Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

Healthy Eating

The Only Smoothie Recipe You’ll Ever Need

Smoothies should be simple. Here's a recipe that uses only four ingredients and makes a delicious, nutrient-packed treat.

Jeff Taraday

Written by

There are a million smoothie recipes out there on the Internet. For anyone who wants to start adding nutrient-dense, whole food-based smoothies into his or her daily regimen, it can be confusing and overwhelming to figure out where to start.

Let me simplify the entire process for you and provide you with the only recipe you need to remember.

The Ultimate Smoothie

If you have these basic elements in your fridge, pantry, and freezer at all times, you’ll be able to put together a great-tasting and highly functional blended meal. This recipe will provide you with a full spectrum of macronutrients and a load of micronutrients to help fuel your day and recover from your workouts. And you can always add on or tweak various ingredients to your taste and needs.

RELATED: 5 Nutrient-Packed Smoothies of 5 Ingredients Each

Yield: Serves about two

Ingredients:

  • 16 oz almond milk (or coconut water or water)
  • 1-2 handfuls greens (spinach, kale, chard, collards)
  • 2 bananas (preferably frozen – just peel a bunch of bananas, put them in a Ziploc, and freeze overnight)
  • 2 cups frozen berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, or a blend)
  • 2 tablespoons chia seeds (or flax seeds)

Optional add-ons:

  • Plant-based protein powder (both chocolate and vanilla flavors work well)
  • Supergreens like chlorella, spirulina, etc.
  • Beets (raw)
  • Dates (for sweetness)
  • Frozen broccoli
  • Maca powder

Method:

  1. If you have a high-speed blender like a Vitamix, combine all ingredients together and blend on high. If you have a less powerful blender, you might need to put ingredients in one at a time (liquid first) and blend each until smooth.
  2. If you need more muscle-building calories after a workout, add some protein powder. If you’re looking to pack as many micronutrients as possible into your smoothie, incorporate any of the other optional add-ons.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Taraday.

Jeff Taraday

About Jeff Taraday

Jeff Taraday is a reformed junk food addict and barbecue junkie who discovered the power of a whole foods, plant-based diet in in 2010. Prior to his dietary change, he was thirty pounds overweight and a heavy drinker. Switching to a plant-based diet has helped him lose the extra weight and transform him into a fitness and exercise junkie and a plant-based nutrition advocate.

Jeff is a certified Health Coach through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and a Nutritional Education Trainer through the Nutritional Education Institute. He has also completed a certification in plant-based nutrition from the T. Colin Campbell Foundation. He is the author of the blogThe Plant Eater, and coaches individuals and families around the country in nutrition how to incorporate nutrient-dense, plant-centric meals into their daily lives.

He is also a member of the board of Groceryships,a non-profit that provides grocery scholarships, nutritional education, and emotional support to low-income families in Los Angeles, California.

View All Articles

woman lifting barbell

Be the smartest person in your gym

The Breaking Muscle newsletter is everything you need to know about strength in a 3 minute read.

I WANT IN!

Breaking Muscle is the fitness world’s preeminent destination for timely, high-quality information on exercise, fitness, health, and nutrition. Our audience encompasses the entire spectrum of the fitness community: consumers, aficionados, fitness professionals, and business owners. We seek to inform, educate and advocate for this community.

Follow Us