Green Tea Smoothie

Healthy, nutritious and green: this green tea smoothie is so refreshing! This smoothie is packed with health benefits. It is the perfect way to add a boost of natural energy in your smoothie and add in some extra greens.

Over the years I’ve made eating breakfast part of my daily routine. It’s one of my favorite meals of the day and I hate skipping. I tend to got through different “phases” on my breakfast foods.

I’ll find something I like, and eat it every morning for a few months before I’m tired of it and need to switch it out. Then, I move on to the next food for a few months. Sounds odd, but guess I’m a creature of habit!

Smoothies have always been one of my favorite breakfast foods. I love them because I can prep them the night before, do a quick blend in the morning and then enjoy them on the way to work. I don’t think there’s any other type of healthy breakfast food that can be (easily) eaten on the way to work.

The idea for this green tea smoothie came about when I was looking for an easy way to add some extra caffeine to my morning smoothie. I usually make smoothies with almond milk, but it was super easy to swap out the almond milk and use green tea instead.

Want to add some extra caffeine to your smoothie using coffee? Check out this super popular Mocha Protein Smoothie recipe!

Green tea is a neutral flavor that mixes well with almost any fruit. Also, it has numerous health benefits to it which make it even more appealing.

Green Tea Smoothie Ingredients

• Green Tea: use a tea bag to make the green tea. Decaf or regular green tea will work.
• Vanilla Greek Yogurt: vanilla Greek yogurt adds flavor and protein to the smoothie.
• Spinach Leaves: adding spinach is an easy way to get in some extra greens. Kale can also be used in place of spinach.
• Mango Cubes: I use the frozen, pre-packaged mango cubes. I love them because they require no prep work. They can be found in the freezer aisle of most grocery stores.
• Banana: the banana should be frozen to help get the perfect smoothie consistency. Use a ripe banana (lots of brown spots!). The more ripe the banana, the sweeter the smoothie will be. Slice the banana into 1 inch slices to help it blend better.

Let's Make a Smoothie!

Make a cup of double brewed green tea. This can be done by heating one cup of water and placing two teabags in it. Let them sit for four minutes and then remove. Chill the tea overnight in the refrigerator so that it is cold.

Combine the cold green tea and spinach in a large blender. Blend on high for 20 seconds or until the liquid is smooth and no pieces of spinach remain.

Add in the Greek yogurt, mango and frozen banana slices. Blend on high until the smoothie is fully combined. Add an extra ¼ cup of liquid such as milk or water if the smoothie seems too thick.

Top with desired toppings, such as cinnamon walnuts or flaxseed. Enjoy immediately!

Nutrition Information

Here is the nutritional breakdown for one serving of the green tea smoothie. Nutrition facts may vary based on the brand and type of ingredients used.

• 245 calories
• 60 grams of carbohydrates
• 16 grams of protein
• 6 grams of fiber

Green Tea Smoothie Benefits

The Greek yogurt provides an excellent source of protein. The protein is beneficial because it will keep you full for a longer period of time. Additionally, the protein in the Greek yogurt prevents a surge in blood sugar that happens when eating carbohydrates.

Unlike many smoothies that contain high amounts of carbohydrate from using both fruit and fruit juice, this smoothie uses green tea as the liquid, which is a healthy alternative to juice.

The green tea smoothie is a great source of vitamins and minerals. In particular, the spinach provides a lot of Vitamin A. (295% of your daily value).

The spinach and banana are also great sources of potassium. There is also 6 grams of fiber in this smoothie. That’s almost as much fiber as a serving of black beans! This helps keep you full for longer and helps aid the digestive tract in doing it’s job.

Green Tea Health Benefits

Green tea is well known for its health benefits. This zero calorie drink is a great alternative to drinking pop, because it provides caffeine with out the added sugars. Here’s some more highlights:

• Green tea is rich in polyphenols. Studies have found that the polyphenols in green tea may have an anti-inflammatory effect. Full article here.
• The polyphenols in green tea are also known for their antioxidant properties. Antioxidants protect your cells from something called ‘free radicals’. This may play a role in preventing various diseases. Source.
• Green tea contains caffeine and l-theanine. The caffeine acts as a stimulant while the l-theanine is known for having a calming effect. Source.

Variations

Yogurt: The vanilla Greek yogurt can be replaced with regular nonfat vanilla yogurt. This will decrease the protein content of the smoothie.

Fruit: the mango can be replaced with any type of frozen fruit. Good options are blueberries, strawberries or blackberries. I love using bananas because they add a creamy sweetness to the smoothie, but these can also be replaced with any type of fruit as well.

Green Tea: use either caffeinated or decaf green tea.

Tips For The Best Smoothie

• Blend the green tea and spinach together first before adding any other ingredients. This will help make sure that the spinach is fully blended and there are not any large pieces that remain.
• Slice the banana into 1 inch pieces before blending it. This will help especially if you do not have a very powerful blender.
• If the smoothie seems too thick, feel free to add an extra ¼ cup of liquid, such as water or almond milk

More Smoothie Recipes

• Blueberry Mango Smoothie Bowl
• Blueberry Acai Protein Smoothie
• Pina Colada Smoothie
• Pumpkin Pie Smoothie