Wake up your taste buds with a Citrus Explosion Green Smoothie! It’s the best way to start the day! PIN THIS RECIPE NOW!
This post was originally published in April 2014.
Citrus Explosion Green Smoothie
Spring is around the corner, which means that it’s time to get back to eating fresh and bright flavors! This green smoothie will certainly do the trick! Pineapple, mango, lime, orange, and banana come together to wake up your taste buds and energize you for the day! It’s got a generous helping of spinach too, but you’ll hardly notice—my kids certainly don’t! And a bit of gelled chia seeds round out the smoothie with a bit of protein and healthy vitamins! A Citrus Explosion Green Smoothie is sure to be a hit with your whole family!
So Much Citrus
I came up with this smoothie while I was pregnant with Jonny, in 2014. During his pregnancy I craved all things citrus and drank a quart of orange juice nearly every day. I just couldn’t get enough! This smoothie gets a triple hit in the citrus department! The first pop of citrus comes from one small orange—I love to pop a small clementine or satsuma into this—we have them on hand for a large stretch of the year! I also use a tiny wedge of lime—I’m talking tiny!—rind and all. That little bit of peel packs so much flavor, and it really is the star of the smoothie. And finally, I use orange juice as my liquid. It adds just enough sweetness, and great flavor. For those wanting to avoid juice, you could instead add more whole orange and use coconut water, water, or non dairy milk, though the citrus flavor will not be quite as pronounced.
Prep ahead
You can follow the tips on the Smoothie Kit post to prep several of these and keep them in your fridge, or you can grab the ingredients each morning. This really helps for weekday mornings when extra time is at a minimum. Just dump a bag of prepared fruits into your blender, add the juice (or liquid of choice), and blend away!
^^^ My Vitamix always blends greens so smoothly that even the pickiest kid can’t detect them!
Kid Favorite
Despite the spinach in this Citrus Explosion Green Smoothie, it really is a kid hit! The spinach flavor is pretty subtle, and the bright fruit flavors mask it well. Both of my kids think the color is really fun, and I tell them that it will make them strong like the Hulk!
^^^ Throwback pic—this is David at age 3, sipping on his Citrus Explosion Green Smoothie!
Look how easy it is to make a Citrus Explosion Smoothie!
I hope you enjoy this bright Citrus Explosion Green Smoothie! We make it several times a week, and always feel so refreshed afterwards! I think you will too! Be sure to snap a pic when you make it, and post to social media—tag me so that I can see! {#frieddandelions // @frieddandelions}
Wake up your taste buds with a Citrus Explosion Green Smoothie! It's the best way to start the day!
- 1 Tablespoon chia seeds (mixed with 3 Tablespoons of water and allowed to gel for a few minutes)
- 1 cup spinach (or other greens)
- ½ c frozen pineapple
- ½ c frozen mango
- 1 small orange, peeled (a clementine/mandarin/Satsuma is great!)
- 1 frozen banana
- 1 small wedge lime (with peel) (equivalent to a teaspoon of lime, see video for visual!)
- 1 c orange juice
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Place chia seeds in a small bowl with the water. Allow to sit for a few minutes while you get the other ingredients ready so that the chia seeds soften.
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Place all ingredients into the blender, including the chia gel, and blend. You can add water or ice to thin or thicken the consistency of the smoothie to your preference.
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Enjoy!
This recipe makes a pretty large amount—maybe 24 ounces of smoothie? I can usually give each of my boys a bit and have enough for myself as well. It should serve 1 hungry adult, 2 regular adults, or 1 adult and a couple of kiddos!
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