Chock-Full Chocolate Spinach Smoothie
from The Blender Girl cookbookJune 3, 2011
This chocolate spinach smoothie from The Blender Girl cookbook, and delicious and is a fun way to get kids to eat more veggies.
Chock-Full Chocolate Spinach Smoothie
Want to sneak some spinach and other vegetables into your kids without them knowing? This chocolate spinach smoothie is the best kept secret in town.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 2 16-ounce glasses
Ingredients
- 1 cup (240ml) unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 cup (22g) firmly packed baby spinach
- 1/4 cup (25g) frozen broccoli (about 2 florets)
- 1 medium-sized banana, plus more to taste
- 1/2 ripe pear, cored, plus more to taste
- 1 cup (120g) steamed cauliflower florets (cooled completely)
- 2 tablespoons cacao powder, plus more to taste
- 2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup, plus more to taste
- 1 cup (125g) ice cubes
optional boosters:
- 1 tablespoon shelled hemp seeds
- 1 tablespoon açaí powder
- 1/2 teaspoon probiotic powder (see notes)
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
Instructions
-
Throw everything into your blender (including any boosters) and blast on high for 30 to 60 seconds, until smooth and creamy. Tweak the banana, pear, cacao, vanilla, and maple syrup. *This smoothie is best consumed immediately before the vegetables get assertive.
Recipe Notes
Recipe from The Blender Girl cookbook
Photo by Trent Lanz; styling by Alicia Buszczak
Comments 46
6 dates? I don’t drink my smoothies sweet as I just rely on the bananas for sweetness, but then I see you also include cacao powder which I know is bitter, although I’ve never used it. (Until last week we couldn’t even buy it anywhere in my town.) I look forward to trying this out tomorrow.
I know….you can totally make this without dates and just use an extra banana. For those of us who don’t eat a lot of sugar it is sweet enough. But I was trying to replicate the flavour of mainstream chocolate shakes in order to offer an option to mums who want to hide some spinach for their kids. LOL!
Hey AEve, that is about 3 cups of raw baby spinach . Sorry for any confusion.
can you make it without bananas? is australia (nsw at least) we are having a banana shortage due to the floods in qld earlier this year. bananas are either not on the shelves or are $13 per kilo! i miss my smoothies!
Bronman!
I totally understand! Who can pay that much for bananas! My heart goes out to all of the flood victims.
You can thicken this smoothie with avocados (which I know are really expensive as well). You will just need more sweetener.
Alternatively, you can add in some berries to make this a chocolate berry smoothie which is delicious.
If you have any more questions feel free to email me.
oh my goodness!! that was decadent and delicious! the avocado made it so thick and creamy it could have been a pudding for dessert!!
Amazing! Just tried this on my very skeptical 4 year old cousins, BUT they LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!! They keep asking for more!
HA! I love it!
This really DID taste like a chocolate shake. I was surprised how closely it resembled the real thing. Bravo!
I am so glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Do you have to add salt?
Jessica,
You don’t have to add salt. I just add a pinch to boost the flavours.
One more thing, Besides the spinach what other veggies are good to add for protein without compromising the yummy flavor?
Hmmm….Yes, I know what you mean…I have tried lots of greens and none of them work as well in this smoothie as spinach. The only things that come close are different kinds of lettuce. But they don’t have the rich nutritional profile. If you shoot me an email I will try some other ideas and get back to you as I have had many requests about this! Thanks for the great question 🙂
Is unsweetened cocoa powder the same as cacao powder? If not, is it ok to use? In the same quantities? Thanks Tess! I’m really hoping Cole likes this for breakfast!
Ann
Hey Ann!
You can use cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder and this smoothie is delicious! Use throw the spinach in raw and it is even better!
Let me know how you go and looking forward to seeing you soon 🙂
This shake is delicious – a perfect way to be naughty and nice – the kids are asking for more. They are also asking for the “piggy straws” they see in this picture.
Kathryn!
That is SO cute!
Thanks for sharing 🙂
Dear Blender Girl,
I am a gal having a love affair with her Vita Mix and I am SO glad I found your site this week. It has increased my bliss by about 8 or 9%! (To put that in context, finding fuchsia Frye cowboy boots on sale at Marshall’s for 60% off bumped me up by 15%).
I have consumed a chocolate spinach shake every day for the past five days. I have also tried some of your cranberry recipes, since I had a glut of them, and your sweet potato shake. Tonight I will make your Socca recipe. Looks easy enough.
I also love your site design. Your big pink search box is the coolest.
Sending you blender love,
Elaine
Thanks for your lovely words Elaine.
I really appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment. It made my day 🙂
I am so happy to be connected in “Vitamix love affair” bliss!
I laughed so hard about the Marshalls comment! I am always doing my “piggy dance of joy” in the aisles of TJ MAXX and Marshalls when I found a fabulous bargain!
We must be piggy kindred spirits!
So glad you found the site and are enjoying it.
Happy Holidays 🙂
I know this recipe has been up for a while, but I just got a Vitamix, and happened upon your site as I was researching recipes. I made this smoothie and it was an absolute dream! I look forward to making it again. Thanks so much for your efforts.
Hey Jennifer!
Welcome! It is so great to be connected with you in “Vitamix Loving” Heaven!
I am SOOO excited for you and your new Vitamix. That machine will change your life.
I am so pleased you enjoyed this smoothie.
Yes! It is a winner.
For another green treat – make sure you try the sweet kale smoothie. I swear that thing tastes like pistachio ice cream! WOW!
Hi, thanks for the recipe. It’s delicious! However, I do want to find a substitute for the bananas. I will try the avocados, but my daughter has a genetic condition where she can’t process too much fat so for her I would like to try something else. I’m wondering if you’ve ever tried sweet potatoes? Or any other suggestions?
Hey Amy,
Thanks for your comment.
I think mashed sweet potato is a fantastic idea. It would be delicious. Sweet potatoes are not as sweet as bananas, so you will need a little more sweetener to get the right balance. But I have made delicious sweet potato smoothies!
You could also try other fruits such as berries that would help thicken, sweeten, and work well with the chocolate. Please let me know how you go.
In considering substitutions for avocados, if you don’t have sweet potatoes, you might try pureed pumpkin. I’ve made successful subs with this in pancakes and spaghetti sauce. (I’m a sneaky mom!) I’m curious how either would taste in a chocolate shake!
Pumpkin and sweet potato tastes delicious with chocolate!
LOL! NEVER KNOW (Wink)
Thankyou so much Brianna.
I really appreciate your kind words of support and encouragement. I am so glad you enjoyed this smoothie. Yes, you can even halve the amount of sweetener and it is enough. Enjoy 🙂
Pleasure!
You are SO welcome Lenore!
ENJOY 🙂
This was soooo yummy!!! Thank you so much for posting all of these amazing recipes.
It is a pleasure to share them! I am so glad you enjoyed this shake!
Thanks Jane 🙂
LOL! I love it 🙂
Wow oh wow! So first, I’ve got to give you props for coming up with such yummy creations! Your blog and recipes have been a huge source of inspiration for me as I’m finding my own blend; being new to both green smoothies and now a raw vegan life style. Now, for this one: I made it because I wanted to see if it really would serve as a way of sneaking greens into my green loathing friends. It did not disappoint. My only mistake was making it for breakfast. LOL! I cut the sweetener way down, given that my bananas were very sweet, and dates are hugely sweet on their own. It was extremely rich and extremely yummy; and somehow, it’s chocolaty goodness did not leave me feeling nearly as naughty as the very bad for you mainstream creations out there! Thank you again! I look forward to serving this with glee, to veggie haters! 😀
Oh Amy, it is comments like this that MAKE MY DAY and make this blog SO worthwhile for me and everybody who reads it. Thankyou so much for taking the time to share your experience with such enthusiasm. You comment seriously just made my day. I am glad you are finding this site useful in your quest for your perfect blend, and I look forward to sharing more recipes with you. Oink 🙂
Made this for breakfast (didn’t have any rice milk or dates on hand, so subbed in almond milk & a little agave nectar), and put in some chocolate flavored Warrior Blend protein (not sure where you stand on that, Blender Girl?). Also added about a cup more of spinach – it made enough for 2 smoothies. Super fantastic! File under love! Making this again for sure!
LOL! You are so sweet. LOVE your blend of this shake, and the Warrior Protein blend is fabulous. So glad you enjoyed this.
I have a very very picky eater and will try it today on her. Do you think frozen spinach will work as well as the fresh one? I always end up throwing away leftover spinach so I switched to organic frozen from BJs. Thanks!
You can use frozen spinach, but you will need to drink the smoothie immediately or it will develop an unpalatable flavour.
Delicious! However I don’t really agree with ‘hiding’ vegetables for kids. They will never learn to like them, and when they leave home will just be drinking chocolate milkshakes 🙂
Chris, yes, I agree that kids and adults should learn to enjoy vegetables. But, you have to start somewhere, and if they just won’t touch them, these kinds of recipes are helpful.
Victory is mine! This worked on our second son and he only likes round food.
Woo Hoo! Awesome! Thanks for sharing 🙂
I was skeptical but holy cocoa nibs Batman! This was outrageously delicious. I substituted almond milk (just out of personal preference) and was completely amazed at how wonderful this is! Tomorrow I will repeat but will add peanut butter and chia seed for extra protein. Thank you, thank you for giving me my new go-to chocolate “shake”!
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed this Peg. Yes! Peanut Butter is delicious in this, and chia seeds. Try adding a shot of espresso and a pinch of cayenne pepper! WOW!