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I believe that any time is a great time for a smoothie, especially when you’re trying to turn it into a meal replacement smoothie. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, snack, post workout fuel, late night munchies, etc— you name it!
Our bodies have some vicious cravings (and also need) vitamins and minerals all day long. Leafy greens and fresh fruit in a blended smoothie always makes for a great option.
I use the meal replacement smoothie recipe below to power my day with whole foods and plant protein, and now you can, too!
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Yet at certain times of day, our body needs different things to thrive. Let’s take actual meals, like breakfast, lunch and dinner. These meals are super important— and can be easily swapped for a green smoothie. You just have to know the right way to do it, which we talk about below.
Health Benefits of a Meal Replacement Smoothies
A smoothie can be a meal replacement if using the correct ingredients. I drink meal replacement smoothies for breakfast or lunch most days. Sometimes it’s because I’m in a hurry and just want to down something asap. Other times it’s because I’m trying to slim down (usually after vacation). Swapping a meal with a smoothie can benefit you in these ways:
- You’ll be more energized thanks to all the fresh, raw ingredients
- They’re super quick to make and drink
- You’re hydrating your body
- Less bloating than usual when eating a meal
- It’ll help with weight loss
How to Turn a Smoothie into a Meal
The key to replacing meals with smoothies is including healthy fats AND proteins. Healthy fats and proteins are the way to go if you want to power up with a green smoothie meal replacement. This combo will keep you feeling full and give you the energy you need to cruise right through ’til your next snack or meal. Below are our favorite options for smoothie meal replacement boosters:
Pick a Plant-Based Protein
Plant-based proteins keep your body full and give you tons of energy. They also help repair your muscles, which is perfect for that post-workout buzz. Oh, kale to the yeah!
- Hemp hearts
- Chia seeds
- Homemade protein powder
- Rolled oats
- Tofu
Pick a Healthy Fat
Healthy fats protect your heart, keep your energy levels up, boost metabolism, and lower bad cholesterol levels. So please don’t skip the fats. They’re actually really, really good for you! And the ingredients below make your green smoothies extra creamy.
- Avocado
- Coconut oil or MCT oil
- Almond butter or other homemade nut butter
- Chia seeds (yep, here they are again! These babies are loaded with healthy fats and protein, making them a great everyday booster)
Examples of Meal Replacement Add-Ins
Smoothies can be the perfect fast food by adding healthy fats and plant-based protein. Use one of these meal replacement booster combos in your next green smoothie. The boosts are measured to work with all 250+ of our smoothie recipes.
- 2 tbs chia seeds + 2oz silken tofu
- 2 tbs hemp hearts + ¼ avocado
- 2 tbs plant-based protein powder + 1 tbs coconut oil
- 1 tbs almond butter + 2 tbs rolled oats
- 2 tbs chia seeds + 1 tbs coconut oil
Meal Replacement Smoothie FAQs
Any time is the right time for a smoothie! Personally, we love drinking ours in the morning for a great start to the day. But besides drinking a smoothie as breakfast, lots of rawkstars drink their smoothie for lunch or dinner, as an afternoon snack, or as a healthy dessert.
In case you’re planning on having your smoothie in the evening–most of our smoothies provide a great energy boost similar to a cup of coffee. So if you’re looking for a pre-bedtime green smoothie recipe, we’ve got you covered: Sleep Well Smoothie.
The MOST important thing when blending any meal replacement smoothie recipe is to include healthy fats AND proteins. This combo will keep you feeling full and give you the energy you need to cruise right through ’til your next meal or snack.
If you swap out a meal (or two) each day with a smoothie, there’s a good chance you’ll lose weight and also have more energy. This is due to the increased nutrition and decrease in overall calories. What’s even better than a smoothie is a green smoothie. When you add in leafy greens you’re adding fiber and phytonutrients… yet very few calories. My smoothies recipes are made with nutrient dense foods that curb cravings and keep you full longer.
I have a Plant-Based Cleanse that includes two smoothies a day, plus snacks and meals to help you lose weight, yet more importantly understand how to nourish your body so the weight falls off without ever feeling hungry.
15 More Meal Replacement Smoothie Recipes
Smoothies for Breakfast
- Vegan Smoothie Bowl
- Cinnamon Date Smoothie
- Chocolate Weight Loss Smoothie
- Vanilla Protein Shake
- Creamy Banana Smoothie
Smoothies for Lunch
Smoothies for Dinner
- Berry Protein Smoothie
- Blackberry Smoothie
- PCOS Pumpkin Smoothie
- Strawberry Smoothie
- Avocado Banana Smoothie
Don’t forget to rate + review this recipe once you’ve made it. I want to know how yours turned out as well as if it filled you up!
Meal Replacement Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup kale or spinach
- 1 cup almond milk unsweetened
- 1 cup blueberries frozen
- 1 banana
- 1 tbsp almond butter or raw almonds
- 2 tbsp rolled oats
- 1 serving homemade protein powder optional
Instructions
- Blend kale and almond milk until smooth in a high speed blender.
- Add remaining ingredients, and blend until smooth.
Equipment
Video
Notes
- Use a frozen fruit to make smoothie cold
- Swap out almond milk for any non-dairy milk you prefer
- Homemade protein powder is what I use for my meal replacement smoothies
I love this one too! Very feeling and creamy! I used my homemade Almond Milk…so good!
Mine was thick, mild tasting. I used a combination of half kale and half spinach, no oats, hemp seeds, didn’t have almonds, used walnuts, didn’t soak them and I don’t have a powerful blender, added chia and flax seeds
It was good, but not one of my favorites. I did drink it for breakfast and added Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides for extra protein. It did fill me up. I like Morning Jump Start smoothie from Simple Green Smoothies recipe book better. If I do this one again, I will use almond butter rather than the whole almonds.
What’s in the morning jump start smoothie? Thanks
I love this smoothie! I added 2 Tbsp of flaxseeds to help balance my hormones!
Delicious and filling!!
I never thought about add oatmeal to my smoothie. I really liked it.
So good! It has a nice blueberry flavor and is creamy and satisfying.
This was a good filling smoothie. I added some arugula and this caused it to not be as sweet. Great way to use left overs!
So filling and delicious!! It tastes like a PB and Jelly sandwich!
Today is my first day of the challenge and I wasn’t really prepared so I used what I had. I didn’t have enough spinach so mixed spinach and kale, don’t drink milk so substituted for water, I didn’t have rolled oats so I used steel cut. Better to start somewhere than nowhere! Willl go shopping today to be better prepared. Have to say though it was pretty good! I like the subtle taste of almond and the balance between the blueberries and the banana is not too strong.
This one is yummy and it’s filling, it took me right to lunch! I like all the fiber that’s packed in this smoothie! Tip: I first blended spinach with almond milk and dry goods, then I added the frozen blueberries and 1/2 banana to help keep it cold!
This was not my favorite…maybe my blueberries were bland….
Great balance of flavors! And with an early morning this kept me satisfied up until lunch (that never happens) I appreciate not only the delicious and healthy start to my day, but that kept me from snacking through the morning Definitely a winner!!
My phone cut off the “butter” ingredient and I only used almonds. It was a little bland. Probably would have been much better if I used the almond butter. Will try again.
One of my favorites! I tend to cut the almond butter in half because I don’t like the consistency it adds to the smoothie and I get my nuts in as a snack instead:)
This is my favorite so far! Really sweet and delicious!