A Recipe for a Kid-Friendly Kale Smoothie
You could have knocked me over with a feather the day my daughter, Katie, came home from school asking for a kale smoothie. I seriously thought I couldn’t understand her through her mask. When she confirmed that, yes, she definitely wanted a kale smoothie, I asked what inspired her choice. She handed me a recipe that her first grade teacher, Allison Bischoff, made using kale from their class garden.
I am never one to deny a child willing to eat vegetables, so we embarked on our kale journey together. (Quite frankly, I had never had a kale smoothie either). I was amazed that it was absolutely delicious. But, I did not claim success yet. That would have been prematurely foolish. The kale smoothie had to pass the palate of my older daughter, who for the most part does not like green vegetables. As Natalie suspiciously and cautiously sipped the smoothie, she smiled, and said it’s good. I felt like I had just hit a grand slam at Fenway right over that Big Green Monstah. Yes, I used to live in Boston!
Now, every time we receive kale in our CSA boxes, the kids claim it for smoothies. The neighbors are a bit sad however, they used to be the beneficiaries of excess kale.
We have modified the recipe some from its original form. Below is our favorite version. My thanks to the first grade class for this delicious inspiration. It is the perfect post-Valentine’s Day snack!
The Big Green Monster Kale Smoothie
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 1/2 banana
- 1/2 cup frozen mango or peach
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup orange juice
- 2 cups kale
- water or ice cubes to thin as needed
Instructions
- Add banana, mango, 1/4 cup of orange juice and kale to a blender.
- Blend on high until smooth.
- Add water, ice cubes, or additional orange juice to thin smoothie if needed.
- Garnish smoothie with fresh fruit.