Grab some fresh organic baby kale leaves and let's make this protein-packed easy and creamy kale banana smoothie! It's packed with vital nutrients, plus you can customize your smoothie with different supplements!
This kale banana smoothie is inspired by my simple green smoothie, on my site. Both smoothies have pineapple, banana, and leafy greens in them, and pairs well with this mouthwatering gluten-free scones recipe.
Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 5 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: No cooking, just blending
- ⏳ Total Time: 5 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 1 tall glass
- ⚡ Calories: 475kcal with 40 grams of protein
- 🥣 Ingredients: 5 (orange juice, baby kale, frozen banana, frozen pineapple, vanilla protein powder) plus optional supplements
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Tropical pineapple and orange sweetness over light peppery baby kale, creamy like a milkshake
- ✋ Difficulty: Liquid in first, start the blender on low, then high until smooth
Quick Answer
Add ¼ cup orange juice to a blender first, then 1 cup fresh baby kale, 1 cup frozen banana slices, 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks, and ½ cup vanilla protein powder. Start the blender on low to mix gently, then turn it to high and blend until smooth and creamy, adding a splash more liquid 1 tablespoon at a time only if it is hard to blend. Pour into 1 to 2 glasses and enjoy right away. Use baby kale rather than curly or lacinato kale, since you do not have to remove the stems and it tastes less bitter. One serving has 475 calories and 40 grams of protein.
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Kale has grown tons of popularity due to it being one of the world's most powerful "super foods." It is rich in antioxidants, nutrients, vitamins, folate and magnesium. A great way to enjoy kale is in a recipe for kale smoothie, pesto, and a kale detox salad. You can even add kale to eggs!
We take tropical flavors and blend them with leafy greens and protein powder! You can use plant-based protein powder for a vegan shake or whey isolate protein powder. The protein powder makes this kale banana smoothie recipe so creamy like a milkshake!
Guess what else? Just one cup of kale contains 206 percent of your daily Vitamin A needs, 134 percent of your daily Vitamin C needs, and a whopping 684 percent of your daily Vitamin K needs.
Without further ado, let's get ready to make this amazing kale banana smoothie!
Why This Smoothie Works
Click to see why it works
- Baby kale is the right kale. Use baby kale leaves rather than the curly kind or dark green lacinato. That way you don't have to remove the stems and it is also slightly less bitter to taste. Baby kale has a light peppery taste that is covered up by the banana and pineapple fruit.
- Protein powder does the creaminess. The protein powder makes this kale banana smoothie recipe so creamy like a milkshake, and you can go plant-based for a vegan shake or use whey isolate.
- Frozen fruit keeps it thick. The key to a good smoothie is keeping the fruit frozen until you are ready to mix it, so the consistency stays frozen like a milkshake instead of watered down.
- Low speed first, then high. Start the blender on low to slowly mix everything together, then increase the speed to high. This gets things moving without having to water it down with more liquid.
- Tropical fruit masks the greens. It is important to mix the right types of fruit together and with the right liquid. Pineapple with banana and orange flavors provide lovely sweetness that covers the kale.
- The blade matters. A dull blade on the blender will need more liquid in the recipe. A high powered blender with a sharp blade provides a nice thick milkshake consistency.
Why You'll Love This Smoothie
- Creamy like a milkshake thanks to the protein powder and frozen fruit.
- 40 grams of protein in one 475 calorie glass, ready in 5 minutes.
- Vegan friendly. Use plant-based protein powder for a vegan shake.
- Customizable. Add supplements like chia seeds, collagen or oats for more nutrition, all listed below.
- Part of the smoothie family with my simple green smoothie, protein fruit smoothie and sweet potato smoothie.
Key Ingredients
- Baby kale leaves - use baby kale leaves (young kale leaves) rather than the curly kind or dark green color lacinato. That way you don't have to remove the stems and it is also slightly less bitter to taste.
- Frozen pineapple - chunks.
- Frozen banana - slices, and you can freeze your own bananas for smoothies yourself.
- Vanilla protein powder - use pea protein, vegan protein, or whey protein. I use Naked Nutrition whey protein for this recipe.
- Orange juice - the liquid that goes in first.
- Supplements - optional and not shown in the image. See below for our variations using supplements you can add for more nutrition.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions and Supplements to Add
This kale banana smoothie recipe is vegan and delicious! Here are a few substitutions you can swap out for the basic recipe.
- Lettuce - instead of baby kale leaves you can use spinach.
- Juice - use tangerine juice or this fresh pineapple orange juice recipe.
- Protein powder - just use your favorite kind of vanilla flavored protein powder such as pea protein or whey protein.
A great way to get more nutrients into your diet is adding supplements to this recipe for kale smoothie. Here are a few of our suggestions to add before blending.
- Chia Seeds - add 1 tablespoon chia seeds (affiliate link).
- Collagen - collagen is my favorite way to help my nails and hair grow, plus it helps achieve beautiful glowing skin! Add 2 tablespoons of collagen. Not sure what to buy? I recommend this collagen peptides powder (affiliate link).
- Oats - for a heartier kale smoothie, try adding ¼ cup of quick cooked oats or old fashioned rolled oats.
- Cashew butter - cashew butter is naturally sweet and is a great source of protein and healthy fat. Try adding 1-2 tablespoons of cashew butter or cashew powder (affiliate links).
See this tropical smoothie on my website!
How to Make a Kale Banana Smoothie
Let's get started making this delicious kale and banana tropical protein smoothie!
1Load the blender, liquid first. Add the ingredients to a high powered blender, adding the liquid first.
2Start low, finish high. Start the blender on low and then transition to high until well mixed and everything is combined, but see the next tip if it is hard to blend.
3Thin it only if needed. Add a splash (1 tablespoon at a time) more liquid if needed, which depends on the blender. Blend until smooth and serve the kale smoothie into 1-2 glasses.
4Enjoy right away! Smoothies are at their best the moment they are poured.
Hint: Start the blender on low to slowly mix everything together. Then increase the speed to high. This should get things moving without having to water it down with more liquid. As always, be sure to check out the full recipe details in the recipe card below.
Expert Tips
- Keep the fruit frozen until blending. The key to a good smoothie is keeping the fruit frozen until you are ready to mix it.
- Use a good blender. I highly suggest the Vitamix blender which blends the kale banana smoothie perfectly while leaving a nice thick consistency. Others that are less costly that work are the Ninja and Magic Bullet which is smaller and more for single servings. But the Vitamix lasts up to 10 years!
- Drink it right away. Banana in smoothies do not store well. They do start to brown, and as smoothies start to melt, the liquid separates from the pulp and becomes less favorable.
- Wash the kale thoroughly first to remove dirt and insects, and keep it to no more than 1 cup per smoothie since raw kale has a strong flavor.
- Equipment plays a big part in the consistency. A dull blade on the blender will need more liquid in the recipe.
Types of Kale
There are many variations of kale leaves. Use organic baby kale for making smoothies. It is lighter and thinner in texture, easier to digest and use since you don't have to discard the stem, and tastes less bitter or peppery than other varieties. Here are more common kale leaves you'll often find at the store:
- Dinosaur kale
- Redbor kale
- Russian kale
- Curly kale
- Lacinato kale
Greens hide just as well in my chocolate Shakeology recipe.
Kale Banana Smoothie FAQs
Yes! You can use raw kale for a smoothie. Make sure to wash the kale thoroughly first to remove dirt and insects. Raw kale has a strong flavor so you do not want more than 1 cup in a smoothie. Tropical fruit and juice combined with kale in a smoothie help to mask the bitter flavor.
Yes, kale is wonderful and healthy in a smoothie. Kale is one of the most nutritious leafy greens to enjoy. We should be consuming a diet rich in plants, which contains phytonutrients and phytochemicals to keep us healthy, and green smoothies are a great way to get greens into your daily diet.
Drinking too much kale can have side effects, like when a weight loss juice cleanse includes large amounts of kale daily. Side effects of too much kale can be diarrhea, constipation, or upset stomach, which are also symptoms of too much of anything. Consuming one smoothie a day made with kale should not promote side effects.
Organic baby kale. It is lighter and thinner in texture, easier to digest and use since you don't have to discard the stem, and tastes less bitter or peppery than varieties like curly, Russian, Redbor, dinosaur or lacinato kale.
Keep the fruit frozen until you are ready to mix it, start the blender on low and then increase to high so more liquid is not needed, and use a high powered blender with a sharp blade. Add liquid only a tablespoon at a time if it is hard to blend.
Bananas in smoothies do not store well. They start to brown, and as the smoothie melts, the liquid separates from the pulp of the fruit and vegetables and becomes less favorable. Drink this kale banana smoothie right away.
More Healthy Smoothie Recipes
Looking for other smoothies like this? Try my strawberry banana smoothie, sweet potato smoothie, chlorella detox smoothie and this detox green drink. If you make this easy kale banana smoothie recipe from Delightful Mom Food I would love to see your creations and share it! Follow along with me on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter for a feature and more recipe inspiration! And don't forget to leave a comment below!
Kale Banana Smoothie
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Ingredients
- ¼ cup orange juice
- 1 cup fresh baby kale
- 1 cup frozen banana slices
- 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
- ½ cup vanilla protein powder
- supplements optional to add any supplements in the notes below
Instructions
- In a blender, add the orange juice and remaining ingredients. If you want to add supplements, choose some from the notes below before blending.
- Turn the blender on low to mix gently then high and and blend until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the kale banana smoothie into 1-2 glasses right away and enjoy!
Notes
- Chia Seeds - add 1 tablespoon chia seeds (affiliate link).
- Collagen - collagen is my favorite way to help my nails and hair grow, plus it helps achieve beautiful glowing skin! Add 2 tablespoons of collagen. Not sure what to buy? I recommend this collagen peptides powder (affiliate link).
- Oats - for a heartier kale smoothie, try adding ¼ cup of quick cooked oats or old fashioned rolled oats.
- Cashew butter - cashew butter is naturally sweet and is a great source of protein and healthy fat. Try adding 1-2 tablespoons of cashew butter or cashew powder (affiliate links).
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