Kale Smoothie

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Give yourself a burst of energy in the morning by starting your day with this five-ingredient kale smoothie. Made with an ultra-flavorful combination of pears, apples, kale, almond butter, and almond milk, this fruit smoothie with kale is perfectly sweet, super satisfying, and you can’t taste the kale at all!

I feel like it’s next to impossible to have a bad day when you start off by drinking this fantastic smoothie with kale and apple. It’s naturally sweetened with apple and pear, but has all the health benefits of kale!

This really is the most delicious green smoothie recipe ever. And on top of that, you get the vitamins, nutrients, and antioxidants from the kale, in a great smoothie that tastes like a sweet treat! We made this healthy kale smoothie recipe with apples and pears to sweeten it, but you could also make a kale pineapple smoothie for sweetness or customize it with other fresh fruit however you like!

This recipe makes a great vegetarian breakfast idea or healthy snack. If you choose to add the protein powder, you’ll get a well balanced drink that will keep you full for hours. Just throw everything into your blender and in minutes you have a meal in minutes.

This smoothie with kale and fruit is also excellent for those days when you need a healthy jump start. It’s a delicious way to add fruits and veggies into your diet and is a perfect breakfast or snack that you can enjoy on the go!

👩‍🍳 Why You Will Love This Kale Smoothie Recipe

• Family-Friendly: The apples and pears give this kale fruit smoothie a natural sweetness, that completely disguises the taste of kale, making it a favorite with kids of all ages.
• Budget-Friendly: Save yourself expensive trips to the smoothie shop with this recipe! With easy-to-find and common ingredients, this vegan kale smoothie with apple is much easier on your wallet.
• Short Ingredient List: All you need are 5 ingredients, making this recipe a great one any time.
• Healthy: Green smoothies are one of my favorite ways to make a healthy breakfast that tastes like dessert! This really is the best kale smoothie, as it’s packed with healthy ingredients and is a great way to eat your greens.
• Vegan & Gluten Free: If you are looking for a delicious plant based smoothie, this kale apple smoothie recipe is for you! It’s made with all vegan ingredients, nutritious kale, sweet apples, and a few other good-for-you ingredients. It also happens to be naturally gluten free!

🥘 Ingredients

You only need 5 simple ingredients for this healthy green smoothie with kale, all of which can easily be found at your local grocery store! Here’s what you need:

Main Ingredients:

• Kale: Curly kale is my preferred type of kale for this green kale smoothie recipe. But to save time, use pre-chopped kale or baby kale in this smoothie recipe.
• Apple: Choose a sweet and tart apple. Some of my favorite varieties are Envy, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, and Gala apples.
• Pear: The more ripe the pear, the better! Barlett pears are my recommended pick for this pear kale smoothie – they add just the right amount of sweetness to this kale drink recipe.
• Almond Butter: Natural almond butter adds flavor, richness, and staying power to this drink.
• Unsweetened Almond Milk: Choose unsweetened plain or vanilla almond milk to keep the added sugars at bay in this recipe.

Optional Additional Ingredients:

• Baby Spinach: Add additional nutrition and make a kale and spinach smoothie by blending in a cup of baby spinach.
• Water: Thins out this morning smoothie, making it smooth and creamy.
• Ice: Cool down your smoothie and make it icy by choosing to blend in a handful of ice cubes.
• Protein Powder: Use plant-based protein powder to keep this recipe a healthy high protein vegan breakfast. Otherwise, any unflavored or vanilla protein powder will work in this kale and fruit smoothie!

🍲 Substitutions

• Leafy Greens: Any combination of tuscan kale, baby spinach, baby power greens, lacinato kale, or purple kale can substitute for curly kale or baby spinach.
• Fruit: Any combination of sweet peaches, mango, pineapple, strawberries, blueberries, or creamy banana can substitute for the apples and pears, making this a great recipe to use up any fruits you have on hand!
• Nut Butter: You can use peanut butter, cashew butter, or even pumpkin seed butter instead of the almond butter.
• Milk: Any type of plant-based milk or dairy milk will work in place of the almond milk in this recipe. Oat milk, cashew milk, coconut milk, soy milk, or pea milk are all fantastic options. You can also use regular cow’s milk if you don’t need this recipe to be vegan friendly. I don’t recommend using juice (like apple or orange juice instead of the milk – it won’t make this kale detox smoothie as creamy and fruit juice has too much added sugar).

🔪 How To Make A Kale Smoothie

Prep Ingredients: Chop the apple and pear into small cubes. Remove the spine and stem of the kale, and roughly chop. Add all of the ingredients to a high-powered blender.

Blend: Blend until smooth (1-2 minutes). Serve this kale green smoothie immediately. Enjoy!

💭 Expert Tips

• Add the Ingredients to the Blender in the Order Listed: Make blending a breeze by adding the ingredients for this apple kale smoothie in the order listed.
• Add Water and Ice Only As Needed: Adding too much water or ice can dilute the flavors of the kale and pear smoothie recipe. Depending on the type of blender you have, you may not need any water at all. A high speed blender will easily break down the ingredients. Blend up the smoothie with the almond milk, veggies, and fruit first, and then blend in the water and ice as needed to reach the desired consistency. 
• If Possible Use a High-Speed Blender: Using a Vitamix or other high-speed blender will make this smoothie preparation a breeze, resulting in a creamy smoothie without burning out the blender’s engine.

📖 Recipe Variations

• Kale Protein Smoothie: To add extra protein to this instant kale shake, add 2 scoops of your favorite protein powder, ground flaxseed, ground chia seeds, hemp seeds, or yogurt (plant-based or dairy – Greek yogurt).
• Add Healthy Fats: Amp up the heart-healthy fats in this green shake recipe by blending in an avocado to make a kale avocado smoothie. You can also double up on the almond butter for additional good-for-you fats!
• Tropical Flavors: Make a kale pineapple smoothie by swapping out the apples or pears for and equal amount of pineapple. Or make it a kale mango smoothie by using diced mango instead of the apples or pears!
• Other Mix-Ins: Add 1-2 tsp fresh ginger to this recipe for a kale ginger smoothie, or feel free to add a squeeze of lemon juice or lime juice for a citrus twist!
• Kale Berry Smoothie: Make it a strawberry kale smoothie or blueberry kale smoothie by switching out the apples and pears for either strawberries or blueberries. I recommend throwing in half to a whole frozen banana along with the berries as well, to help counteract some of the kale taste.
• Kale Banana Smoothie: Whip in an overripe banana to make a simple kale smoothie with banana. You can use a fresh or frozen banana, which offers a natural sweetness and a delightfully creamy finish.
• Make it Frosty: For an extra cool and frosty finish, freeze the prepared fruits and vegetables the night before, and then blend it straight from frozen in the morning!
• Extra Sweetness: For a sweeter smoothie with no processed sugar, blend in a few pitted medjool dates or a tablespoon or two of maple syrup! You can also throw your favorite frozen fruit into this super kale smoothie for weight loss!

🫙 Storage Directions

• Storage: This kale breakfast smoothie is best served immediately after blending. If you want to prepare it ahead of time, just place the ingredients in the blender and store it in the fridge for up to 4 hours or until blending.
• Freezing: Freeze any leftover smoothie in a freezer-safe airtight container for up to 3 months. For best results, de-frost the smoothie for 6-12 hours in the refrigerator before blending until smooth and serving!

🍽 Serving Suggestions

Serve up a cool glass of this kale and apple smoothie on its own for a refreshing snack, light breakfast, or post-workout treat. It’s a great option year-round!

You can also serve it alongside toast, high protein overnight oats, these gluten free chocolate banana muffins, or vegan baked oatmeal for a satisfying and nutritious morning meal.

❓Recipe FAQs

🍏 More Healthy Smoothie Recipes!

• Banana Peach Smoothie
• Tomato Smoothie
• Boba Smoothie
• Pineapple And Banana Smoothie
• Cucumber Pineapple Smoothie
• Dragon Fruit Smoothie
• Spinach Ginger Smoothie with Nutmeg
• Fruit and Vegetable Smoothie
• Spinach And Banana Smoothie
• Blueberry Banana Blast Smoothie

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