This easy purple smoothie is one of our favorite smoothie recipes.
It’s super easy to make, so easy in fact, that the kids usually make most or all of it, on their own (with my guidance where age and skill appropriate).
There are only 3 ingredients (frozen blueberries, frozen spinach and peach nectar) and they are all either from the freezer or the pantry, which means I can always have them on hand.
And to top it all off it’s delicious, nutritious and all of the kids love it.
We often buy a large package of fresh baby spinach at the grocery store and although we use it in our salads, to top up our sandwiches and in other meals throughout the week, I find that we rarely get through the entire package before it starts to go bad. So now, each time I buy a package, I freeze half of it.
Right away, while it is at its freshest. Then we eat through the rest easily, I end up with a stash of frozen spinach in the freezer and there is never any waste.
This is a great recipe to get the kids involved in the kitchen to make this easy recipe.
They love measuring out the ingredients (scooping out the blueberries, grabbing handfuls of frozen spinach and pouring the peach nectar) as well as adding the ingredients to the blender. I like to encourage the kids to taste each of the ingredients and we talk about how each ingredient looks and smells.
They are all so bright and colorful and the kids respond to that.
And in the event, that one of the kids doesn’t want to taste or has an aversion to say, the spinach, well that’s ok because chances are they are going to love the smoothie and the fact that they know the spinach is in there, starts to give spinach a good reputation.
And just maybe when they see spinach, fresh or frozen, the next time (or maybe a few times from now) they may be more enthusiastic. I’ve seen it happen so many times:)
I am always looking for ways to save time in the kitchen and to make lunch and snack time a little easier. One of the ways I do that, is to make two versions of the same recipe. Smoothies are perfect for this, because they also make delicious ice pops.
As I get the blender set-up for smoothie making, I also pull out my ice pop maker and set it on the counter beside the blender and beside that I set a measuring cup.
We measure out all of the smoothie ingredients. Blend it all up. And any leftover smoothie goes from the blender straight into the measuring cup.
Then I use the measuring cup to pour the leftover smoothie into the ice pop mold. The ice pop mold goes into the freezer and a few hours later we have ice pops ready to go.
Most of the time I plan for leftovers. I know my ice pop mold holds 3 cups, so I usually make a triple batch.
One batch for smoothies and two for ice pops (since this recipe makes 1 1/2 cups). Keep in mind that you don’t always have to make a full batch of ice pops.
Even if I only have enough leftover smoothie to make 2 or 3 ice pops, I still pour it into the mold and freeze it.
Once the ice pops are frozen, I often pull them out of the mold (running the side of the mold under hot water will help loosen them, if they are being stubborn) and pop them in resealable snack size zip top bags, like I did here with these Sour Watermelon Ice Pops.
That way I can wash out the ice pop mold and it is ready for our next batch of smoothies. Plus the smoothie pops are then easy access for the kids and I simply rinse out the bags and reuse them for the next batch.
A healthy nutritious breakfast, a fun & healthy snack and some time saved in the kitchen means a little more time to get out and enjoy the summer!
Prep time
5 mins
Total time
5 mins
I often double or triple this recipe, so that I have leftovers to make Purple Smoothie Ice Pops.
Author: Lunching Daily
Serves: 1 1/2 cups
Ingredients
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 cup frozen spinach
1 cup peach nectar
Instructions
Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
Thin with additional peach nectar, if needed.
Make Purple Smoothie Ice Pops by using a measuring cup to pour any leftover smoothie into an ice pop mold and freeze.
Notes
This recipe makes 1 1/2 cups of smoothie, enough for two adult servings or four child size servings.
Depending on the size of your ice pop mold, you may need to double the recipe to make ice pops or triple the recipe to make both smoothies and ice pops.
To determine how many cups your ice pop maker holds, measure out 4 cups of water, then pour the water into the ice pop mold until all of the sections are full, then subtract the amount of water that is leftover in the measuring cup. For example I had 1 cup of water leftover in the measuring cup which means my ice pop mold holds 3 cups (4 cups - 1 cup = 3 cups).