This bright green smoothie is a gut-health boosting beverage that’s kid-approved! The cultured coconut water and kefir both contain beneficial bacteria and the kefir contains great protein, the banana is an outstanding prebiotic (fuel for healthy gut bacteria), the kale is full of vitamins, minerals (Vitamins K, A, C, B6 and manganese and copper), and fiber, and the coconut and avocado both provide nourishing fats.
As you will see with all recipes on this site, I strive to use as little sugar as possible in the recipes. For a detailed explanation on why it is critical to minimize sugar in our diets, check out my “sugar” blog post. Keep in mind that as you transition away from sugar, your tastebuds will need retraining. Because sugar is added to nearly every processed food, we are now conditioned to expect intense sweetness, and as a consequence have lost the ability to detect lower, more subtle levels of sweetness that naturally occur in so many of the foods we (should be) eating. Unless you have been reducing the sugar content in your diet for some time, this smoothie may not seem sweet at all. But with time, I’m sure you will come to appreciate its understated but distinct sweetness.
Enjoy the entire smoothie recipe as a meal — I often drink mine for breakfast. Alternatively, you could make half the smoothie (or split it with someone) for a great snack or post-workout recovery drink.
- ½ cup unsweetened fermented coconut water
- ½ cup plain, nonfat greek kefir (cow’s milk okay, goat’s milk is better), or coconut milk (if you use coconut milk, the protein content of the smoothie will be lower and the fat content will be higher).
- 1 cup frozen kale
- 1 small-medium frozen banana
- ½ avocado
- 2 Tbl shredded unsweetened coconut
- Put all ingredients in blender.
- Turn the blender on and blend to desired consistency.
- Add some cold water if the consistency of the original smoothie is too thick.
*Not all calories are created equal.