More Info On Each Easy Smoothie Recipe:
Strawberry Banana Smoothie: This is a pretty, light pink, sweet, and creamy cold drink thats perfect all year long. Its forever one of my classic favorites, and I make sure to stock up on strawberries when theyre in season so I can freeze them for year-round enjoyment. My kids ask for this one all the time, so you can say its a household requirement around here!
Simple Tropical Smoothie: This has a sweet flavor and reminds you of summer, no matter what month it is. My sunshiny Henry loves this one its summer in a glass. The color is a lovely cream-orange, and its always a hit at our house. Costco sells frozen mango and pineapple cubed and ready to go for a great price.
Very Berry Simply Smoothie: This is made with mixed frozen berries that you can get in the freezer section, including blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries. I mean, who doesnt love berries?! It almost tastes like ice cream, and it hits the spot any time of day. I make it on movie nights and call it a milkshake. Meanwhile, my kids have no idea it doesnt actually include ice cream!
Peanut Butter Simple Smoothie: This one is a whole big glass of peanut buttery goodness that tastes like dessert but is packed with protein. I cant get over it. Its probably one of my very favorites because I love, love, love peanut butter.
What Are Some Great Smoothie Recipes
Alright, now that youre fully versed on how to make a great smoothie, let me share with you some of our absolute favorite combos! Click on any image to jump over to that specific smoothie recipe.
Classic Simple Smoothies
These smoothies are a great place to start. No weird ingredients that you have to special order, just fresh, real food that you can find at any typical supermarket.
Wild Blueberry Lemon No Banana Smoothie
How To Make A Smoothie With Ice Cream
A smoothie with ice cream? Uh, yes please. Once you scoop ice cream into your blender, its technically considered a milkshake, but go ahead and make that switch for an occasional indulgent treat. Ice cream, of course, makes for an exceptionally creamy, sweet, and decadent smoothie experience.
Love the idea but dont want to do dairy? Try a non-dairy ice cream, such as that varieties made of coconut milk.
I love ½ cup coconut milk ice cream blended with 1/4 to 1/2 cup almond, coconut or whole milk, says Adler. Then, its optional to add 1 to 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder or 1 handful cocoa nibs to make it chocolaty, a teaspoon of peanut butter, or fresh mintor all of the above.
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How To Make A Smoothie: The Simple And Perfect Home Recipe
Like smoothies? It’s a delicious drink that’s easy to make and adds fruitand vegetables to your diet! Don’t spend $7 on something you can make at homewith whatever ingredients you have on hand in your kitchen! This is the perfectquick and healthy breakfast option to give you energy all day long. Throweverything together and take it on-the-go. Or put things out for the kids afterschool hours.
This basic perfect smoothie recipe provides a great base for you to addprotein and fiber, as well as whatever flavors you like. We’ve tested thisrecipe and explain the physics of how it works so you’ll get something thatblends perfectly every time.
Five simple steps make the perfect smoothie recipe:
You can throw everything in a cheap blender and get pretty goodresults, but you’ll get the best and most consistent results by following thistemplate. Why? Physics!
How To Choose A Smoothie Maker And/or Blender
When choosing a smoothie maker and/or blender, consider your priorities and budget. If you can splurge for a full-sized blender, thats the way to go, says Adler. Thats largely because of its ability to do a number of thingsnot just make great smoothies.
If you dont want to spend hundreds of dollars on a smoothie makerand youre going to be making one smoothie at a timeconsider a mini blender or an immersion blender. These products dont have the versatility of a full-sized blenderyoull be limited in how many things you can make in it. But if all you plan on making with them is smoothies, they certainly will do the job.
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Peanut Banana Cinnamon Smoothie
The Spruce / Julia Hartbeck
Kids will love this sweet, but filling smoothie, featuring peanut butter for lasting protein and banana for fiber. The recipe is easily adjusted to fit any diet: Swap the peanut butter for another nut butter or even tahini and use your choice of dairy or non-dairy milk. The cinnamon adds a nice hint of spice.
Berry Good Workout Smoothie
Get the energy you need to power through your workout in minutes with this easy-to-make smoothie recipe. For an extra dose of calcium, try adding a teaspoon of Organic Kale Powder.
What youll need: 1 1/2 cups chopped strawberries, 1 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup raspberries, 2 Tbsp. honey, 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice, and 1/2 cup ice cubes. Blend until smooth.
Nutrition :162 calories, 1 g fat, 2 g protein, 41.5 g carbs , 32 g sugars
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The Best Green Smoothie
Okay, lets be real. We all want to add a little more green into our lives. However, sometimes it can be hard to gag down. Change all of that with this 5-star smoothie recipe. Not only is this smoothie incredibly delicious, but its also packed with nutrients. Chug those greens the easy way!
Frozen Is Your Friend
The theory that frozen fruit isn’t as nutritious as fresh fruit is, well, just not true. Catherine agrees: “Out of season frozen fruits and vegetables are more affordable, especially when you’re buying organic.” Not to mention it’s easy to stock the freezer with them, so you always have smoothie ingredients on hand!
HOT TIP: Freeze your bananas! They taste like ice cream, are super creamy, and add a good hit of potassium to your next smoothie.
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How To Make The Best Banana Smoothie
My basic smoothie recipe calls for four simple ingredients:
Banana I use one banana to make one large or two smaller smoothies. For the best tasting smoothie, use a ripe banana. For the creamiest banana smoothie, use frozen banana slices. Ive shared how I freeze bananas for smoothies below.
Half an orange When I have oranges in the house, I love adding them to my morning smoothie. It adds extra vitamin C and tropical flavor. If you dont have oranges on hand, dont worry, you can substitute other fruits like mango, pineapple, and berries.
Plain or Greek yogurt I dont always add yogurt to my smoothies, but when I do have it in the fridge, adding a spoonful ensures a protein-packed and creamy smoothie. For a smoothie without yogurt, add a little extra fruit or include veggies like spinach or kale.
Water or milk To help the ingredients blend, I like adding a splash of liquid to the blender. For a smoothie without milk, use water. It still tastes amazing. For more creaminess add milk .
To make the smoothie, I add everything into a blender and then blend until smooth. For an icy cold smoothie, throw in a handful of ice or use frozen fruits.
We have more easy smoothie recipes! Try our 5-minute strawberry smoothie or this easy blueberry smoothie.
Are Smoothies Healthy For You
Before we dive into the quest of how to make a fruit smoothie, lets dive into the why. Our philosophy here at Wholefully is that smoothies can be an incredibly nourishing part of your diet. Just like with our juicing recipes, we say its always better to eat whole fruits and veggies where possible. But its not always possible! Smoothies do make it easy to pack in all the nutrients of your favorite produce into one drinkable cupwhich is great when youre on the go or short on time.
And lets be honest, smoothies are just freaking delicious! We are big believers that you also need to nourish your soul with your food, and if drinking a perfectly tangy and sweet smoothie brings a smile to your face, then thats healthy as healthy can be.
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Choosing Fresh Or Frozen Fruits And Vegetables
When it comes to what goes in your smoothie, only you can decide. There are no wrong answers here!
Pros of Fresh Fruit & Vegetables: Its a great way to use up fruit that is no longer visually appealing, but still tastes good. Think browning bananas, soft strawberries, blackberries so ripe they are falling apart. All still have good flavor, but arent what youd pick first out of the fruit basket on the counter.
Cons of Fresh Fruit & Vegetables: You have to make your smoothies on your fruits schedule, not your own. If those fresh fruits no longer taste good, they wont make your smoothie taste good. If the fruit is underripe, it will be harder to blend and may not make for the smoothest smoothie.
Pros of Frozen Fruit& Vegetables: Frozen fruit makes a thicker texture that stays colder longer without watering down the flavor. Most frozen fruit is picked at peak ripeness. You can have summer blackberries in January or tree ripe peaches in March. Also, unless you are shopping an in-season market stand, frozen fruit is usually cheaper than fresh.
Cons of Frozen Fruit& Vegetables: If you arent using a high power blender, frozen solid fruit may be more than it can handle. While my Vitamix does just fine with it, my stick blender would leave frozen fruit in chunks. Let the frozen fruit thaw on the counter for 10 minutes or so before making your smoothie.
Chocolate Banana Smoothie Recipe
Do you crave chocolate on the regular? Heres a way to get your chocolate fix and eat something healthy at the same time. Try this Chocolate Banana Smoothie recipe! This smoothie is full of good for you ingredients, but tastes like a healthy chocolate milkshake. Its just sweet enough to make you feel like its a treat, but not so saccharine that is feels like dessert. Bananas, cocoa powder, and Greek yogurt make magic in the blender with just a little maple syrup for sweetener.
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Benefits Of A Whole Food Diet
In a 2014 analysis by Yale University, they concluded that a diet of minimally processed foods close to nature, predominantly plants, is decisively associated with health promotion and disease prevention.
A diet rich in fruit and vegetables or other high-fiber foods like whole grains and nuts is really important in maintaining good long-term health and preventing health problems like diabetes and cancers. These kinds of foods also help our bodies to cope and control the effects of inflammation.
In fact, one review from 2019 stated that diets high in plant foods could potentially prevent several million premature deaths each year if adopted globally. This is a big endorsement for a whole food diet.
What If I Dont Have The Right Ingredients To Make One Of These Smoothies
There is NO right or wrong way to make a smoothie! These recipes are just starter ideas for you to work off of But dont feel like you need to stick with them to make a delicious smoothie. I never measure for smoothies and often throw in what I have on hand. My main tip, however, is if youre using fresh fruit, be sure to throw in a little ice to add that frozen element.
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Peanut Butter Smoothie Recipe
Heres the tastiest drink that happens to be healthy, too: a peanut butter smoothie recipe! You can swear off milkshakes for good, because this easy smoothie is just as satisfying. Its got the best pure peanut buttery flavor, and the silkiest, creamiest texture. Even better: all you need is 3 ingredients! Its easy to make vegan or plant-based, and its the perfect breakfast or snack.
Golden Glow Turmeric Smoothie
The sound of having turmeric in your smoothie might make some of you cringe, but it is definitely worth trying. For one, pineapple has such a strong flavor in and of itself that the turmerics taste is almost completely masked. Secondly, turmeric is a strong anti-inflammatory that everyone should try adding it to their diet. You might be surprised to find out that it is actually pretty tasty as well!
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What Is The Difference Between Greek Yogurt And Regular Yogurt
There isnt as big of a difference as you would think. However, Greek yogurt is strained more times than regular yogurt which removes more of its liquid. This causes it to be thicker but also allows for it to contain more protein than regular yogurt.
This mango smoothie will make you feel like youre on a tropical vacation. Its the absolute best way to cool off and get in some nutrients on a hot day!
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Are Homemade Smoothies Good For You
Whether or not a smoothie is good for you depends on your overall diet, what you add to your smoothie, and how often you are drinking them. Smoothies that are filled with fruits and vegetables, within your recommended calorie limit, and without a lot of added sugar, can very much be a healthy part of your diet.
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Equipment For Healthy Smoothies
Having the right equipment is key to making healthy smoothies.
- The Vitamix personal series is great for making just one or two smoothies at a time
- So is the Magic Bullet or Nutri Bullet the only hang up here is that I find I have to replace these models once every couple years or so because the motor eventually burns out
- The Vitamix Ascent series is my fave though it’s self-cleaning so you aren’t left with a ton of mess and it’s perfect for if you’re prepping 3-4 smoothies at a time. It can tear through anything to make the smoothest smoothie, even ice!
You can of course get a mid-range blender too, really any blender will work. But if it takes 3 or more tries to get that smooth texture without all the lumps, it can be a frustrating experience.
See how often you’re going to be making smoothies and if it’s going to be a consistent thing for you, your best bet is to invest in a high-powered blender that can minimize the time you spend making healthy smoothies.
How To Make A Strawberry
The classic combo we all know and love: a strawberry-banana smoothie. The strawberries make it sweet, the bananas make it creamy and the beverage comes together with just a few ingredients. Start with 1 cup of water or orange juice in the blender. We like fresh orange juice, but the stuff in the carton will work just fine too. Add any nutritional powders like protein or fiber, or, if youre looking to make it a little sweeter, a teaspoon or two of sugar. Then add 1 cup each of non-fat plain yogurt and strawberries and top off the blender bowl with 1 banana cut into 1-inch chunks. Puree away. Check out the recipes below for classic takes and spin-offs of our favorite smoothie.
Coconut water ice cubes plus all your favorite fruits make this one crazy refreshing and easy to make.
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When Using Only Fresh Fruit
If frozen fruit is not available, thats okay! Fresh fruit still adds body to the smoothie as the ingredients become pureed. However, you wont get that cool chill. Add in ice cubes, start with ½ cup to 1 cup of ice , add more until the desired consistency is reached.
Just be aware that the more ice used, the more the flavor will dilute as the ice melts.
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Banana Date Smoothie With Ginger And Cardamom
The Spruce / Nyssa Tanner
Dates add a natural sweetness to smoothies that will provide the flavor you want without spiking your sugar levels. Combined with frozen banana, Greek yogurt, fresh ginger, and a pinch of cardamom, you have a healthy, dessert-worthy drink. If your dates are a little hard, simply soak them in warm water before using.
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More Smoothie Blender Recommendations
I did want to share some other great blenders that I have personally owned and recommend depending on your price point.
Low cost:Ninja BL480D Blender$99 this is a great single serve blender for those that want to conserve space. Plus you cant beat the price point.
Medium cost:Ninja Kitchen System $229 Ive owned the Ninja Kitchen System for about 5 years and I love that its interchangeable between a blender, food processor, and single-serve smoothie blender. For $229, you really do get it all!
High cost:Vitamix 5200$429 at the highest price point, the Vitamix is THE BEST kitchen appliance Ive ever owned. It will literally crush, pulverize, mix, or puree anything and everything because its so powerful! I highly recommend, 10/10!
Detox Green Smoothie With Chia Seeds
If you havent tried chia seeds yet, heres a great opportunity. These tiny but mighty seeds are packed with omega-3 fatty acids that are great for your heart. They also help you stay fuller longer, thanks to its plant protein power. Combined with spinach, unsweetened almond milk, frozen pineapple, and naturally sweet banana, this tasty mixture is the ultimate breakfast treat.
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