This Detox Green Superfood Smoothie recipe is a flavor packed puree of pineapple, mint, kefir and kale. Perfect with, or in place of, a meal.
What Makes This Green Smoothie Healthy?
There are green smoothies (sweet, yummy and much like a shake), and then there is a Healthy Green Superfood Smoothie that will detox your body.
After all, don’t we want to continue to put back healthy nutrients, when we stress it out so much?
As you can see by the ingredients, I went into my greenhouse to gather much of what goes in this luscious green smoothie recipe.
However you will find everything you need in your grocery store.
Fortunately, we are able to buy fresh pineapple year round and mint is as easy to grow in a windowsill pot as it is in the yard.
Regular Detox For Health Maintenance
This green smoothie recipe was inspired by the three years I lived in Brazil, a country that is so far ahead of America when it comes to ‘food as medicine’.
On nearly every corner, in every city throughout Brazil, are these amazing kiosks piled high with tropical fruits and vegetables to make smoothies.
An added protein and nutrient shot can be added and tossed into a blender for the most amazing health smoothies I’ve ever had.
It was the first time I’d ever consumed raw beets, raw kale or other raw veggies I never thought to eat uncooked.
Pineapple In A Detox Green Smoothie
It seems as though our ‘gut’ is the root of most ailments we deal with, later causing inflammation in our body parts.
I know of no other single food ingredient that has the powerful enzyme aids for digestion, or simply to flush out the intestines, than pineapple.
Not only is it loaded with nutrients and disease-fighting antioxidants, but it has something in it that reduces inflammation of both intestines and periodic achy joints.
For those of us that get Botox injections (you bet your sweet tahootie I do!), drinking pineapple juice for the week before the injections aids in preventing swelling or bruising.
It works for me!
Mint In A Detox Smoothie
While mint helps to cut the sweetness of the pineapple in this green smoothie by adding a burst of cool flavor, it also adds a dose of vitamins and antioxidants.
Greeks, for ages, have used mint tea as a remedy for tummy troubles.
Brits use mint jelly, alongside their lamb dishes, not only to brighten the gamey flavor of lamb but since lamb is a very fatty meat, it aids in digesting the meat.
Having grown up with a Syrian mother, who made food in our home to taste different than all my American girlfriend’s homes, she always added mint to our salads.
I thought it was simply for flavor but she said it was also for a healthy tummy.
So, in my detox green smoothie, I knew I wanted mint.
Since it grows like a weed in my yard, even in the dead of winter, I knew I would have it fresh for my smoothie, and other recipes, year round!
Superfood Kale In A Detox Green Smoothie
Kale? Absolutely! Spinach has a definite, stronger flavor, and so I didn’t want it to combat with the pineapple.
On the other hand, kale has a sweet and mild flavor (when eaten raw), and was the perfect flavor companion for my healthy green smoothie.
Kale is considered a ‘superfood’ because it is powerfully packed with so many nutritious, immune supporting, antioxidant properties that I now have it growing in pots year-round!
I toss it (freshly cut), in my soups, my omelettes but adding it raw to my green smoothie takes this healthy drink to a new level of ‘healthy’!
Loaded with vitamins A, C and K (a vitamin that plays an important role in bone health), I knew adding kale to this Superfood, Healthy, Detox Green Smoothie was exactly how I wanted to start off my New Year!
Speaking of New Year… If you’ve had an over indulgent weekend, this smoothie will get you back on track after too much booze.
Making A Detox Green Smoothie
All you will need to make this healthy green smoothie is a strong blender.
Everything gets tossed into the blender and whirled into a nutritious health aid you should try to drink at least once a week.
Maybe consider making this your ‘every Monday’ drink to start off the week, cleansing yourself from weekend shenanigans.
Liquid in this smoothie is an option.
I added Kefir to this recipe simply because I was looking for an added dose of probiotics to round off this perfect superfood drink.
But, you can use a nut milk instead, or if the pineapple chunks are frozen, you won’t need the extra liquid to puree this drink into a perfectly smooth, green smoothie.
Other Health Smoothies You Will Love
While we adults can certainly wrap our heads around healthy foods for our longevity, our kids aren’t there yet.
For this reason, I’ve made certain to make a smoothie loved by kids, yet hides healthy ingredients.
I call many of these kid dishes “Grandma’s Sneaky Whatever”!
You’d be surprised how many adults are wowed by my sneaky dishes.
For this reason, there are still so many adults that think like kids when it comes to food: taste, and that’s it!
So for these silly nillies, I’ve made several powerful healthy smoothies that simply taste good and they will never know its healthy!
- Healthy Kids Fruit Smoothies – sneaky ingredients that are good for kids but they will never know they are there.
- Brazilian Health Smoothie – rich in beets and carrots, smoothed over with bananas and loaded with several other superfoods.
- Brazilian Protein Fruit Smoothie Bowl – tropical fruits, various contributions of cashew, which is both a fruit and a nut in Brazil and loaded with so many protein rich ingredients, still looking all pretty in a smoothie bowl.
Equipment Needed
- Blender
- Cutting board and knife
- Measuring cup
- A fun glass to make the drink more special and a straw – my favorite below
Ingredients Needed
- Fresh or frozen pineapple
- Raw baby kale
- Fresh mint
- Kefir, Almond milk or other nut milk
Detox Green Superfood Smoothie
Equipment
- Blender
- Cutting board and knife
Ingredients
- 1 cup Pineapple fresh or frozen
- 1 cup Raw Baby Kale
- 1/2 cup Fresh Mint
- 1/2 cup Kefir or Almond Milk
Instructions
- Place the kefir, or almond milk in the blender first. This helps everything to puree easily.
- Rough chop the leaves and pineapple and layer them into the blender, pineapple first with leaves on top.
- Puree for about 1 minute until all the lumps and bumps are smooth. Serve.
Video
Notes
I believe the table... that place that draws people to gather, is the most powerful symbol of togetherness. All that happens before the table is set, the planning, the gathering, the preparing, are all an intricate part of the dance that create the mood of celebration to share with friends and loved ones.