Skinny green smoothie

Skinny green smoothie – cucumber, lemon, and mint give this green smoothie a great fresh taste, mango makes it slightly sweet and creamy, and baby spinach provides all the green health benefits.

This skinny green smoothie tastes great despite the lack of sugar and fat! Most green smoothies I’ve tried are a sugar bomb, trying to completely disguise the greens they contain (which defeats the purpose, I think). This one has only a cup of chopped mango which provides all the necessary sweetness for me.

I like to use spinach for green smoothies for its neutral, almost non-existent taste, but I’ve made this smoothie with baby kale as well. Even though I use a lot of spinach here (3 oz or more), you won’t taste it – it gets completely masked in the stronger, fresh flavors of lemon, cucumber and mint. I’ve even tried this smoothie without the fruit, and I still love it.

Ever since I bought my Vitamix, I’ve been making myself a ‘green water’ in the morning by mixing a handful of spinach, one lemon or lime, and 7-8 cups of cold water. I got the idea from Jane and her wonderful Youtube videos about green smoothies and beauty waters at the Greensmoothiehabit.com. It all gets pulverized in seconds, has a nice citrus taste, and the consistency of water, but with the added benefits of the greens and the lemon. It’s the easiest way to get your daily 8 cups of water, because it tastes so good and refreshing.

Lately, I’ve started adding lots of cucumbers, and fresh mint to my green water which make it a bit thicker.  Then finally I upgraded it to a smoothie by reducing the water, and adding some frozen chunks of mango for a bit of sweetness and creaminess.  I loved its taste, and I’ve been drinking it as a breakfast replacement these days.  If I decide to skip the fruit completely, I replace it with the same amount of cucumbers, and may add a few drops of liquid stevia.

The recipe makes about 5 cups, but the total calories are just 200!  You can halve the recipe if you want, or save some in the fridge for later in the day.  I usually sip mine throughout the morning, and it keeps me good and satisfied till lunch.

4 from 1 vote

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Skinny green smoothie

Prep Time

5 mins

Total Time

5 mins

 

Skinny green smoothie - cucumber, lemon, and mint give this green smoothie a great fresh taste, mango makes it slightly sweet and creamy, and baby spinach provides all the green health benefits.

Course: Drinks

Servings: 5

Calories: 43 kcal

Author: Viktoria

Ingredients

• 2-3 oz spinach
• 1 cup chopped mango - fresh or frozen (150 g)
• 3 persian cucumbers with the skin, or peeled if not organic (200 g)
• zest and flesh/juice of 1 large lemon
• 1 cup of fresh mint leaves, packed
• 1 1/2 cups of water
• 1/2 cup of ice
• a small piece of fresh ginger (optional)

Instructions

1. Blend all in a high-speed blender like Viamix, or Blendtec for about 30 seconds.

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