This healing green smoothie is one of the best ways to start your day. It’s loaded with healthy organic romaine lettuce, kale, carrots, celery stalks, strawberries, an avocado, and a Granny Smith apple. Blend them all together for a powerful combination of fruits and vegetables to supercharge your health and boost your energy.
As I have written in my previous posts, I suffered for many years with ill health. Even though I began eating gluten free, I was not getting significantly better. Then about 2 ½ years ago, I introduced some significant changes into my health plan. One of those was a consistent program of juicing. A friend, who had just had bypass surgery, mentioned that he was following a new diet. He had just purchased a Vitamix and was starting a program of whole-food juicing. I decided to buy a Vitamix as well and began incorporating green smoothies into my diet. The Vitamix is technically not a juicer but a blender. It blends the entire ingredient, retaining all of its nutritious fiber and health benefits. Many juicing experts prefer to juice their vegetables and fruits as they believe nutrients enter the blood stream faster. You can read some of the differences between juicing and blending here.
This recipe is for the green smoothie that I make each morning. It yields about 42 ounces. I usually drink about 30-32 ounces during the day, and Barbara drinks the rest. Most experts who advocate juicing suggest that fresh juice should be consumed within 4 hours of making it in order to obtain the maximum health benefits. I try to do my best within 6-8 hours. It’s a lot of juice. I recommend buying only organic vegetables and washing all vegetables in filtered water before getting started.
Disclaimer: Please note that I am not a practicing medical professional but just sharing with you what is working for me. I am in the process of healing and will keep adjusting what I’m doing. I highly recommend you seek out professional advice for yourself and only use my tips as a starting point.
Step 1. Toss in four to five romaine lettuce leaves. Romaine is packed with nutrients and is high in Vitamins A, K, and folate.
Step 2. Add in three large kale leaves. You can use any kind of kale. Kale is another leafy, green vegetable loaded with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and compounds believed to prevent cancer. However, it is a good idea to rotate green vegetables so sometimes I substitute with bok choy. Many people don’t like to juice spinach or Swiss chard in their raw form because of their high oxalic acid content. Oxalic acid has a tendency to prevent the absorption of some nutrients.
Step 3. Like the saying goes, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away,” so I make sure to include an apple in my smoothies. I use one large Granny Smith Apple, cut up into slices with the seeds removed. Granny Smith’s contain more malic acid than red apples. Malic acid appears to be beneficial in the treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia. See here. Granny Smith apples also have a lower sugar content than other varieties like Red or Golden Delicious. This is important for people concerned with their glycemic index.
Step 4. Pour in three cups of filtered water.
Step 5. Next, cut up about one cup of carrots. Make sure to wash the carrots and brush clean. Feel free to adjust the amount of carrots as desired. Carrots help prevent macular degeneration, reduce the risk of cancer, and slow aging; however, if you consume too many carrots, you can end up with an orange tint on the palms of your hands.
Step 6. I add six medium strawberries. Read about the benefits of strawberries here. You can also watch this TED Seminar on the cancer fighting ability of strawberries. Also make sure to include two celery stalks and half of an avocado (of course remove the skin and pit!). Celery soothes the nervous system, regulates the body’s alkaline balance, and aids digestion. Avocados are loaded with potassium and heart-healthy monounsaturated fatty acids. I have not found it necessary to add any sweeteners to this drink.
I have the Vitamix Professional Series 500. I have found it is best to put heavier ingredients on top as they weigh everything down. The machine also comes with a plastic tamper to press the ingredients down to facilitate mixing. It has a smoothie setting that is automatically timed. If your final drink is too thick, adding more water should do the trick. Feel free to customize anything else according to your tastes.
This green smoothie has been an important part in helping to improve my general health and allowing me to regain a sense of what it means to feel well. With its refreshing taste and the knowledge that I am getting a super infusion of beneficial nutrients, this green drink will continue to be a staple of my health plan.
Enjoy, friends! Have a happy and healthy week!
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- 4-5 large leaves of romaine lettuce
- 3 larges leaves of kale
- 1 large Granny Smith apple (cut into slices with seeds removed)
- 3 cups
water - 1 cup of chopped carrots
- 6 medium strawberries
- 1-2 celery stalks
- ½ avocado (peeled and pit removed)
- Place lettuce leaves, kale leaves, and Granny Smith apple slices in Vitamix (or blender).
- Add three cups of water.
- Chop up one cup of carrots and add to Vitamix.
- Next add strawberries, celery stalks, and avocado.
- Blend on smoothie setting.
- Pour into glasses and enjoy.
Cut ends off all vegetables. Add more water to final drink if it is too thick.
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