With St. Patrick’s Day just a day away, this is the perfect festive smoothie! It’s loaded with nutrients to keep you full and the bright green color isn’t just for looks! This smoothie contains spirulina which is a great nutrient to add to your daily diet. Spirulina often gets a bad rap for it’s earthy taste but it’s strong presence is hidden very well in this smoothie. This smoothie also contains other nutrient dense foods such as spinach and hemp hearts and is full of protein. You may even find yourself making this smoothie on days other than St. Patrick’s Day!

So, what exactly are the health benefits of spirulina? Well, for one, it is packed with nutrients. A single tablespoon has 4 grams of protein, 11% of the RDA for Vitamin B1, 15% of the RDA of B2, 11% of the RDA of iron and many more. It is also a powerful antioxidant and has anti-inflammatory properties. And those are just a few of the benefits.

This green smoothie also contains hemp hearts which are great for everyone but especially for plant based eaters. Hemp hearts are a great source of magnesium, protein and omega-3 & omega-6 essential fatty acids.

Ingredient Notes

Banana – I love using frozen bananas in smoothies because they add sweetness and creaminess. If you don’t have frozen banana slices, you can use a ripe banana but it won’t be a thick smoothie. I typically buy a bunch of bananas and when they are ripe, I cut them into pieces and freeze them. If you don’t have a high powdered blender like a Vitamix, I recommend cutting your banana into small pieces so the blender doesn’t have trouble blending.

Hemp hearts – As I mentioned above, hemp hearts are a great source of omega-3 & omega-6. This is important for brain function and vegans especially since they don’t eat fish which is where it’s mostly found.

Protein powder – This is optional but I love the added protein. I know there are a lot of not so tasty vegan proteins but I’ve found Orgain’s products to be really great. They have a variety of flavors and types and they don’t taste chalky in my opinion. I’d recommend a light colored protein (aka not chocolate) if you want your smoothie to look green; otherwise, you’ll end up with an ugly brown colored smoothie. It will still taste delicious but it won’t look as appealing.

Almond milk – I typically use almond milk in my smoothies because I like the way it tastes but you could use any nut milk you prefer.

Spirulina – I get this dried powder from one of my favorite online shops, nuts.com. They have so many products online and they have really cute packaging. See the below picture for the spirulina package.

Notes

This smoothie is great any day of the year but especially on St. Patty’s Day because of it’s vibrant green color!

Instructions

1. Add all ingredients to a blender and blended until combined. Enjoy!