thirsty thursday : my classic green monster

I first got turned onto green monsters—smoothies made with spinach or kale—like most people did, through Angela at Oh She Glows.

When I first saw her make one, I had one of those light bulb moments. You know, the moment when you say, “Oh my gosh, why didn’t I think of that?”

I knew I needed to get more greens in my life, but plowing through a huge bowl of spinach with dinner was not making for a happy Cass. I love veggies and all, but no one wants to eat a mountain of spinach. It never even occurred to me to put my greens in a smoothie and mask them with my favorite delicious fruits!

Genius, Angela! Genius!

Now I’ve been on the green monster bandwagon for over a year. Whenever I feel under-the-weather or low on energy, I immediately down a green monster and I feel much better. I’m sure a lot of it is psychosomatic, after all, just knowing that you are drinking cups and cups of greens makes you feel like Popeye. But a lot of it is also getting my body what it needs in a delicious way!

I haven’t had quite the results Angela boasts. She says she has stronger hair and nails and better skin. I wouldn’t say green monsters have transformed me that much, but they have definitely been an important addition to my superfood arsenal!

My Classic Green Monster

Now, it should be said, I often vary from this recipe. I add other fruits, different greens and different types of milk and powder. But this is the base! If you are new to green smoothies, try this out. I promise you’ll be hooked. A lot of green monster recipes call for frozen bananas, but I actually don’t love the taste of frozen bananas. Cut out the ice if you decide to use them.

1 cup sweetened vanilla almond milk
1 tbsp. chia seeds
1 tbsp. ground flax seed
1 banana
1 handful spinach
1-2 leaves kale, removed from stem and torn into pieces
A few cubes of ice (just to cool it down)

Place ingredients in a blender in the order they are listed (to help reduce splash-up). Blend on high until everything is smooth and a brilliant, awesome green color. This normally takes 3-5 minutes on my blender, but if you have a Vita-Mix, I’m sure it takes almost no time at all. Make sure you don’t have any chunks of greens. Chewing a green monster is not pleasant.