Kale Smoothie Recipe

Here’s what I love about this Kale Smoothie Recipe: it’s essentially good health in a glass. Packed with beneficial nutrients and easy to make, a quick and super healthy breakfast!

Kale Smoothie Recipe in a glass!

Does this scare you? A little?

It’s OK; it scared me at first, too. My mom saw it and, well, I don’t think I should share this part publicly, but you know how good I am with keeping a tight lid on things that should remain private. She stared as I sipped it—eyes wide—then immediately turned away and covered her mouth, gagging at what she’d just witnessed. “Andrea it looks like…” Stop there. 

But honestly, it’s not toxic sludge, even if that’s the impression you got. I’m really selling it, aren’t I?

Let me start by telling what it is: a [harmless] green smoothie. Frozen banana, almond milk, yogurt, and kale—the ingredient that imparts that lovely Hulk-green hue.

I also added chia seeds because I recently bought a wacky amount of them on Amazon after reading so many of their amazing health benefits online (among other virtues, they’re a fantastic source of omega-3 fatty acids). I really enjoy the crunch they add to my oatmeal and smoothies lately, but I chose not to include them in the recipe because I do not expect anyone to run out and purchase such a pricey ingredient only to use one tablespoon in a single-serving smoothie.

*Hassle: my Magic Bullet won’t blend my kale? I’ve been popping it in my food processor first, then add it to the rest of the smoothie ingredients in the Bullet. Does this happen to anyone else?

Here’s what I love about this drink—a shake, if you’ll indulge me: it’s essentially good health in a glass. So many nutrients, so little time to consume them. We’ve all heard about what a superfood kale is. It’s THE most popular of vegetables right now. Kale salads, kale chips, kale juice…all kale, all the time. But for most of us, unless we’re cooking this tough, slightly bitter green, or massaging the leaves to break down it’s cellulose structure (essentially wilting it), it’s rather hard to consume it truly raw, or at least—in large quantities. So blending a few generous handfuls into a smoothie makes ingesting this superfood a cinch. It also adds bulk to the drink, making it feel more substantial, and a low-glycemic dose of fiber, making for slower digestion and more even blood sugar levels than using banana alone.

Things to keep in mind: this is not sweet. Trust that I will not be the health zealot who swears to you it tastes “just like a milkshake!” Because it does not. It tastes good, yes, and satisfying in that wholesome kind of way that eating well always does, yes, but it’s also a bit earthy in flavor, too. And it’s even got some grit to it. But I have to venture a guess that if you’re indeed going ahead and making this smoothie, you’re likely OK with these things.

freezing banana for kale smoothie recipe

How To Make This Kale Smoothie – Step by Step

  • If frozen, add the banana to the blender first and pulse until smooth.
  • Add the kale, yogurt, almond milk, and optional sugar to the blender. If your banana is not frozen, add it to the blender now.
  • Blend until all ingredients are well combined and the mixture is smooth and light green in color.
  • Stir in chia seeds (optional) and serve!
Kale

Health Benefits Of This Kale Smoothie Recipe

The two main ingredients in the Kale Smoothie recipe are Bananas and Kale.

Of all the super healthy greens, kale is king. It is definitely one of the healthiest and most nutritious plant foods in existence.

Kale is very high in nutrients and very low in calories, making it one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet. Many powerful antioxidants are found in kale, including quercetin and kaempferol, which have numerous beneficial effects on health.

Kale is also extremely high in vitamin C, an antioxidant that has many important roles in the body. A single cup of raw kale actually contains more vitamin C than an orange.

And then there’s the creamy banana! Bananas contain several essential nutrients and provide benefits for digestion, heart health and weight loss.

Bananas are rich in fiber, antioxidants and several nutrients. A medium-sized banana has about 105 calories.

Bananas can help moderate blood sugar levels after meals and may reduce appetite by slowing stomach emptying.

Bananas are a good dietary source of potassium and magnesium — two nutrients that are essential for heart health.

How To Keep Your Smoothie Cold Without Ice

Adding ice to your kale smoothie keeps it nice and cold, it can also make it on the watery side and give the smoothie an ice texture. I good way to make a cold smoothie is by freezing some of the fruit/veg.

To freeze a banana for your smoothie, peel it, break it into chunks, seal it in a small plastic baggie or an airtight container, and toss it in the freezer until you’re ready to blend – done!

Making This Kale Smoothie Recipe Sweeter

If you do find yourself needing some sugar (and don’t we all?) ain’t no shame in adding a teaspoon or two of sugar or a few drops of stevia, if that’s your thing. I just found liquid stevia at Trader Joe’s, obviously impulse bought it, and this week I sampled it for the first time. Initial thoughts? Not bad.

Top Tips For This Kale Smoothie Recipe

  • Freeze your bananas prior to blender, to keep your smoothie cold without ice.
  • Add naturally sweet fruits to any smoothie that tastes bitter or a bit too “green.” By sticking with naturally sweet fruits like bananas, mango, apples, pears or pitted dates, we avoid artificial sweeteners and processed sugars.
  • You can blend your green smoothie the night before and store it in your fridge (up to 2 days). Use an airtight lid to limit oxidation and keep it as fresh as possible. When ready to drink, give it a good shake before you open.
  • Add Chia seeds for extra texture and nutritional benefits!

Check Out These Other Delicious And Healthy Breakfast Recipes

Orange Mango Turmeric Smoothie Bowl

Superfood Green Smoothie Bowl

High Protein Chocolate Espresso Smoothie Bowl

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

Healthy Blueberry Smoothie by a Mind Full Mom

Strawberry Oatmeal Bars by Well Plated

If you have tried this Kale Smoothie recipe, or any other recipe on my blog, then please rate it and let me know how tried it turned out in the comments below! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious, healthy, family friendly food!

Kale Smoothie

Here’s what I love about this drink—a shake, if you’ll indulge me: it’s essentially good health in a glass. So many nutrients, so little time to consume them. We’ve all heard about what a superfood kale is. It’s THE most popular of vegetables right now.
Prep Time5 minutes
Total Time5 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American
Keyword: green smoothie, healthy smoothie, kale smoothie
Servings: 1 Smoothie
Calories: 300kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 medium banana freezing it beforehand is optional
  • 1 1/2 cups kale stemmed and roughly torn into pieces
  • 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • 1 teaspoon honey maple syrup or stevia (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon chia seeds optional

Instructions

  • If frozen, add the banana to the blender first and pulse until smooth.
  • Add the kale, yogurt, almond milk, and optional sugar to the blender. If your banana is not frozen, add it to the blender now. Blend until all ingredients are well combined and the mixture is smooth and light green in color. Stir in chia seeds and serve!

Nutrition

Calories: 300kcal | Carbohydrates: 49.6g | Protein: 22.2g | Fat: 5g | Fiber: 9.3g | Sugar: 23.7g
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41 thoughts on “Kale Smoothie Recipe

  1. Amy

    Looks yummy to me! Perfect for a post-run breakfast, and then I might feel a little less guilty for the cookie that’s bound to find it’s way onto my plate later in the day :)
    A healthy diet includes a wide variety of foods, right? ;)

    Reply
  2. Sparks13

    I’ll stick to kale in all my soups. Love it that way. I don’t understand all this recent fascination (certainly on nearly every food blog I follow) with green smoothies. Don’t get me wrong, I love smoothies…with fruit, Greek yogurt, flax seed and a bit of nonfat milk or OJ. I like my veggies too, mostly cooked though and spinach and kale are two I’m definitely not liking raw.

    Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      I hear you. This kind of thing is really not for everyone and I respect that. As far as cooking kale– I LOVE sauteeing it in olive oil and garlic. And I think what makes spinach so great (other than its nutrition profile) is that it can be tossed into just about anything while cooking without really affecting overall flavor.

      Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      I kind of agree with you in the sense that I’m not as big a smoothie gal as others seem to be (there are some pretty intense fans out there). I like them, but I still much prefer to chew my meal, you know?

      Reply
  3. Julie

    I also found a tip somewhere to solve the kale blending issue. Blend kale in advance, add enough water to make it blend nicely, then freeze in an ice cube tray, you can pop them out and put them in zip lock bags so that you always have the ingredients handy and it saves on prep time. Alsoooooo, when i notice that banana’s are just on the verge of being over-ripe, i peel and freeze them for smoothies so they don’t go to waste, they are also at their maximum sweetness then also :o)

    Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      YES! Now I feel like I have another use for my on-the-verge of rotting bananas (besides banana bread)! Also THANK YOU for the awesome kale tip. I have some wilting in my fridge right this very minute, actually…

      Reply
      1. Donna

        Not only are bananas at their maximum sweetness when they are on the verge of being overripe, but they are also said to be at their maximum nutritional value! I peel & freeze them for smoothies then too. :-)

        Reply
      2. CYSFDgroupie

        Another FANTASTIC use for on-the-verge bananas: Peel, break, and freeze as you mentioned. When you need dessert, pull one out and use an immersion blender (or NutriBullet, or whatever) to blend it. It tastes *just* like banana flavored soft serve, no sugar needed! Something about letting it over-ripen and freezing it brings out the natural sugar. You can’t refreeze it or it turns into a block. Sometimes a touch of baking cocoa or some chocolate chips don’t hurt either (haven’t tried a touch of peanut butter yet), but you really don’t need them. DELICIOUS!

        Reply
        1. T.

          I have to reply to the soft serve comment also! Yes! I’m doing Andie’s Mom’s diet so we did this two nights ago. It’s a lovely substitute for ice-cream and super healthy. My kids saw it on Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, and they call them Banana Swirls. So that’s what we call it now. :) I ate mine with a dusting of cinnamon and sliced almonds.

          Reply
    2. T.

      Yep, that’s what I do too. Blend the kale first with a small bit of liquid, then add the other stuff. The beauty of the smoothies to me is that they are so much faster to eat(drink) than a salad. Similar nutrients, but fast to make and drink. Love it!
      And to me the bananas make it sweet enough, but I’ve also added applesauce and a cranberry/applesauce mixture after Thanksgiving and love those too.

      Reply
  4. Carrie @ Season It Already!

    It’s very similar to one I make and love! I call it a Magic Smoothie
    1/2 frozen banana
    1 cup (handful) spinach)
    1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
    1 Tbsp almond or peanut butter
    1 tsp cinnamon (or Chinese 5 spice powder)

    Whiz away in a food processor or blender. I’m going to try it now with kale as a substitute for the spinach. Thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      Oooo using Chinese 5 spice in it along with a nut butter sounds so, so great. Gives it depth, I bet. And your choice smoothie name–“Magic Smoothie”–completely trumps my lame “Kale Smoothie” :)

      Reply
  5. J9

    I was wondering if you were into green smoothies! I just started the green smoothie thing a couple weeks ago and came across this website simplegreensmoothies.com which has changed my life! They have amazing recipes! I have also started adding coconut oil to my green smoothies, and also chia seeds, which you are right about being kind of awesome.

    Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      You know, I was thinking about doing a whole post about my new-found love for coconut oil. I’ve been using it in everything, but haven’t thought of adding it to smoothies. Good idea :)

      Reply
  6. Andrea

    I LOVE Green Smoothies although I haven’t tried one with Kale yet! I make one almost every day. My basic recipe is big big handful of spinich, almond milk, Whey protein powder, strawberries and peaches. YUMMO!

    Have you checked out Simple Green Smoothies (http://simplegreensmoothies.com/)? They recommend mixing the greens with the liquid first for a smoother consistency. Works great! Also they have a TON of fabulous green recipes.

    Enjoy!

    Reply
    1. Andie Mitchell Post author

      Makes sense now to blend the kale with liquid first; I’ll definitely be doing that from now on because this two part blending trick I’ve been doing is kind of a pain! Thanks for the advice and the link–now I can’t stop browsing all the recipes they have!

      Reply
  7. Kelly B.

    I’ll second adding pineapple to sweeten, or try some dried dates. In regard to the kale not blending in your Magic Bullet, try upgrading to a Nutri bullet! Higher wattage means more power! Mine will liquify almost anything in seconds.

    Reply
  8. Hootie

    I decided to take a mental break from work and graduate courses to pop over and see what you are up to and I LOVE it! One day you will be ready to upgrade to the ninja system i keep telling you about for more wattage, flexibility, and power, perhaps ask for this for Christmas from all of your relatives?! I have one and the single serve cups are my most used kitchen tool http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00BQM4PLG/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?qid=1369846909&sr=8-4&pi=SL75

    Reply
  9. Sandie

    I just finished a 30 day green smoothie challenge. I learned alot of new ideas and as
    Kelly B said—add a good organic date for a natural sweetner. My favorite smoothie
    is 1 cup kale or spinach, l cup frozen mango,1/2 cup pineapple, little cilantro or parsley &
    coconut water. Hemp seeds or chia can be added for extra healthy goodness.

    Reply
  10. Reanna

    What a well timed post! I did not eat clean this last memorial day weekend and also ate way to much and upset my stomach. I need a good nutrient rich smoothie to get back to happy.

    Reply
  11. Donna

    I start my day every day with a green smoothie for breakfast!! LOVE IT!! My current favorite is as follows: 1c almond breeze milk (has a touch of coconut milk in it too), 2c kale roughly torn as you mentioned, a handful of baby spinach for a little ‘sweetness’, 1 med banana, 1c frozen blueberries, 1TB unsweetened cocoa powder, and 1TB chia seeds. Those chia seeds that I’ve only recently learned about/added make the difference between this smoothie sticking with me ALL morning long til lunch, and me reaching for something else by mid-morning. I am so hooked!

    Reply
  12. Jillian

    If you find kale too gritty or earthy, I think spinach is a little smoother. I was a green smoothie skeptic, but drink them regularly these days. In addition, adding half a peeled, chopped apple or a handful of green grapes is a great sweetener!

    Reply
  13. Cari

    This is my first visit here. I literally just started this week with green smoothies. The first one I loved with frozen mixed berries and pineapple, peaches and mangoes, (all my faves) spinach, a little fat free milk (I need to get almond milk).

    Today I made with half of a ripe avocado. I had heard of this. Talk about a shake! It’s very thick and smooth. Not bad on the taste, either. Fortunately, I love avocadoes. I’m surprised no one mentioned avocadoes as an addition.

    Reply
    1. Donna

      Hi Cari! Yes, I too have added avocado to my green smoothie I listed above sometimes just to change it up. So yummy!

      Reply
  14. Sacha

    I’ve been intrigued by green smoothies but had never really gotten into them until I tried this recipe today. It was shockingly good!! It didn’t smell like cooked kale, it just smelled like BRIGHT GREEN awesomeness. Thanks for the post, I feel like it really simplified the mystique around green smoothies for me :)

    Reply
  15. Marla

    I’ve been having almost this exact smoothie every single day for the last week! One great way to make it taste a little less earthy while keeping it super healthy is by adding a tablespoon of blackstrap molasses and a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder. It sweetens it up beautifully while providing an awesome dose of iron when combined with the kale… I’m pregnant with twins so I’m always looking for a way to up my iron like crazy without living on beef. :)

    Reply
  16. Susan

    Why nonfat yogurt? The full fat kind is full of healthy,good for you fat,minus the chemicals that is used to replace the fat.

    Reply
  17. renee

    Hi, I like your simple kale smoothie recipe, but can u please tell me… does the sugar counts (23) include the optional sugar. I am reducing the sugar in my diet, so I need to know how many sugars are in the smoothie without the “added” sugar. Thx.

    Reply
  18. Cortney

    Just wanted to throw this out there, but i don’t peel my bananas before I freeze them. I throw them in the freezer as is. When I’m ready to use them, I let them sit in a bowl on the counter for a half hour or less, cut the top off, and squeeze out the fruit. Very simple and no wasting of the precious, precious ziplox. :)

    Reply
  19. Pingback: 7 Ways I Use Greek Yogurt to Make Healthier Meals - Andie Mitchell

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