of evidence.

  1. Michael (my husband) doesn’t usually like green smoothies. But he’s had this one several times, and has even said it is “really good.” This is a big deal.
  2. Vida (my precocious preschooler) drinks them like they’re melted candy in a cup.
  3. Josh (the sweetest toddler around) sucks his down and then begs for more. Seriously.

So, yes, in my book, this is the perfect green smoothie. AND, now you too can buy the Costco-sized container of spinach and put it to good use upon arriving home by prepping several smoothies and stashing them in the freezer until you’re ready to drink perfection. The best part? There are only 5 ingredients and each serving is under 400 calories! Let’s do this.

How to make the perfect green smoothie:

Perfect Green Smoothie | Smoothie ingredients displayed in collage = baby spinach, raw almonds, dates, frozen tropical fruit mix, frozen bananas | Vegan green smoothie recipe | https://passtheplants.com/

Here’s what you need to make the perfect green smoothie:

~ 2 cups of baby spinach
~ 1 banana (fresh or frozen)
~ 1 cup frozen tropical fruit like pineapple, mango, papaya, or a mix
~ 3 dates (make sure they’re pitted!)
~ 2 Tablespoons of raw almonds

Recommended serving/storage vessel: 1 quart wide mouth mason jar with  plastic BPA-free lid

Perfect Green Smoothie | Smoothie ingredients layered in a quart size wide mouth mason jar | Vegan green smoothie recipe | https://passtheplants.com/

So pretty, right? Almost seems a shame to blend it all up. But that does make it easier to drink. If you need a handy guide for how to layer the ingredients in, here you go.

How to Build a Mason Jar Smoothie | Ingredients layered in a quart sized wide mouth mason jar - nuts or seeds on the bottom, frozen fruit in the middle, fresh greens packed on top | https://passtheplants.com/

If you plan to blend and drink the smoothie right away, the order of ingredients isn’t so important, but if you’re making these ahead to freeze and blend later, the order is very important when it comes time to get everything out.

The basic idea is – put loose, hard items like nuts and seeds at the bottom, then frozen fruit, then pack as many greens as will fit. Then, when you’re ready to drink, you’ll pour water into the jar and it will fill in all of the extra space and loosen everything up to make it easier to transfer to the blender. After that, you can pour the smoothie back into the same jar to drink it all up, and it will fit perfectly!

Perfect Green Smoothie | water poured over frozen smoothie ingredients layered in a quart size wide mouth mason jar | Vegan green smoothie recipe | https://passtheplants.com/

See? You’ll have that spinach used up in no time. No refrigerator science experiments for you! Or me. Most of the time. I can’t tell you how handy it is to just grab a jar out of the freezer and have a smoothie ready to go in less than a minute. I’m slowly finding my way into this meal prep thing, and smoothies are proving to be the perfect entry point.

Perfect Green Smoothie | Green smoothie in mason jar | Vegan green smoothie recipe | https://passtheplants.com/

I hope you’ll give it a try too!  I’d love to hear how it goes so leave me a comment or share a pic of your smoothie prep prowess on Instagram!

Green smoothie perfection, just waiting to be had.

Perfect Green Smoothie

Beth Hornback
This is the perfect green smoothie! Nuts, fruit, and spinach pureed into a healthy drink that’s just the right amount of creamy and sweet. Also includes ideas to prep several smoothies ahead to store in the freezer!
5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 1 min
Total Time 6 mins
Course Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine American Vegan
Servings 1 serving
Calories 377 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 banana (sliced into 1 inch chunks (previously frozen is helpful but not necessary))
  • 1 cup frozen tropical fruit ((pineapple, papaya, mango, or a mix))
  • 3 dates (pitted)
  • 1/8 cup raw almonds ((soaked is great but not required))
  • 2 cups baby spinach ((or as much as you can pack into the jar))
  • 1 1/2 cups water ((see notes if using a mason jar))

Instructions
 

  • Add all ingredients to blender.
  • Blend until smooth.
  • Pour into serving glass or mason jar (if doing the prep ahead method).
  • Drink and feel virtuous, vibrant, and alive!

Notes

*This recipe was designed to fit into a quart sized wide mouth mason jar. Layer the ingredients into the jar, starting with the nuts, then the fruit, then the greens. Pour the water over the ingredients until the jar is full. Then pour into the blender and puree. Pour the finished smoothie back into the jar - it will fit perfectly!
Β 
PREP TIP: Prepare several jars ahead of time and freeze until you’re ready drink. Layer the nuts, fruit, and spinach into the jars, then seal and freeze. When ready to blend, pour water over the ingredients until the jar is full. The water will help loosen the frozen pieces so that it can easily be poured into the blender. A 2 pound bag of frozen fruit should be enough for 6-8 smoothies, depending on how carefully you measure.

Nutrition

Calories: 377kcal
Keyword dairy-free smoothie, smoothie, vegan smoothie

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Home Β» Breakfast Β» Perfect Green Smoothie

469 shares

Beverages, Breakfast, Smoothies, Snacks 30-minutes or less, freezer-friendly, gluten-free, grain-free, kid-friendly, quick and easy, refined sugar-free, wfpb, whole food plant based

About Beth

Beth is a food photographer and recipe developer based in the Pacific Northwest. She never tires of snuggling with her two beautiful kids and owes piles of chocolate chip cookies to her husband, aka the most wonderful person she knows. Keep in touch with Beth on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ben M says

    May 24, 2017 at 3:50 pm

    I don’t know how that could be BAD. look at all that scrummy fruit in there!

    Reply
    • Beth says

      June 15, 2017 at 2:21 pm

      I’m totally going to start using the word scrummy. πŸ™‚

    • Ben Myhre says

      June 15, 2017 at 2:57 pm

      ala Mary Berry. Totally crept into my vocabulary after watching that British baking show.

    • Beth says

      June 15, 2017 at 3:10 pm

      AH – YES! I knew I’d heard it before. So scrummy… πŸ™‚

  2. Kirstin Troyer says

    May 24, 2017 at 5:30 pm

    Yum. I’ve never put nuts in mine, but should try that.

    Reply
    • Beth says

      June 15, 2017 at 2:21 pm

      Hi Kirstin! Sorry for the late reply, playing comment catch-up. πŸ™‚ My fav part about using nuts is that blending with them water basically makes nut milk, but you get to keep the fiber and pulp of the nut in the smoothie. I’ve also used seeds like pepitas or hemp seeds with similar results. πŸ™‚

  3. Sarah @ Will Run for Pasta says

    May 24, 2017 at 7:09 pm

    Love this!! I just eyeball everything but then don’t know how much water to use so sometimes it’s extra thick or extra runny πŸ˜› I’m definitely going to try prepping some of these! And I totally hear ya on the spinach, I buy one at Costco every single time and I’m embarrassed to admit the number of times it doesn’t even get opened πŸ™

    Reply
    • Beth says

      June 15, 2017 at 2:19 pm

      Well, I win the “prize” for latest comment reply ever. So glad I’m not alone on the Costco spinach thing. I’m getting better at it though! Last night I tested a vegan creamed spinach recipe and used the whole container!!!

  4. Deborah says

    May 25, 2017 at 12:21 pm

    This really was a perfect green smoothie. Very drinkable! Love the idea of prepping in advance too. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Beth says

      June 15, 2017 at 2:10 pm

      I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Deborah! Apologies for the delayed response, I’m playing comment catch-up. πŸ™‚

  5. Patty Welsh says

    June 2, 2017 at 3:28 pm

    That is a genius technique!

    Reply
    • Beth says

      June 15, 2017 at 1:52 pm

      Why thank you. πŸ˜‰

  6. sandy says

    June 10, 2017 at 8:09 am

    Most blender blades will fit right on the Mason jar, so you can blend right in that and not dirty the blender! πŸ™‚

    Can’t wait to try this!

    Reply
    • Beth says

      June 15, 2017 at 1:27 pm

      I’ve used my Vitamix for so long now that I forgot about this trick! I wish it worked with high-speed blenders but sadly it does not. I tend to go for the wide mouth mason jars anyway because I can freeze liquid in them and I can’t do that with the regular mouth size jars. πŸ™‚

  7. Kimberly says

    June 27, 2017 at 4:05 pm

    5 stars
    I made the “non frozen” version of this first to see if it’s “any good” before I go to all the trouble of making several jars. Oh, my! This is yummy. I made a frozen jar for tomorrow. I can hardly wait until breakfast πŸ™‚

    Reply
  8. Karen says

    November 9, 2017 at 11:10 am

    Hi Beth, if using from frozen, you just add water and put in blender right? I am trying to picture getting it out of the jar being frozen. I absolutely love this idea!!

    Reply
    • Beth says

      November 9, 2017 at 11:49 am

      Hi Karen! Yep, it’s really important to add water directly to the jar right after you take it out from the freezer. I let it sit for a minute or two and then it usually loosens up enough to pour into the blender. Hope that helps!

  9. sylvia says

    September 26, 2018 at 12:07 pm

    5 stars
    Love the jar recipe and idea to freeze. I do canning so always have plenty of jars….and left over spinach..lol.
    I also a have a Meal Saver that I can prep ahead jars for a week. But, really I can’t wait to try the frozen..just don’t have a lot of freezer space πŸ™
    I’m making you IP chick peas right now! I did add extra time. I’m trying my first go at Hummus! Lately I’m loving it!

    Reply
  10. cait says

    December 5, 2018 at 1:50 pm

    How long will this be good in the freezer?

    Reply
    • Beth says

      December 6, 2018 at 9:54 am

      Hi Cait! It should last a minimum of 3 months, very likely up to 6 months. There’s not much that could go bad with it, really. πŸ™‚

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469 shares