Gone are the days of the spinach smoothie recipe that tastes like grass — and good riddance. This simple combo is one of my very favorites for post-run fuel – the mint is so refreshing! I love it year-round but I especially like this combination in the spring when I’m starting to itch for warmer temperatures and want to get more greens in but a regular smoothie doesn’t sound too appealing. And it’s a perfect smoothie for St. Patrick’s Day!
Even my husband loves this smoothie. And that is really saying something considering he would pick pizza or cereal for breakfast over a smoothie any day. Yes, my husband eats leftover pizza for breakfast. But hey, there are certainly worse choices. But maybe I should stick some spinach on there.
I love this smoothie after a run since I get healthy carbs, protein and fats — and it’s FAST which is key when I’m starving post-run. Plus, I’ve really been trying to fuel sooner after I finish a run since it’s so important for recovery!
Is spinach good in a smoothie?
YEP. The beauty of adding spinach to smoothies is that you really can’t taste it, but it adds a boost of nutrients. Other greens, like kale, can be more pungent so spinach is a good option if you’re averse to drinking greens. I promise, you won’t even notice it in this recipe.
And, this might just be the EASIEST way to eat your greens! While I don’t have kids, I bet this spinach smoothie recipe would be a great way to get your children to eat veggies. (Parents, yes? No?)
For some people, spinach in a smoothie is seriously no big deal at this point vs. 10 years ago in the early blogging days where it was like WHOA, WHAT, WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT. And thank goodness it’s starting to become the norm!
However, I still have a lot of friends and family who are weirded out by it, mostly because of the color! But putting raw spinach in a mint-flavored smoothie makes it more approachable since people expect mint-flavored things to be green. Hey, what do they say, we eat first with our eyes? So true.
My all-time favorite spinach smoothie recipe!
I really hope you enjoy this smoothie! If you try it, leave a comment and let me know what you think. And be sure to take a picture and tag me on Instagram (@afoodiestaysfiit) so I can share your photo!
I love this smoothie after a run since I get healthy carbs, protein and fats — and it’s FAST which is key when I’m starving post-run. Plus, I’ve really been trying to fuel sooner after I finish a run, since it’s so important for recovery!
Ingredients
Scale
1 frozen banana
1 big handful spinach
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1 cup almond milk
5 mint leaves
1 T cacao nibs
Instructions
Blend all the ingredients together, except the cacao nibs, until creamy, adding more milk if necessary for desired thickness.(If you use a full scoop of Vega, you’ll definitely need more milk!).
Add the caco nibs and pulse in the blender a few times.
You can find cacao nibs at Trader Joe’s, typically by the granola or chia seeds.
I always buy way more bananas than a human needs in a week so I can put extras in the freezer. A frozen banana is a must for a creamy texture. I promise it makes a big difference vs. a non-frozen one. (There’s a reason banana ice cream is a thing.)
Speaking of creamy textures, a Vitamix blender is one of the best investments you can make for your kitchen. A powerful blender makes a HUGE difference in achieving that super creamy texture you get from a smoothie shop (and pay like $12 for, gah). I use mine daily for smoothies, soups, sauces. And I’ve had it for seven years and it’s still going strong.
Soo… you have me giving myself major facepalm here! I’ve been trying to figure out a good way to add mint flavor to a mint chocolate chip smoothie and somehow the thought of adding actual mint leaves eluded me? I think I was so stuck on trying to replicate the face mint from a milkshake that I wasn’t thinking. But thank you!
My husband and I have been married for nearly 18 years and we have always had super cheap blenders, he keeps wanting to try smoothies with a bunch of ingredients but I told him it just wouldn’t work with our blender! We finally, FINALLY invested in a Vitamix last week and OMG, I can not believe the difference! Now I’m on the smoothies for ALL train 😉 Can’t wait to give this one a try!
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7 responses to “Healthy Mint Chocolate Chip Smoothie”
Yum! This looks awesome! Love chocolate and mint together!
Soo… you have me giving myself major facepalm here! I’ve been trying to figure out a good way to add mint flavor to a mint chocolate chip smoothie and somehow the thought of adding actual mint leaves eluded me? I think I was so stuck on trying to replicate the face mint from a milkshake that I wasn’t thinking. But thank you!
My husband and I have been married for nearly 18 years and we have always had super cheap blenders, he keeps wanting to try smoothies with a bunch of ingredients but I told him it just wouldn’t work with our blender! We finally, FINALLY invested in a Vitamix last week and OMG, I can not believe the difference! Now I’m on the smoothies for ALL train 😉 Can’t wait to give this one a try!
This sounds doable. I hate the raw spinach taste in my smoothie so I had to give it up. I sure will give this a go. Thanks for sharing.
I found that if you don’t have mint leaves handy (b/c I usually don’t), you can use a little peppermint extract.
I made the smoothie this morning.. It was great! Thank you for the recipe.
YAY!!! So happy you liked it! Thanks for sharing your feedback!