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My love for lemons led me to create this lemon-y smoothie. My citrus smoothie is the perfect blend of sweet and tart to brighten your day.
I’m all for making the food I eat work for me and my body. I want my fuel to be as nutrient-rich as possible, which is why I drink a daily green smoothie. It’s like a multivitamin in a cup! This bright citrus smoothie delivers vitamin A and vitamin C in a sippable package, with a lemon kick.
I could honestly eat lemons every day. I planted a Meyer lemon tree right after moving into my Florida home! Yet a little lemon does go a long way in a smoothie, so for this one, I paired it with kale, mango and banana for the ultimate green treat.
Table of Contents
Citrus Smoothie Ingredients
- Lemon: If foods can be a love language then lemon is mine. This bright fruit not only provides great flavor but also vitamin C, potassium, and vitamin B6.
- Kale: Earning its superfood status easily, kale is a powerhouse smoothie ingredient. It provides fiber, protein, vitamins and more! Gently massage the leaves and discard the stems before adding it to your blender for a less-bitter experience.
- Mango: The ultimate natural sweetener, mango is mild in flavor. If cutting up a mango isn’t in your wheelhouse yet then buy frozen! It’s already peeled and diced as well as flash frozen at peak ripeness.
- Banana: Smoothies should be creamy and banana is the secret ingredient that achieves this silky texture. Bananas contain more sugar the more they ripen, so use a greener banana for less sweetness and a spotted banana for a sweeter treat.
As-is, this smoothie works great as an energizing snack. If you want to turn this into a meal replacement smoothie, add a homemade protein powder. This gives you the protein, fiber and healthy fat boost to fuel up and stay full until lunchtime.
Ingredient Swaps
If you want even more goddess-level energy, swap water with unsweetened coconut water (aka, nature’s Gatorade). If even a drop of lemon has you wincing then swap in a Meyer lemon. It’s a sweeter, less tart cousin to the regular lemons you find in the grocery.
If you want to keep the citrus train rolling with this smoothie then take out the mango and water and add in one whole orange. Oranges are so juicy that they act as both a liquid and a fruit in smoothies.
Kale may not be your first leafy green choice, so if you’re new to blending kale, start small! add a quarter or half cup and work your way up to that oversized handful. Or just swap with spinach or swiss chard.
The Power of Citrus Fruit
We all know that if you need a vitamin C boost, grab the nearest orange and chow down. Yet did you know vitamin C is found in all citrus fruit?
I love oranges, but they certainly don’t own the market for immune-boosting vitamins. Just like with any food, eating a variety of citrus will give you even more rounded nutrition and you may just find a new favorite fruit!
These are my 12 go-to fruits to look for at markets and grocery stores when I’m on the hunt for citrus fruit:
| Lemon | Blood Orange | Clementine | Citron |
| Grapefruit | Key Lime | Kumquat | Mandarine |
| Finger Lime | Meyer Lemon | Pomelo | Persian Lime |
Citrus Smoothie FAQs
The possibilities are endless when it comes to which fruits you can blend. You can blend almost any fruit! The more important thing to keep in mind is making sure your smoothie is balanced (hello fiber-rich leafy greens!) to avoid a sugar spike from that natural glucose in fruit. My citrus smoothie combines lemon, kale, mango and banana for a sweet energy drink.
While you can use fruit juice like orange juice in a smoothie, I recommend using the whole fruit instead. That way you get the fiber and vitamins found in the pith of citrus fruit instead of just the glucose.
I pair the citrus lemon with mango and banana in this smoothie recipe. I also use kale to balance out the sweetness from the fruit as well as provide even more fiber to help the body break down the fruit.
More Smoothies Using Citrus
No matter where you live, you can probably find some kind of citrus fruit at the grocery store. And no matter the citrus smoothie, swap with the ingredients you have available and blend away! Here are a few of my favorite citrus smoothies to get you started:
- Lemon Smoothie
- Grapefruit Smoothie
- Mango Orange Smoothie
- Fat Burning Smoothie
- Orange Smoothie
- Berry Citrus Smoothie
- Coconut Water Smoothie
Let me know once you blend this smoothie by leaving a rating + review. I wanna know how it turned out!
Citrus Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup kale
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup mango frozen
- ¼ lemon peeled
- ½ banana
- 1 serving homemade protein powder optional
Instructions
- Blend kale and water together until smooth.
- Add remaining ingredients and blend again.
Notes
- Use at least one frozen fruit to make this smoothie cold.
- To cut back on the natural sugar in this recipe, swap 1/2 banana with 1/4 avocado or 1/4 cup cauliflower.
- Swap kale with leafy greens of your choice.
- This recipe uses the lemon fruit, not just the juice, for extra fiber and nutrients. If you’re in a pinch, lemon juice works great too!
I use lemon juice in a citrus smoothie and also add a mandarin so and an orange or alternately I have a grapefruit tree in my back yard and I add a few oueces if grapefruit v so I have a mixture lime a citrus cocktail
I just found your recipe, and this sounds delish. However, I am not a lover of mangos, any suggestions for a substitute? Thank you!
Hey Vida! Mango isn’t for everyone – we totally get that. 🙂 Try peaches, papaya, nectarine or apricot instead!
I’m still trying to get on board with Kale LOL Wondering if spinach would taste ok with this recipe?
Hi Tracy! Yes, you can sub spinach if you like. If you’re still trying to get on the kale train, give baby kale a try in your smoothies. The taste is much more mild than regular kale. Happy blending!
I read lemon juice and spinach have a diet trigger is the reason this popped up. I love Kale but I want to try with spinach due to what I read.
Sounds good, Kimberly!
“The lemon is a fantastic way to cleanse a few key organs. As toxins build up in the body, they force you to feel sluggish and glum. They also make you more susceptible to illness like the flu. We know how busy life can get. Nobody has the time to be sick- especially now that the holidays are here. Adding lemon to a green smoothie gives the organs that remove toxins a good cleansing, something we can all use this time of year.”
Is anyone really ignorant and gullible enough to believe this pseudoscientific, ridiculous “toxin” and “cleansing” nonsense?
Out of all these Green smoothies, which smoothie Would you you really recommend for weight-loss?! I am excited to know and try!
Hi Danielle,
Out of all of the recipes, one of my favorites is our Kiwi Berry Punch Recipe. It’s packed with low-calorie fruits and protein to make the perfect meal replacement when working towards your weight loss goals…
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/kiwi-smoothie
For weight loss this recipe is really nice as it is, bit with a little tweak even better.
I’d leave mango out. Add half a lemon with peal, inch of ginger root, coconut water instead of water, and 1/4 cucumber.
Hey Johanna,
Thank you so much for sharing that tip! It sounds delicious.
I am so happy you were able to make this smoothie your own and enjoyed it. You are a rawkstar!
I bought the 21 day spring and tried to down load and I wasn’t able to. I’m waiting to receive confirmation receipt with link.
Thank you,
Elizabeth Soteropoulos
Hi Elizabeth,
Oh no! I am so sorry if you’re having any trouble receiving your purchase. I just resent your copy of Fresh Start: Spring and it should be in your inbox shortly. If you continue to have any issues – please don’t hesitate to reach out to me through our contact page…
https://simplegreensmoothies.com/contact
I want to ensure you can access everything ASAP!
A good cleaning is what I need after Easter!!!
KALE YEAH! Thanks for blendin’ with us, Kimberley!
Love this site and all the recipes!
Thanks for the love, Lindsay! <3
How often do you recommend drinking this smoothie?
Hi Stacy,
Personally, I believe variety is the spice of life and like to blend a wide variety of recipes. But blending this recipe 1-3 times per week can definitely help your body detox and keep those yucky toxins from hanging out!
This green smoothie looks less scary than normal. Perfect for a New Year’s detox!
YAY!! Happy blendin’, Natalia!
Love It! My first green smoothie I ever made. I didn’t think I would like it because I’m very picky but I did. This will help me out a lot with my Chron’s disease.
Chron’s disease flare l ups are awful! I use lemon a lot to help ease my stomach when I’m not feeling well. This recipe is perfect for easing bloat and stomach cramps. Love it!