This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
If you love green smoothies AND want to maximize your time and money while making them, then this smoothie prep tutorial is for you! I love buying fresh, in-season produce, yet I don’t want it to go bad before I use it all in my daily smoothie. Meal prep smoothies get me through busy seasons with ease.
Meal prep smoothies are my jam! I love doing smoothie prep in batches so I make one mess at a time and get a week (or month) of ready-to-blend smoothies for my efforts. Today, I’m sharing all my tips and tricks to make smoothies for the week as well as giving you a sample menu and shopping list to get started!
Table of Contents
How to Meal Prep Smoothies for a Week
First, gather the following items: measuring cups, quart bags or canning jars (I like wide-mouth jars best!), a permanent marker, your favorite fruit and leafy greens and either my blog or the Daily Blends Smoothie App. These items will make meal prepping smoothies a breeze. Next:
- Decide which recipes you’ll make for the week and have them on hand. Feel free to use my free 10-Day Smoothie Challenge recipes.
- Slice or cut fruit into chunks. You can also cut fruit into smaller pieces and freeze ahead of time on lined baking sheets or use packaged frozen fruit. This helps keep the fruit and leafy greens from freezing together in a large clump, plus the smoothies blend more easily.
- Label bag or jar lids with recipe name and date. Be specific. You might also want to include how much of which liquid gets blended with each smoothie pack (to have when you’re ready to blend).
- Measure out the ingredients and pack into jars or bags.
- Remove as much air as possible from bags and jars when sealing closed. Pack fruit and leafy greens tightly into the jars and screw on the lids.
- Place in freezer. Don’t pack your bags/containers too tightly together. There should be some air circulation to help the contents to freeze quickly.
When you’re ready to use your meal prepped smoothies, remove smoothie pack from freezer. Add liquid base to container or bag (which helps defrost the fruit slightly). You can also thaw for a few minutes on the counter or in warm water. This helps the fruit and greens come out of the container more easily. Pour into blender and blend until smooth.
Prep smoothies for the week, month, or quarter, whichever length of time fits your time and lifestyle (and space!) best. I took the 7-day Smoothie Challenge inside Daily Blends Smoothie App for recipes and prepped for an entire month!
Tips for Make Ahead Smoothies
- Pick recipes with similar ingredients and buy in bulk. This saves money and cuts down on the number of ingredients needed.
- Buy seasonally! Choosing ingredients that are in season (or better yet, local!) also cuts down on cost. Food has the highest nutrition when harvested during its rightful season. Plus, it just tastes better.
- Help your future self by labeling! Know what that prepped jar needs for the liquid base so that when you are ready to blend, you are prepared.
- Set aside time to prep. Whether it’s on the weekend, Monday morning or Thursday evening, make time for prep. This helps you set yourself up for success.
- If you don’t like to or have time to chop up fresh ingredients then buy frozen! I love getting frozen pineapple and mango from Costco to save myself time. Frozen ingredients are picked at height freshness then flash frozen to preserve as many nutrients as possible.
Have any more tips for meal prepping smoothies? Drop a comment below and let us all know!
Smoothie Prep Menu
If you’re looking for some make-ahead smoothie recipes to get started, try out this plan:
- Beginner’s Luck Smoothie
- Clear Skin Smoothie
- Mango Spinach Smoothie
- Vegan Tropical Smoothie
- Spinach Banana Smoothie
- Island Green Smoothie
- Chia Seed Smoothie
For this round of meal prep smoothies, I stuck with tropical smoothies that have similar ingredients so that I can buy in bulk. Here’s the shopping list to prep the above seven smoothies:
| 7.5 cups Spinach | 3 Bananas |
| 1.5 cups Mango | 1 Avocado |
| 1 Lemon | 2 tbsp Chia Seeds |
| 4 Oranges | 2.75 cups Coconut Water |
| 3 cups Pineapple | 2 cups Water |
If you want to simplify your shopping list further, swap coconut water for regular water (which you don’t need to purchase), and you can meal prep smoothies for a whole week with eight ingredients.
For this list, I would pick up my supplies at Trader Joe’s and opt for frozen mango and pineapple, while choosing fresh for the remaining ingredients. Since avocado is only needed in one recipe, I’d just add it into a few other smoothies for a healthy fat boost.
Common Questions Around Smoothie Prep
Yes! While smoothies start to lose some nutrients about 15 minutes after blending, you can definitely blend one the night before. Just give it a good shake before you start to drink.
Yes! Simply add your fruit and veggies and leafy greens to a mason jar or freezer-safe container and freeze! When you’re ready to make a smoothie, thaw slightly on the counter then dump into your blender along with the liquid of your choice and any superfood boosts you want and blend. This is a great way to make sure your ingredients don’t go bad.
Yes! The key to a meal replacement smoothie is adding in protein and healthy fat. These two components will help you get full and keep you full longer.
Make Ahead Smoothies
Did you know that you can even freeze already blended smoothies? For real! Make sure you use freezer-safe containers and leave space when filling them, as liquid expands when frozen. Put in the fridge the night before you want to drink, carefully defrost in warm water or just toss it into a cooler if you’re taking it with you.
I love smoothie prepping blended smoothies for road trips. They act as ice packs for snacks and are perfectly chilled but defrosted when I’m ready to enjoy them.
Meal Prep Smoothies
Ingredients
- 5 cups spinach
- 2 cups kale
- 3 bananas
- 5 oranges
- 3 mango
- 1 pineapple
- 2 cups strawberries
Instructions
- Decide which recipes you'll make for the week and have the recipe on hand. Feel free to use my free 10-day smoothie challenge recipes. For this sample guide I'm using my original Simple 7 Smoothie Guide.
- Slice or cut fruit into chunks. You can also cut fruit into smaller pieces and freeze ahead of time on lined baking sheets or use packaged frozen fruit. This will help keep the fruit and leafy greens from freezing together in a large clump and the smoothies will blend more easily.
- Label bag and jar lids with recipe name and date. Be specific. You might also want to include how much of which liquid gets blended with each smoothie pack (to have when you're ready to blend).
- Measure out the ingredients and pack into jars or bags.
- Remove as much air as possible from bags and jars when sealing closed. Pack fruit and greens tightly into the jars and screw on the lids.
- Place in freezer. Don't pack too tightly together. There should be some air circulation to help the contents to freeze quickly.
When ready to use
- Remove smoothie pack from freezer. Add liquid base to container or bag (which helps defrost the fruit slightly). You can also thaw for a few minutes on the counter or in warm water. The fruit and greens will come out of the jar/bag easier too.
- Pour into blender and blend until smooth.
Equipment
- freezer
- measuring cups
- quart sized jars or bags
- permanent marker
Video
Notes
- Smoothie packs will keep for several months in the freezer but are the very best quality when used within 2-4 weeks.
- This sample prep guide uses naturally sweeter fruits. To lower the natural sugar in a smoothie, swap 1 banana with 1/2 an avocado.
- If hoar frost forms on the fruit and greens, it is still perfectly safe to consume. It can be rinsed off with lukewarm water.
- Store smoothie packs away from foods with strong odors. Glass jars offer the best protection against odors.
- Pick smoothie recipes with similar ingredients for bulk purchasing and to save money.
Are you freezing the liquid base with the veggies/fruit or adding the liquid to the frozen stuff once you are ready to blend? Looks like you might add it in and not freeze it.. just wanting to clarify! Thanks!
Hi Danica,
Good question! We add our liquid base right when we’re ready to blend, and just freeze the fruits + leafy greens.
hi, I froze my green leafy vegetables once (straight from supermarket to freezer) and all gone bad (mushy and brown) the next day. Does it make a difference when it is lock in zipper bag or mason jar?
Hi Suzie,
I’m so sorry to hear your leafy greens didn’t freeze well! When using ziploc bags make sure to remove as much air as possible from the bags when sealing closed. When using mason jars pack fruit and greens tightly into the jars and screw on the lids. Also, make sure there is plenty of air circulation around the bags or mason jars to ensure your leafy greens freeze as quickly as possible!
Were your greens mushy in the freezer, or had you thawed them? If you thawed them, share how you thawed your leafy greens! We’d love to get to the bottom of this, and help you out!
If I were to add flax seed oil and whey protein, how much would you recommend using for a two serving smoothie?
Hi Angelee,
We haven’t used flax seed oil, so I would follow the serving size suggestion from the specific product you’re using. We suggest just one tablespoon of ground flaxseed or whole seeds to your smoothie for a subtle, nutty flavor with more than subtle nutrition. And 4 tbs of protein powder!
Cheers 🙂
With greens like kale or collard greens with thick “spines” do you remove and just use leaves, or leave in and blend bones stems/spines ?
Hi Casey,
Great question! Thick spines and stems can be tough on the blender, so we like to remove them before blendin’!
I blend my spinach with half a cup of liquid and freeze it. I defrost it over night and just add fresh fruit and another half cup of liquid. Makes life a lot easier however, I wonder if the spinach looses any nutritional by doing that.
Hi Jenny,
Thanks for sharing your routine! Freezing is a great way to preserve leafy greens + their nutritional benefits!
What ‘liquid’ are you using? Water? Just curious, because it seems most people say liquid and I want to know specifically. Thanks in advance!
Hi Reneigh,
We use a wide variety of liquid bases. Here are some of our favorites…
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/dairy-free-smoothies
I made a week’s worth in around 30 min and put them all in freezer bags. I did freeze my spinach because over a weeks time it starts to go bad and loose more of the nutrients. So to not have to spend more on smaller packs or throw out any, I just put them in the bag as well; I also add kale. I do find though that they do take longer to blend when I do this (although the spinach goes in first and blends with no problem it’s that all the fruit is frozen so it takes longer), so I may just stick to pulling out what I would like for the day when I need it. I do enjoy smoothies, and found it’s helping cut down on sugar cravings, and my Acid reflex (since I add Pineapple)! That is a huge plus for me, and my skin color is improving. Thanks!
Hi Esther,
Sounds like you’re rawking the green smoothie lifestyle!
i didnt know you could frreeze in the jars, dont they break?
Hi Amber,
We like to use the 32oz freezer safe mason jars, just to be safe!
Cheers 🙂
I can’t find 32oz freezer safe jars anywhere. Where do you get them?
Do you use the 32 oz jars per recipe or per serving? If per serving,would the 16 oz jars be okay?
Hi Wendy,
Yes, we use the 32oz jars to prep an entire recipe (2 servings), so the 16oz jars should be a great option if you’re only wanting to prepare 1 serving!
Cheers 🙂
Hi Chris,
Kerr makes great 32oz freezer safe wide-mouthed jars! I love picking mine up from Sam’s Club.
My favorite size of mason jars is the 24 oz wide mouth. The sides are completely straight, so the contents slide out even when frozen. And the size works, for me, as a single serving.
Thanks for sharing, Laurel!
I find that if you move the freezer bag out of the freezer and into the fridge the night before, The fruit is a perfect consistency for blending. Also, I do not freeze the greens….how much time does it really take to grab the couple of handfuls from the container!?!
Prepping is the best way to go for anyone on a tight morning schedule (OH, that is pretty much EVERYONE!!!)
Hi Liz,
Thanks for sharing your prepping tips! Cheers to peace, love + leafy greens! 🙂
But you use almond milk in the Meal on the Go Green Smoothie. Do you no longer include almond milk in any of your recipes?
Hi SR,
We love almond milk! We’ve made the personal decision to avoid cow’s milk, but you need to find what works for you!
Cheers 🙂
I started drinking smoothies last summer and was doing great w/ them…then school started and i slacked off. i have a blender that i use and it does fine, but it was taking me too long to make them in the morning. i haven’t looked at your recipe cards and have a base that i always use (almond milk, spinach/kale, greek yogurt, oats, chia/flax seeds, 1/2 a banana) and to that i add about 2 c of various fruits. i was wondering about blending the spinach & milk together and keep it in the fridge?
Hi Amy,
We’ve made the personal decision to not include dairy in our recipes, we’ve talked with a lot of nutritionists and milk isn’t all that it’s been hyped up to be. Therefore, I’m sorry, but I’m not sure how using milk products will effect storing your smoothies!
What size are the canning jars?
Nevermind, I read it again, lol
Hi Meech,
Just in case, we love using the 20oz wide mouth freezer safe mason jars, as they are perfect for prepping! But any freezer safe jar or freezer bag will work!
Cheers!
If you buy frozen fruits from the store, do you need to wash them before use?
Hi Lindsay,
Frozen fruit from the grocery store should have already been washed prior to packaging by the company, so you’re all set to just go ahead and blend!
I am joining today. Instead of a blender can I use my nutribullet?
Hi Regina,
Yes! We love the Nutribullet blender, especially when we travel!
Can the jars that spaghetti sauce comes in be used instead of the mason jars?
Hi Mike,
Of course! That’s one of our favorite tips and money savers!
Hi there tried the Orange Julius so far I was brave and doubled recipe to save a little time with blending. Not sure if it’s the Almond milk I will need to develope a taste for but im looking forward to trying different smoothies. I was adding 3-4 different fruits with spinach kale and arugulal
Hi Kathy,
Our recipes are here to inspire you, so don’t feel like you need to follow them to a T. If you’re not a fan of almond milk, swap it out for another liquid base. Here are some of our favorites:
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/dairy-free-smoothies
Do I need to pick the stems off the spinach?
Hi Kathryn,
We love to blend ALL of the spinach, stems + all!