Strawberry Green Smoothie
So I know I'm a few decades late to the trend, but I've gotten super into green smoothies lately. Before, I always associated green smoothies with diet culture and with unhealthiness-disguised-as-health in general. But recently, I've realized that green smoothies stand for more than gains and calorie counting — green smoothies are actually dang delicious.
In this rendition, I combine baby spinach leaves with frozen strawberries and a touch of orange juice. The result is a sweet, slightly tart smoothie that highlights the best produce spring has to offer. If you want a little extra sweetness, feel free to add a few slices of frozen banana.
Let me know what you think of the recipe and don’t forget to follow the sustainability tips below!
Time: 5 minutes
Makes: 1 smoothie
Ingredients
1 cup frozen strawberries
1/4 to 1/2 of a frozen banana (optional)
If your strawberries are super sweet, you probably don't need the extra sweetness. If they are tart, you may want to add a bit of banana.
1/3 cup orange juice
2 packed cups baby spinach leaves
Methods
Add the strawberries, orange juice and banana (if using) to a blender and blend until almost smooth. Then, add the spinach little by little, blending until smooth after each addition. I've found that adding the spinach a little at a time is the easiest and fastest way to achieve a smooth texture. If you have a large high-powered blender, you may be able to add all the ingredients at once with no trouble. Eat up!
Sustainability Tips
Strawberries: Your best option here is to grow the strawberries yourself and then freeze them. Alternatively, you could buy local or organic frozen strawberries. If you buy local strawberries, that means fewer greenhouse gases were released during transportation compared to non-local strawberries. If you buy organic strawberries, that means the farmers did not use synthetic chemicals to grow the crop.
Spinach: Your best option here is to grow the spinach yourself, but local or organic spinach is another great option. Be sure to make this recipe during the spring, when spinach is in season. This way, your spinach won't have to travel very far to get to you.