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I’m trading in the processed sugar and dairy in the traditional Orange Julius for a smoothie version sweetened with fruit. It’s honestly still a super sweet treat, yet my healthy Orange Julius smoothie fuels my body the right way.
Raise your hand if you remember walking by the shopping mall food court and seeing people lined up at Orange Julius? And who remembers recreating the creamy orange smoothie in 7th grade Home Ec?
Table of Contents
How to Make a Healthy Orange Julius
I can’t wait for you to try this sweet treat! It definitely hits the spot for my sweet tooth and has no weird ingredients.
- Blend spinach, oranges and almond milk until smooth (I’m talking no leafy chunks floating around).
- Add the banana and blend again until smooth. It helps to use frozen banana to get a chilled smoothie. Here’s how you can freeze bananas easily.
- Add in 1/2 tsp of vanilla to make this taste even more like a traditional Orange Julius.
My healthy smoothie version is loaded with goodness and doesn’t mess around with the sweet factor either. No fake sweeteners are needed! Just make sure you use a ripe banana.
We all know oranges = vitamin C (80% of the recommended daily intake), but did you know that oranges are also full of fiber? Your digestive system will thank you for eating more oranges.
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Tips for a Great Smoothie
If the sugar is a little much for you (even though it’s 100% natural!), swap half of the banana for a quarter of an avocado. You’ll still get the dream cream texture, but not as much sugar in this healthy Orange Julius smoothie.
- You can choose from these almond milk brands, make almond milk, or swap with any non-dairy milk of your choice. You can also choose from these coconut milk brands, or oat milk brands. There are so many great options. Whichever milk you use, make sure it is unsweetened.
- When blending this orange smoothie, blend it twice to help your blender chop up the spinach as much as possible. If you don’t have a high-speed blender getting one of these blenders for smoothies is a game changer.
- Adding ice cubes to the glass when you pour out the smoothie will cool down the beverage if using all fresh ingredients. You can also pre-prep your smoothies in my frozen meal prep smoothie packs to save time.
- For more awesome tips, check out my guide on how to make a smoothie.
When is the perfect time to drink a smoothie?
- For breakfast or even on the go with a Mason jar, cute lid and straw.
- As a nutrition-packed snack that helps you step away from the vending machine!
- Before or after a workout to add that protein after and MCT oil before to fuel your body during your workout.
Anytime you need a refreshing, fruity drink loaded with fiber, vitamins and minerals, consider blending up a smoothie. It’s the healthiest fast food out there and can provide energy, fuel and promote health. Some smoothies like the Orange Julius smoothie recipe contain more natural sugar. Boost these smoothies with a plant-based protein powder to help your body process the sugar.
More Orange Smoothie Recipes
If you love green smoothies like I do, here are some more recipes with juicy, sweet orange flavor you’ll want on repeat:
If you make this orange julius smooothie, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below. Your feedback helps me and all the readers in this community. And if you’re interested in more plant-based recipes (and exclusive content), sign up for my weekly recipe newsletter.
Orange Julius Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup spinach
- ¼ cup almond milk
- 2 oranges
- ½ banana frozen
Instructions
- Place spinach, oranges and almond milk in blender. Puree until smooth.
- Add banana and blend again.
Helpful Tools
Notes
- Use at least one frozen fruit to make the smoothie cold or serve over ice.
- Another non-dairy milk can be substituted for the almond milk, such as hemp, cashew or coconut milk.
- Swap 1/2 banana with 1/4 an avocado to lower the natural sugar. Here’s how to cut avocado if you don’t know how.
- Add 1/2 tsp vanilla to make this even more reminiscent of the original Orange Julius.
- Swap spinach for any leafy green vegetables of your choice.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review for a chance to win signed copies of my cookbooks!Common Questions
The original Orange Julius consists of orange juice concentrate, milk, vanilla, sugar and ice. While it is sweeter than my version, I bet mine still tastes deliciously orange-y! My smoothie contains spinach, oranges, almond milk and banana.
It depends! Spinach is typically mild, and the orange and banana in this Orange Julius smoothie are definitely the dominant flavors. You might still get a slightly earthy taste if you’ve got a sensitive palate.
They can be! Make sure yours are loaded with only whole food ingredients (no added sweeteners). Use unsweetened, plant-based milk or water for the base. Boost your smoothies with protein and healthy fats to help your body break down the natural sugars.
Love this one! SO simple. I only had the “cutie” oranges for my daughter’s lunches, so I peeled 4 of them and threw them in the freezer last night so the smoothie would be cold today! Yum.
My husband and I have been participating in the 30 Day Challenge and have enjoyed everything we’ve tried so far. Today our 3.5 year old helped my husband make the smoothies and he gave her a small cup of her own to try she care in to see me telling me she liked it! Overall she is a great eater and loves fruits and veggies but she’s always said she doesn’t like ‘salad’ which is what she calls any leafy green so the fact that she saw the spinach go in the blender, was willing to try it and actually says she likes it is a big win! Hoping this will be a way to incorporate some more leafy greens into her diet.
Loved this one! The citrus really woke me up this morning. Will definitely make again.
Love an Orange Julius! Family will love this one!!
So delicious! Can’t wait to make it again!
Another fantastic green smoothie! I can’t wait to make this one again already!
This smoothie was a good one. A little on the thick side, in which I added more liquid to. It was tasty!
Another winner! I am taking this one with me along with some cashews for lunch on the go.
This was a hit! Even my 3 year old is enjoying this challenge and looks forward to helping me make and drink a smoothie each morning. As we were blending the spinach this morning, she said: “Mommy, I like the green stuff.” Yay! Thanks for the great recipes!
This brings me back to being a little girl. My dad and I would go to the mall every Sunday. And every Sunday we would get orange julius! However this is much better! My son and I had this one this morning, he loves oranges!
it didn’t seem to have enough liquid in it… Maybe because I added a lot of spinach, so I added a bit of coconut water to the mix. It was delicious! 🙂
Hey Pam,
It sounds like you really packed in your greens and we love hearing that!
This is my favorite so far. I love love love it! Did I say I ❤️ It? Grew up with Orange Julius in NYC and this is just heavenly,
I have always loved Orange Julius, so to be able to have one in Green Smoothie form is the best!!! This is one I would make anytime!
Was a little too thick, I added extra almond milk but I will add extra water next time instead. Very refreshing taste though 🙂
I added vanilla protein powder for a great meal replacement and it’s delicious!
Hey Tanya,
I am so happy to hear that you made this smoothie work for you!
Agree with Grace, I don’t usually use much orange but it’s so refreshing I’m going to use it more, plus oranges come cheap! 🙂
Looking forward to trying this one.
This one is just a little refresher to enjoy on a hot day!
I used to love Orange Julius! Can’t wait to try this one!
I don’t use orange much in my green smoothies so this is a little different but still refreshing knowing there’s extra Vit C there! 🙂