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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.
Thanks so much for doing all the work saw your book on The Doctors I think, anyway on TV and oh this is what I’ve been looking for got the book right away started yesterday and loving it .Again thank God for you.
Hi Gloria,
YAY! We’re so excited you saw us on The Doctors and so excited to have you blendin’ with us. Thank you for all of your support!
Do I understand that I can use already frozen fruits from the store? That sure would be less time consuming!
Thank you!!!
Hi Jan,
Oh, KALE YEAH you can! We actually suggest using at least one frozen fruit to ensure your smoothie is chilled to perfection.
Thank you for this. I am on a mission to renew my health and totally change my life so this idea helps me stay compliant with my regime.
Hi Ayanna,
Thank you! We’re so excited to have you blendin’ with us and to be part of your personal mission towards health and wellness!
Love your suggestions but we don’t have a freezer and do most of our shopping once a week. How long can I keep these prepped jars in the frig? Enough for a week?
Hi Lou,
Thanks for reaching out. Not able to freeze your prep jars? We suggest keeping your ingredients separate then until you’re ready to enjoy.
Cheers 🙂
Just what I needed! I very little time to get ready in the mornings and love the frozen fruit, this prep work can take place on Sunday’s after church and be ready for the week.
Hi Dottie,
YAY! Happy to hear our prep tips will help keep you blending!
i am a breast cancer survivor! during chemo last year i excercised daily (2 miles jog + 4 miles biking) and drank a green smoothie a day. but over the last 6 months i lost my recipes and my energy along with it. i crawled a half marathon in Nov but am nowhere close to the level of previous fitness – and even gained about 20lbs! two of the biggest challenges have been 1. finding delicious smoothies (have only found yucky ones) 2. prepping… absolutely loved this article! signed up for challenge (wished i had found it sooner!) and am super excited to get healthy starting tmrw morning!!
Hi Kim,
We’re so excited to have you join us! We hope you enjoy our recipes and they help you reach your health + wellness goals. It already sounds like your a champion! Beating cancer, staying active through chemo, and running a half marathon. You’ve got this!!
Reach out with any questions! We’re so lucky to be a part of your journey!
Great, usefull article About Smoothie prep. Was exactly what i was looking for. I have one question, you are putting the spinach with the fruits in the jars and bags and then u gave as an tip to freeze them seperately. Can i freeze them together?
Hi Sanne,
You can definitely freeze your greens + fruits together. If you have a lower-powered blender we suggest blending your greens + liquid base first, and then add your remaining ingredients to help breakdown any leafy pieces for a creamy delicious green smoothie, that’s why we give the option to freeze separately.
Hope this helps!
Hi 🙂
I’m super grateful to you and this site! It’s really helpful to newbies like me.
Just want to ask if it’s okay to include the spinach stalk in making the smoothie? Or do we just use the leaves? (will it affect the flavor and/or consistency of the smoothie?)
Thanks and more power! 🙂
Hi Adrienne,
Great question! You can usually get away with including spinach’s stems, but we do suggest removing thick or bitter stems like those found with kale.
Hope this helps!
Hi,
Can I blend the night before and stick in the refrigerator over night? I use some frozen fruit depending on the recipe. Will the smoothie be good over night in the refrigerator?
Hi Veronica,
Great question! Yes, you can! Our recipes will keep in your refrigerator in an airtight container for up two days. Adding a small amount of lemon juice will help preserve their green goodness.
Cheers 🙂
Hey girls
I bought new blender and was looking for good green smoothie recipes. Found you. I have joined ur challenge and will be blending fromtomorrow. I am so excited.. Planning for baby and want to be healthy thats my resolution. Will let u know how i went with green smoothie as i will try this for first time. Thanks… Love payal
Hi Payal,
YAY! We’re so excited to have you blendin’ with us!! Planning for baby? Check out our pregnancy + green smoothies post here…
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/smoothie-pregnancy
I am happy to say that I am on Day 3 of the 30 Day Challenge! I am also following the prep guide. I am a nurse so working 3 12hr shifts make it difficult to come home and have the energy to cook dinner AND get smoothies ready. I picked one day where I just knock it out and it has already transformed my morning routine with a 3y/o into something less hectic, and quite frankly, fun! My daughter likes to help! I made it my New Year’s resolution to be a healthier me. I am very happy that I found your site! I also got my husband on board today ☺ Looking forward to more delicious smoothies and a healthier me! Thanks!
Hi Lauren,
YAY! We’re so excited to have you blendin’ with us and love hearing how our simple prep tips aren’t just making mornings easy, but fun!! Please continue to reach out during your 30-Day Green Smoothie Challenge! We’d love to hear from you!
Cheers 🙂
Hi, I just purchased the book, and the recipe cards. Are the same recipes for the 30 day ebook in the actual book? I was wondering because if they are all different, then I will purchase that as well. Thank you!
Hi Bianca,
Great question! Just to confirm, you’re looking at purchasing our 30-Day Green Smoothie Challenge E-Guide right?
If so, I just looked through our e-guide and book and there are some different recipes and a few that are also included in our book. I would say 50/50. Hope this helps you make your decision.
And thanks for blendin’ with us and all of your support!
So I signed up and am excited but did I sign up for the Jan 1st one??
Hi Nancy,
Once you’re signed up, unless you change your email preferences, you’ll be all set to participate in all of our 30-Day Green Smoothie Challenges! Have you received our emails? If not, our emails have a habit of ending up in your spam or promotions folder. No where to be found? Please send a quick message to our team at the link below and we’ll make sure you’re all set!
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/contact
Cheers 🙂
I am so happy to start this challenge with you and look forward to the 1st Jan 2016. I am super excited.
Thanks for blendin’ with us, Linda! 2 more days to go, we can’t wait!
I’m so happy I came across your Instagram account tonight!! I’m a huge green smoothie lover. I can’t wait for January 1st to start the green smoothie challenge.
Hi Chantelle,
We’re so happy you found us in this busy digital world! We can’t wait to share our January 30-Day Challenge with you!
Cheers 🙂
Hi! Thanks for all the recipes
I just signed up for the challenge and I can’t wait. If I pre-blend and freeze my smoothies the night before, do I need to blend again in the morning to avoid separation?
Hi Michelle,
Great question! If you’re pre-blending + freezing your green smoothies we suggest thawing them in your refrigerator overnight. Separation will occur, simply give your smoothie a quick shake before enjoying.
Check out another way to prep your green smoothies here…
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/frozen-smoothie-packs
Cheers 🙂