Add greens to your next smoothie with this Green Banana Bread Smoothie recipe that tastes like a combination of banana and cinnamon and is packed with nutrients.
What’s better than a banana bread smoothie? Well, actual banana bread obviously, but that’s not why you’re here! Also, who would I be if I didn’t post a green smoothie recipe in January? This isn’t just any green smoothie though—it’s a BANANA BREAD smoothie that tastes like bananas and cinnamon. YUM.
Recently, I’ve been challenging myself to drink one smoothie every day, and so far it’s going pretty well. Smoothies make me feel good and they’re a much healthier snack than, say, chips. They’re also one of my favorite things to have after a workout–so good! I remember being nervous the first time I added spinach to a smoothie. Would it taste like spinach? Is it going to be overpowering? Much to be [pleasant] surprise, I couldn’t taste the spinach at all. Now, I try to add some sort of greens to the majority of my smoothies because it’s such an easy way to squeeze in vegetables.
HEALTHY BANANA BREAD SMOOTHIE INGREDIENTS
Banana: not surprisingly, the base of this smoothie recipe is banana. If you want the smoothie to be thicker and/or cold, I recommend peeling the banana, slicing it, and then placing the slices into a bag and in the freezer for a few hours. As for substitutions, I don’t have any because truthfully, if you want to make a banana smoothie, you’re going to need banana.
Greens: the thing that sets this banana smoothie recipe apart is the greens. For this recipe, you can use either spinach or kale; however, if you’re using spinach I say you can use as much as you’d like. On the other hand, if you’re using kale, a little bit goes a long way. Kale is more bitter tasting than spinach, so you don’t want to use too much or else you won’t be able to taste the banana.
Nuts: all good banana bread recipes contain nuts. It’s a fact! So, I included both almonds and walnuts in this smoothie. If you’re allergic or simply don’t like nuts, feel free to use old fashioned oats instead.
Milk: I’m just going to say it–you can use whatever milk you want! I typically have almond milk on hand so that tends to be my go-to, but truly any milk will work. I like milk because I think it adds a little flavor to the smoothie and makes it a bit creamier, but if you’re out of milk and still want to whip this up, water will work just fine.
This smoothie uses hemp seeds too, because apparently I can’t make a smoothie and not include either hemp seeds or chia seeds. If you don’t already include them in your smoothies, you should! They’re packed with protein and fiber and literally taste like nothing.
Though I try not to make all of my smoothie recipes have a banana base, banana is such an easy ingredient to put in your smoothies. However, it’s usually not the main flavor, to I decided to make it the star of the show. This smoothies tastes like bananas and cinnamon and it’s super thick and uses ingredients you should already have on hand. Now that’s my kind of recipe!
Happy Friday, friends!
HEALTHY SMOOTHIE RECIPES:
Green Banana Bread Smoothie
Ingredients
- 2 bananas
- 1 handful of spinach or kale
- 1/4 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup almonds
- 2 tbsp hemp seeds
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1 cup almond milk
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a blender and pulse until smooth.
- Enjoy!
I’ve been having a green smoothie almost every day for months ( I usually fast until about 4 pm.). I’m getting tired of the same ingredients so decided to invent my own and then googled and saw yours. Almost the same except I never thought of adding walnuts, great idea for next time. I aslo use green bananas ( lots of tips on youtube how to peel them.). They’re so much better for us, less sugar, much more resistant starch which is so good for our gut. I encourage you to try it with green bananas! 🙂
Gorgeous photos as always, Erin! And this smoothie looks delicious!! 😀
This might be a dumb question but how much ice should I add to this?
Hi! It doesn’t really matter, but I usually add 5-6 ice cubes.
If you use frozen fruit, you could avoid the ice altogether 🙂
Awesome recipe, by the way! I’ve seen tons of banana based recipes for smoothies but the idea of a banana bread version sounds so cool. Can’t wait to give it a go!
Spinach plus banana is my favorite base for a smoothie. I also recently tried adding hemp.seeds and love it. Definitely a smoothie I will be making
This sounds amazing! I will definitely be trying it. Love new smoothie ideas, because I feel like I tend to do the same thing over and over. And I also love the smoothie-a-day idea. It’s seriously such a good way to get in extra greens!
You’re gonna be awesome this weekend! Once you start talking, the nerves should definitely go away. Good luck!
Beautiful! I could definitely use some new smoothie inspiration, it’s so hard to drink them when its cold out but I need the nutrients!! Good luck this weekend sending all the good vibes ?