Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs
March 17, 2016 by Ginger Hultin MS RDN
I love sneaking in greens into my smoothies; it’s such a simple and easy way to get in some more veggies into my day. In an effort to pack in more greens (read more on why that’s important here) I’ve been experimenting with flavorful smoothie combos and this one is a definite winner. Adding veggies into your diet in an easy way like blending them into smoothies is such a great way to boost your intake effortlessly. My Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs recipe is the perfect balance of fruits and vegetables with a little twist: jalapeno! Adding a slice of jalapeno to this smoothie gives it a nice kick to really spice up this smoothie. I’m breaking this Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs down for you so you’ll know exactly how to make it on your own.
Spinach Fun Facts
I love adding all types of veggies to my smoothies, but I have to say that spinach is my absolute favorite. Spinach is a perfect green to use in smoothies because it’s not as bitter as other greens like kale or arugula and it is soft so it blends better than other lettuces. Spinach provides so many great nutrients to smoothies without overpowering the taste. Plus, it provides smoothies with such a great, vibrant green color that you won’t get with other types of green vegetables.
Spinach is certainly a nutrition powerhouse and an excellent source of vitamins A, E, K and B vitamins including folate. Spinach is also an amazing source of minerals such as iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, and calcium. In fact, spinach is one of the best forms of bioavailable plant-based calcium! Spinach is also a great plant-based source of iron, allowing you to get an excellent amount of this essential nutrient without needing to eat meat.Â
Spinach is also packed with numerous plant compounds, such as lutein, nitrates, and kaempferol, which help to improve your health and even prevent risks for certain chronic diseases. It contains antioxidants, which help to reduce the number of free radicals in the body. Spinach is also seen to help improve eye health, decrease blood pressure, and help prevent certain cancers. Spinach is packed with so many nutrients that it is super beneficial to incorporate into any dish, especially this Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs.
Why Jalapeños?
One of the ingredients that makes my Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs unique and different from typical green smoothies is the addition of jalapeños. They are not normally an ingredient in many smoothie recipes but I like to add them because they contain capsaicin, an alkaloid that gives peppers their spicy taste, which has been seen to help boost metabolism and prevent the risk of cancers and infections. They are a great source of vitamins and minerals, such as vitamins A, C, K, and B vitamins, such as folate, and potassium. Plus, they are also a great source of carotene, which is an antioxidant that helps reduce the amount of free radicals in the body, helping to reduce inflammation and prevent risk for other diseases.Â
Jalapeños also provide a little kick but don’t let them scare you away from trying this smoothie; feel free to individualize and add as much or as little jalapeños as you want….none could be the answer for you, too.Â
Making the Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs
The Milk
The milk is the first ingredient to focus on when making this smoothie. I love using non-dairy milk in my smoothies, such as almond or soy, to get some additional plant-based protein into my diet. But any type of milk will work with this smoothie, dairy or non-dairy, so feel free to use whatever kind of milk you prefer. I just recommended using unsweetened milk, rather than sweetened, to avoid any added sugars. This smoothie already contains natural sweetness from the fruits, so using sweetened milk is unnecessary and may lead to overpowering the smoothie.
The Fruit
If you’re new to green smoothies, give this one a try because it’s sweetened with fruit for added antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and fiber. My go-to frozen fruit for smoothies is a frozen banana. Frozen bananas offer the perfect balance to a fistful of spinach. I love adding frozen bananas to my smoothies because they provide such an amazing, creamy texture and consistency to the smoothie! Plus, frozen fruit also provides a touch of natural sweetness to the smoothie to help balance out the flavors from the other ingredients.
The Veggies
Aside from adding spinach to this Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs, I incorporated some herbs and other veggies for some additional health benefits. I threw in some fresh mint as well as some green tea matcha powder and even a slice of jalapeño for a kick. Mint is such a good addition to this smoothie, helping aid in digestive health along with being rich in nutrients. Matcha adds additional antioxidant properties and also provides a little caffeine boost to the smoothie. Having a veggie-packed smoothie in the morning or post-workout is a great way to start my day to replenish after a hard workout. Plus, sneaking all these veggies into a delicious smoothie provides a simple, easy way to get all your veggie intakes for the day!
Jalapeno is not a typical ingredient in many smoothie recipes. Jalapeños not only provide a little kick to this recipe but they are also a great source of vitamins and minerals. They are also packed with antioxidants and can help reduce inflammation. Adding jalapeños to smoothies is a great way to spice up your smoothie game! This Healthy Green Smoothie with Fresh Herbs is green-strong in so many ways and unexpected flavors abound.
If you need some other easy, delicious smoothie recipes, try one of my favorites below:
Pumpkin Protein Smoothie
Blueberry Green tea Smoothie
Matcha Chia Smoothie
Calming Smoothie for Runners
Wild Blueberry Vanilla Matcha Smoothie
Vegan Pumpkin Spice Smoothie
Melon Vanilla Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup raw baby spinach
- 1 cup unsweetened almond or soy milk use dairy milk if desired
- 1 small frozen banana
- 1 teaspoon matcha green tea powder
- 2 leaves fresh mint
- 1 slice fresh jalapeno (more or less to taste)
- 1/2 cup ice cubes
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a large blender and puree until smooth. Add more liquid if needed for consistency. Serve immediately.
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Ginger Hultin,MS, RD, CSO
Thanks for visiting! If you're struggling with a cancer diagnosis, autoimmune condition, gut health problems, or even a medical mystery, nutrition can make a HUGE difference in your day-to-day life. I run a virtual, concierge private practice where I partner with my clients over time to help them improve their health through nutrition. Be sure to visit the blog for easy, plant-based, anti-inflammatory recipes and our "Resources" page for a variety of self-paced programs, books, e-books, and nutrition podcast episodes.
I love how this smoothie incorporates so many unique veggies that aren’t typically seen in smoothies! Plus, this smoothie is so delicious and a super simple way to sneak in more veggies into your diet!
Oh thank you – yes, I love all the variety of “green” in here, too!