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If you’re new to green smoothies—or just want one that actually tastes good—this is the recipe to start with. This simple green smoothie blends spinach with banana, mango, and pineapple to create a naturally sweet, tropical drink that comes together in minutes. It’s proof that healthy can be easy, delicious, and something you’ll actually want to make again tomorrow.
Table of Contents
What is a Green Smoothie?
A green smoothie is a blended drink made with leafy greens, like spinach or kale, and naturally sweet fruit such as bananas, berries, or tropical fruit. The fruit balances the flavor of the greens, creating a smooth, refreshing drink that’s easy to enjoy. Green smoothies are a quick and simple way to add more fiber, vitamins, and minerals to your day in one glass.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Everything you need to make my favorite green smoothie recipe is found in a garden, farmer’s market, or the produce section of your grocery store. I’ve found that the closer we eat to nature, the better we feel. This green smoothie recipe is a great way to start that journey.
- Fresh spinach: Baby spinach is the most mild version to use in smoothies, and also the most easy to find. I suggest using organic spinach because it’s on the Dirty Dozen List.
- Pineapple: I buy frozen pineapple at Costco in bulk to make Frozen Meal Prep Smoothie Packs. If it’s on sale, I’ll cut up pineapple and freeze it myself.
- Mango: You’ll find frozen mango next to the ice cream in the freezer section. I love how it’s already peeled and cut for you and ready to add to the blender. If fresh mango is on sale, you can always cut the mango and freeze yourself. Check out my guide on how to cut mango.
- Fresh banana: Bananas add a creaminess to smoothies that is hard to replicate. It’s magic! You can also freeze bananas to use them in green smoothies, yet the best results come from blending with a fresh, ripe banana.
- Water: The liquid base in the smoothie is water. Use filtered water to avoid any unnecessary chemicals or pollutants.
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How to Make a Green Smoothie
The only equipment you need to make this green smoothie recipe is a blender for smoothies. A juicer or food processor won’t work to get you a creamy smoothie.
- Blend 1 cup of spinach in a blender with 1 cup of liquid. Blend until all leafy chunks are gone.
- Toss in frozen mango, pineapple, and bananas in the blender. Blend on high until smooth and creamy. If you want your smoothie to be extra chilly or possibly even turn it into a smoothie bowl, use more frozen fruit. (You can freeze your favorite fruits like ripe bananas, grapes, pineapple, or berries.)
- Add in superfoods once the smoothie is nice and creamy. Chia seeds, hemp hearts, and flax seeds are all great choices.
- In order to break down the cell walls of the plants, you need to blend at high speed. You shouldn’t have any leafy chunks or weird texture in your smoothie if your blender is powerful enough.
- Drink immediately. To get the maximum amount of nutrients from a smoothie, drink it immediately after blending it.
Recipe Tips
- Following a simple smoothie method in my How to Make a Smoothie guide helps balance greens, fruit, and liquid for a smooth, great-tasting blend. Tossing in random greens can lead to bitter flavors or a thin texture.
- Frozen fruit makes smoothies thick and creamy without ice, which can dilute flavor and strain your blender. I use a fresh banana for creaminess, plus frozen mango and frozen pineapple for sweetness.
- Invest in a high-speed blender for smoothies if you plan to make green smoothies a daily habit—it makes blending faster, smoother, and easier to stick with.
Ingredient Swaps
- Banana: You can substitute it with a quarter of an avocado.
- Mango: Swap with frozen pineapple, red apple or peaches for a fiber-rich alternative.
- Pineapple: Swap with a naval orange to get that juicy citrus flavor.
- Water: Use oat milk, almond milk, coconut water or orange juice depending on your health goals.
- Spinach: Swap for kale, Swiss chard, beet greens, or any leafy greens of your choice.
How to Store a Green Smoothie
Store your green smoothie in the fridge with an air-tight lid (ex: mason jars are great) for up to 48 hours, yet I think it tastes best if consumed within 4 hours after blending. The longer your smoothie is exposed to oxygen, the more it breaks down and the nutrients deteriorate (aka: oxidation).
Green Smoothie Add-Ins
- Protein powder: You can turn any green smoothie recipe into a meal replacement by adding a serving of my Homemade Protein Powder to the blender.
- Natural sweeteners: Increase sweetness by using more natural sweeteners like honey, maple syrup, bananas, or dates. A smoothie can taste like dessert without any refined sugars.
- Chia seeds: A simple way to add more healthy fats and protein is to add 2 tbsp chia seeds. It won’t alter the taste, but drink fast or it will congeal. Some recipes suggest adding almond butter, yet that’s disgusting in a tropical green smoothie
- Collagen: Unflavored collagen is a simple way to add additional protein and support gut health.
- More vegetables: Try adding 1/4 cup frozen cauliflower for a fiber boost without altering the flavor.
More Green Smoothies
Once you try the recipe below, you’re gonna want more green smoothie recipes. It happens every day in my inbox! I love it! Here’s some of the most popular ones on my blog to try next:
- My son is obsessed with this Mango Orange Smoothie recipe.
- This Simple Kale Smoothie will surprise even the pickiest smoothie drinkers.
- I love this Glowing Green Smoothie with spinach and romaine lettuce for digestive support.
- Escape with this tropical Detox Island Green Smoothie to heal from within.
Dietary Adjustments & Substitutions
Need to accommodate a food allergy? Click the button below for tailored suggestions just for you:
Best Green Smoothie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup spinach
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup pineapple frozen
- ½ cup mango frozen
- 1 banana
Instructions
- Measure: Tightly pack spinach in a measuring cup.
- Add: Put spinach to blender with water. Blend together until all chunks are gone. (Should resemble green water when blended well).
- Toss: Pineapple, mango and banana to blender. I like to use frozen pineapple and mangos to chill the smoothie down and save time cutting and prepping. It’s a win-win!
- Blend: It all together until smooth and creamy. Depending on your blender, this could take as little as 30 seconds or as long as 2 minutes.
- Pour: Into a glass and serve immediately.
Video
Helpful Tools
Notes
- Try adding a serving of Homemade Protein Powder, it’s super clean and easy to make.
- Not a fan of bananas? Swap it for 1/4 avocado, additional 1/2 cup mango or 1/2 cup peaches.
- You can use 1 cup pineapple if you’re out of mango.
- Frozen fruit is recommended to chill the smoothie (and save time cutting and washing).
- Store in the fridge with a lid until ready to drink.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review for a chance to win signed copies of my cookbooks!Common Questions
You won’t be able to taste the spinach if you use the proper ratio of fruit to spinach (1½ : 1). This green smoothie recipe tastes like a mango pineapple smoothie with a hint of banana flavor.
For busy weeks, you can create Frozen Smoothie Packs that you prep on the weekend and enjoy all week, or month. It’ll only take you 5 minutes every morning to have a green smoothie ready to go. You can also blend your smoothie the night before and store it in your fridge until ready to drink.
Green smoothies are the healthiest fast food out there. Blending spinach and fruit into a smoothie is a great way to boost your immune system, increase fiber intake, and boost your energy levels. Adding kale or spinach in a smoothie has incredible health benefits with additional phytonutrients. What we eat can truly transform our body in powerful ways!
Most smoothies you buy or find online are made with just fruit and fruit juice. This makes them crazy high in sugar, which can cause inflammation and consuming excess calories. A green smoothie, on the other hand, is made with fruit and leafy greens, typically spinach or kale. They’re loaded with iron, potassium, fiber and vitamins galore.
Any blender will work, yet to get the creamiest green smoothie you’ll need a high speed blender. Check out my Best Blenders for Smoothies guide, where I reviewed countless blenders to find the best ones for green smoothies. The key is to get rid of leafy chunks, blend quickly and provide tons of value for the price. Hint: not all of them cost $400.
I made this morning. I added green apple and celery on top of the ingredients indicated. I ended up drinking half in the morning and the other half after my work out with a little protein powder. Both were delicious!! Found my new favorite green smoothie… thanks!!
If i follow this ratio, around how many mililiters of the smoothie will i get?
Hi Ana,
Each serving is 16oz. This recipe makes 32oz, so you’ll have two servings to enjoy!
What a great way to get started on drinking green juices.
WOW! I’m officially converted to green smoothies. WOW! My 2 year old daughter drank a whole cup of this! I’m thrilled!!!
Could I use wheatgrass as a substitute for spinach? I want to incorporate more superfoods and keep it vegan. Thanks!
Hi Rosh,
Of course! We love reaching for different leafy greens. Learn more about our favorites here…
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/leafy-greens
I can’t believe how delicious it is! Today was my first time making a green smoothie and I was skeptical. Thanks for the great recipe!
YAY! Thanks for sharing, Nancy!
Is this a cleansing smoothie?
Hi Baylor,
Looking for a cleansing recipe? Here are a few of my favorites…
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/perfect-cleansing-smoothie
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/how-to-get-clear-skin
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/honey-turmeric-smoothie
spirulina not spiraling
I use kale, then chard, Then spinach, then carrot tops, then arugula
I use strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, boysenberries
I use bananas, peanuts, almonds, cashews
I use spiraling, Match green tea, Protein powder (Vega One)
I use chia seeds, other seeds
Are these good ideas of things to rotate?
Hi Wayne,
These are all great additions to your green smoothie. And I’m all for rotating your ingredients, in addition to rotating your leafy greens – your body loves variety!
High in sugar. Is that an issue? It has as much sugar as a can of soda. Granted it is not high fructose corn syrup, but in the end, does your body not process all sugars the same way and end up with the same results? Calling it high in fiber with 6 grams, okay…. What about kale, flaxseed, peanut butter, vanilla almond milk, chia seed, and various other additives to boost the vitamin and mineral content while minimizing the high added sugar content?
Thanks for sharing so nice somothies.Can I prepate 24 hours ago and keep it in a glass container in the fridge?Thanks 🙂
Hi Elif,
You totally can! Our recipes will keep in your refrigerator for up to two days in an airtight container. Adding a small amount of lemon juice can also help preserve all of their green goodness!
Just a heads up. Because our recipes are free of any yucky additives or preservatives separation is completely natural. Simply give your smoothie a quick shake before enjoying + you’re ready to go!
Hi
This smoothie sounds great! I want to make this smoothie for sampling for a nutrition fair for 65 kids. The yield says 1 but how many cups or ounces does this recipe make?
Hi Faby,
YAY!! I love that you’re sharing green smoothies! We love sharing green smoothies with kids especially. I hope you share pictures!! Each smoothie makes about 32oz, with 16oz being one serving.
This is how I got into smoothies and got my husband on smoothies too. (His favorite one) Unexpectedly my children too! Thank You!!
Thank you so much for this recipe. I have tired all kinds of green smoothies and this one by far is the best. its smooth and I didn’t have to hold my breathe to drink it.
Wahoo! Love hearing that, Lala! 🙂
How do I (or those around me) live with the bloating and gas caused by all this spinach?
Hi Meg,
Body have a little more “air” than normal? This can be a common symptom if your body is not used to drinking or eating lots of fiber. Green smoothies are high in fiber which is great for digestion, but for newbies, the high fiber can shock your body. Make sure you drink lots of water to help flush things out. And if you’re new to green smoothies one serving a day is enough, which is 2 cups (16 ounces). For those around you, it can be a great conversation starter about the health benefits of adding green smoothies to your diet! 🙂
Mangoes are full of sugar maybe 5 cups is too much
It’s a half cup FFS
Hi Jenny,
Yes, that decimal point can be hard to see some times. But our recipe calls for 1/2 cup of pineapple + 1/2 cup of mango. Hope that helps! 🙂
I added a tbs of plain Protein powder and it not only tasted delicious but kept me feeling full for hours! 10 put of 10!
Looking forward to tomorrow’s taste sensation!