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This spinach banana smoothie has been a longtime favorite in my kitchen, but I recently decided to give it a little glow-up. I reworked the recipe to boost fiber, increase protein, and layer in even more flavor—turning it from a light, refreshing blend into a more balanced meal replacement. It’s still just as bright and creamy as ever, but now it keeps you full, fueled, and satisfied for hours.
Table of Contents
Ingredients You’ll Need
What I love most about this smoothie is how customizable it is. You can keep it light and refreshing, or turn it into a hearty, stay-full meal with simple add-ins like protein powder, nut butters, seeds, or oats. One sip in, and you’ll understand why this blend delivers a serious happiness boost.
- Fresh spinach: A mild leafy green that adds fiber, iron, and vitamin A without overpowering the flavor.
- Orange (peeled): Bright, juicy citrus that brings natural sweetness, vitamin C, and liquid for easy blending.
- Banana: One my favorite natural sweeteners that balances the citrus and adds creamy thickness to the smoothie.
- Frozen cauliflower florets: A freezer-friendly secret for extra creaminess and fiber with zero veggie taste.
- Chilled coconut milk: Adds healthy fats and a light tropical richness for a smooth, satisfying texture. Check out my recommended coconut milk brands to help you shop. If you’re not a fan of coconut milk, swap with my recommended almond milk brands.
- Homemade protein powder (optional): Helps turn this smoothie into a filling breakfast or post-workout meal.
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How to Make a Spinach Banana Smoothie
This spinach banana smoothie comes together fast, but using a high-speed blender makes all the difference. Oranges have stringy membranes and spinach is fibrous, and powerful smoothie blenders help create a smooth, creamy texture without pulp or grit.
- Add your base ingredients. Add spinach, peeled orange, banana, frozen cauliflower, and chilled coconut milk to your blender. You can also make coconut milk at home.
- Blend until creamy. Start on low, then increase to high until completely smooth. Stop and scrape the sides if needed.
- Optional protein boost. Add protein powder and blend briefly, just until combined.
- Serve right away. Pour into a glass and enjoy immediately for the best flavor and texture.
Recipe Tip
Stocking your freezer is the secret to thick, creamy smoothies—no ice required. Keeping frozen meal prep smoothie packs on hand means this smoothie is always just minutes away.
- Frozen cauliflower: I love using frozen riced cauliflower from Costco. It blends smoothly and adds creaminess without any veggie flavor.
- Frozen bananas: Peel, slice, and freeze ripe bananas for natural sweetness and a creamy texture following my how to freeze bananas tutorial.
- Frozen spinach: You can freeze spinach in handfuls or into cubes for an easy greens boost.
- Want more tips for perfect texture and flavor every time? Check out my full guide on how to make a smoothie so every blend turns out smooth, creamy, and delicious.
Suggested Mix-Ins
Whether you keep it simple or load it up with boosts, this spinach banana smoothie proves that green smoothies can be creamy, comforting, and totally crave-worthy. Blend it once, and you’ll find yourself coming back to it again and again.
- Add nut butter: Peanut butter, almond butter, or cashew butter add healthy fats and make the smoothie extra satisfying. Peanut butter pairs especially well with banana and orange.
- Sprinkle in seeds: Flaxseeds, chia seeds and hemp seeds add fiber, omega-3s, and plant-based protein without changing the flavor much. Ground flaxseed blends best.
- Warm it up with spices: Cinnamon adds cozy sweetness without sugar, while fresh or ground ginger brings a zingy kick that supports digestion and immunity.
- Sneak in more veggies: Frozen zucchini, extra cauliflower, or a handful of frozen spinach work beautifully and keep the texture creamy.
- Make it extra filling: Rolled oats turn this smoothie into a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast. Start small and add more if needed.
More Spinach Smoothie Recipes
Once you’ve mastered this spinach banana smoothie, it’s fun to mix things up, Here are more smoothie recipes packed with spinach goodness, and perfect for everyday sipping:
- Spinach Berry Smoothie
- Spinach Strawberry Banana Smoothie
- Mango Spinach Smoothie
- Spinach Papaya Smoothie
If you make this spinach banana smoothie, 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.
Spinach Banana Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup spinach
- 1 orange peeled
- 1 banana
- ¼ cup cauliflower florets frozen
- ¾ cup coconut milk chilled
- 1 serving protein powder optional
Instructions
- Peel and slice oranges to help blend easier.
- Blend spinach, orange, banana, cauliflower and coconut milk together until smooth.
- Add in protein powder (if using) and blend on low until mixed in.
- Pour into glass and enjoy!
Helpful Tools
Notes
- Mixing protein powder on low after initial blending prevents over-aeration.
- If you’re not a fan of coconut milk, you can swap it for almond milk or oat milk.
- Protein powders vary— I used a 25g protein option for this smoothie.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review for a chance to win signed copies of my cookbooks!Common Questions
Nope. Spinach has a very mild flavor, and in this spinach banana smoothie it’s completely balanced by sweet banana and bright orange.
A high-speed blender gives the creamiest spinach banana smoothie, especially since oranges have fibrous membranes. A standard blender works too, though the texture may be slightly pulpy.
Yes. Almond milk, oat milk, soy milk, or cashew milk all work well in a spinach banana smoothie if you don’t have coconut milk.
Frozen zucchini, avocado, or extra banana are great substitutes for cauliflower in a spinach banana smoothie. And if you want to switch things up with fresh fruit, check out my guide on how to peel kiwi for easy prep and perfectly blendable pieces every time.
Tasty but I prefer frozen fruit.
This was really good but would have been better had my orange been ripe. The lemon and banana really came through.
Not my favorite, just because the pith from all the citrus ended up a little stringy in mine. It might’ve been avoided if I had frozen the citrus…maybe next time!
I swapped coconut water with just water and added a whole banana and honey. This is my favorite so far in the challenge. Loved it. Took it on the go for walk in the neighborhood. It was very refreshing and better than it looks.
I made this smoothie with frozen spinach cubes since the other items are better fresh, and I like a cold, slushy smoothie. Unfortunately, the extra water from the cubes ended up making it more watery than I prefer. (Some time in the freezer would’ve fixed this if I had the time to wait.) But the flavor was still bright and citrus-y. I had a good ratio of lemon to orange, so it was sweet-tart; a good way to start my day.
It was good, next time I may leave out the lemon. Refreshing!
Holy Heck!! Day 4: Here we go! This smoothie is so yummy! I wasn’t sure about the half lemon but it was so necessary!! Loved how citrus-y it is!! You NEED to try this smoothie if you haven’t yet!! So much vitamin C from the orange and lemon and all of those electrolytes from the coconut water!! Cheers to your health!
I didn’t change anything about this smoothie. This smoothie was so delish’ .. You can taste a little bit of everything in this smoothie.
This smoothie is great for a summer afternoon with its citrus taste !
Day 4 of Smoothie Challenge – Spinach Orange. Nicely citrusy! Let’s me know it’s summertime! I always use the self cleaning method for my @vitamix blender. Tip – to save dish soap, put in a spritzer bottle. You’ll use so much less each time. @simplegreensmoothies #simplegreensmoothies✌
Thank you for that great tip! 😀
So delicious! Added 2 Tbsp oatmeal and 2 Tbsp hemp hearts. Kept me going until lunch! Downed this one fast, lol
Loved this recipe I added ginger and frozen coconut meat. It was delicious!
First time trying coconut water. Didn’t mind that, but it was a little too lemony for my taste. It wasn’t terrible. Just not my favorite. My husband liked his. Probably not on our rotation. Too much work cutting up oranges and lemons to not be my favorite.
I loved the lemon in this smoothie recipe I did add chia seeds very tasty I enjoyed it very much!
Really liked this and made to recipe no substitutes. Did add protein powder. Not real sweet but sweet enough. Very fresh tasting.
The coconut water gave a different and pleasant twist. Enjoyed it.
This was excellent with the coconut smoothie cubes added!
This smoothie ended up really lemony for me, maybe that’s because I swapped out coconut water for regular water, or I just had a really big lemon.
Love this smoothie! I loved the combo of coconut water and citrus fruits. So tasty!
This one I had trouble blending the orange but will try again with the suggestion of slicing the orange better. I enjoyed the hint of lemon flavour too
Delicious! DE-Licious! Plain and simple ♀️ This one I’m keeping! I loved it. I used a frozen banana…one and a half because I like them think and smooth.