20 Tips for Making the Healthiest Smoothies Ever

There are a number of tricks and tips I’ve learned over the years while making smoothies. Below you’ll find my top 20, which will surely help you blend delicious and highly nutritious smoothies.

Whether you’re looking for new ingredient ideas, ways to increase nutrition, or to achieve a particular health goal (weight loss, more energy, clearer skin), then you’ve come to the right place. The amount of goodness you can pack into a smoothie is practically limitless because of the sheer number of healthy ingredients available to choose from. Smoothies are so much more than fruit and water, as you’ll soon find out.

The tips below are for making the healthiest smoothies ever, and having more fun in the process!

20 Healthy Smoothie Making Tips

1. Change up the ingredients. Using different fruits and vegetables will help you get an even amount of nutrients and health benefits from the varying components. I try my best to use what’s locally in season. If you’re into green smoothies, be sure to rotate the greens every couple of weeks. This will also keep your smoothies new and exciting and prevent smoothie boredom.
2. Fresh is always best. The fresher the juice and ingredients you use in your smoothie, the better the flavor and nutrition. Use organic ingredients in your smoothie whenever possible, not only to increase nutrition and avoid pesticides, but also for better taste.
3. Healthy Tea Time. Use a healthy tea instead of water, milk, or juice as the base of your smoothie to boost the nutrition. I often make a large pot of medicinal tea on the weekend and store in half gallon mason jars for use during the week. If you’re working on a particular health issue there’s almost certainly an herb, if not several, that can help address that issue and would be a great tea candidate. Even something as simple as green tea is great place to start.
4. Smoothie Sweetness. Using dates is a great way to sweeten your smoothie. Remove the pits and soak them overnight or for at least an hour before blending. If using a sweetener, stick to the good ones. Honey, maple syrup, and stevia are excellent choices. In the winter you might find your fruits are not as sweet as you’d like, causing your smoothies to not taste the best ever. Try using fruit juice as the base of your smoothie instead of water.
5. Juice it up. Juice your own fruits and vegetables for use as the base of your smoothie. Nothing is fresher, tastier, or healthier.
6. Add in some Kefir magic. Milk and young (Thai) coconut water kefir deliver a probiotic punch while improving digestion and nutrient assimilation.
7. Spice it up. Various spices enhance both flavor and nutrition. Play with them and perfect the taste. Cinnamon, cayenne pepper, ginger, and nutmeg, are a few good options.
8. Protein Power. A good protein can go along way, especially for guys looking to put on muscle. Make sure you’ve got a good source, Sun Warrior is my preferred protein. For more information, see my Sun Warrior protein review.
9. Healthy Fats. A good fat like coconut, flax, or hemp oil, an avocado, or cream will keep you satiated and full of energy for hours, and put the smooth in smoothie.
10. Get Salty. Adding a high quality salt to your smoothie not only provides much needed minerals, but also enhances the taste. Celtic Sea salt, Himalayan Pink salt, and Redmond salt are excellent options. For more information on why salt belongs in all of your smoothies, click here.
    

    Photo by ebarney

11. Superfoods Galore. Experiment and try different superfoods to really boost the nutrition of your smoothie. Maca, cacao, goji berries, bee pollen, aloe vera, coconut oil, hemp seeds/protein, spirulina, and acai are great to start with.
12. Seed it. Flax, hemp, and chia seeds are perfect for boosting the nutrition of your smoothies. Try soaking your chia seeds in a little water to make a gel that gives your smoothie a nice smooth consistency.
13. Herbalicious. Adding Chinese herb powders like Ginseng, Astragalus and Rhodiola is a great way to increase the medicinal properties of your smoothie.
14. Turn up the Base. Don’t skimp on the base of your smoothie. Use high quality water (filtered or spring water), almond, coconut, or raw milk, or fresh juice. One of my favorite bases is water from a young (Thai) coconut, which provides sweetness and a bevy of electrolytes.
15. Go Green. Green Superfood powders like Boku, Vitamineral Green, and Sun Warrior Ormus Supergreens increase the nutrition of your smoothie in a hurry. I like using these in the winter when fresh greens are harder to come by.
16. Mushroom Power. Boost your immune system with mushroom powders like Reishi, Cordyceps, and Maitake. Just open a capsule or two and dump in your smoothie.
17. Like using ice cubes in your smoothies? Try coconut water ice cubes for flavor and additional nutrients including magnesium, potassium, and other electrolytes.
18. Make some some Banana Cubes. Bananas are a staple smoothie ingredient, and if you like using frozen bananas in your smoothie like I do, try this. Peel and break your ripe bananas into smaller chunks, and place those chunks into a big zip lock baggie or container before freezing. I usually do this for 5 to 6 bananas at a time, or a good weeks worth of smoothie making.
19. Kid-Friendly Green Smoothies. Kids are picky eaters. I sure was. Often times it’s the color and texture of a smoothie that deters children. Find something simple that they’ll drink, then slowly over time work in the spinach and other greens.
20. Have Fun! Get everyone involved in making smoothies – your friends, family, children – and have fun! Note, if you dance while making your smoothie it will turn out much better :)

There you have it, my top 20 tips for making the healthiest smoothies ever. I hope you learned a thing or two that you can apply to your smoothie making right away.

Not sure about the benefits of healthy smoothies, see 21 Reasons to Consume Healthy Smoothies.

Have an improvement or alternative to a tip above, or a good tip that wasn’t included? Please share below in the comments. Cheers!