Kale and Banana Smoothie

***to the people who want to cook their kale before adding to the recipe, DON'T! Cooking reduces the nutrient content and DEFEATS the purpose behind a 'green smoothie' If you don't care for kale, try spinach or add more fruit (up to 60% fruit, 40% veggies) to offset the flavor of the greens. If you find it too thick, it's ok to add some water to make it your desired consistency. And if you are adding the flax, I find it best to use ground flax seeds.

This sounded so awful I had to try it! I was very pleased to find it absolutely delicious. I will probably cut the amount in half next time (and just eat the remaining banana) as it was very rich. I also used nonfat dairy milk as I had no soy.

I needed to double the amount of milk because my smoothie was so thick! Also, if you are using a flavored rice/soy milk you don't need the maple syrup to sweeten it. Blend this for MUCH longer than you would a regular parsley or spinach green smoothie, as kale is very fibrous and you want to make sure to get this as smooth as possibly so you aren't crunching as you sip. Just my two cents! Thanks for the yummy recipe, Rice!

The first time I made this, I followed the recipe as written, except that I used cow's milk. It was just okay (three stars). Today I tried it again with a few more changes. In addition to using cow's milk (because that's what I like and what I have on hand), I added a big handful of frozen strawberries, four or five ice cubes, and extra milk. I liked it much better that way . . . both because it was cold and because the flavor was fruitier. It was almost milkshake-like. My little boy (almost 2 yrs old) loved it. With the modifications, this is a four-star recipe.

I use very young kale from my garden and this is a delicious recipe. The younger the kale, the sweeter the drink.

I love trying to sneak some greens in wherever I can on my whole family especially the kids. The kids thought it tasted like their was grass in the smoothie, but still ate it. I cooked the kale until bright green on the next try to tone down the bitterness and it definitely improved the taste. I will probably make this again but only with the kale cooked.

Amazing! I make fruit smoothies for my family every morning but never thought about putting something like kale into them! Used frozen kale, which was really easy, because I just threw a few cubes in the blender along with some fruit, flax seeds, silken tofu and orange juice. My husband freaked out a little bit when he saw it and said I'd finally gone over the edge, but he admitted later that it tasted fine! Thanks for helping me find a new way to squeeze more leafy greens into our diet!

this was so good the only thing i changed was the soy milk, i used vanilla rice milk because thats what i had. this is very similar to the green smoothies my mom makes. she uses 1/4 soaked date per serving as a sweetener, i think i might try that next time to eliminate some calories. i didn't think my 3 yr old would like it because of the flax seeds but he drank it right down.

We get a ton of kale with our farmshare, and this is a quick way to use it -- I doubt I'd be buying kale to make smoothies with, but it's a good solution for the end of the week when I've still got kale in the fridge. I've been making it half-and-half skim milk and orange juice, and I found a frozen strawberry is a good sweetener. I didn't find a need to cook the kale -- the textures a touch strange, but it's a perfectly nice drink. Thanks for the suggestion!

This is great for breakfast, I use 1 banana, 2 cups chopped kale, a handful of red grapes, 1/2 cup water instead of soy, a dash of cayenne pepper, and a dash of stevia. It gives me more energy than coffee. I have heard that soy is not that good for you, which is why I use water instead. It turns out great this way!

Yah it sounds really strange! But the kale in the smoothie adds a little bit of freshness to the smothie. I switched it up and used vanilla yogurt with a splash of skim milk instead of the soy milk, then I didn't add the syrup. I also added some ice because I found it was too warm for a smoothie, it probably was the banana being at room tempurature.

Great! I added a packet of stevia instead instead of syrup to keep the sugar content down. Will definitely make this frequently.

This recipe sounded so odd, I had to try it! Glad I did…it’s so tasty!...and I feel so proud of myself for getting in some veggies first thing in the morning. I tried the recipe as is, but my favorite is to use vanilla soy and skip the maple syrup. I also slice and freeze bananas ahead of time. Frozen bananas make the smoothie super creamy and cold. Sometimes I leave out the (ground) flax seed – it changes the color from fresh green to a sort of pond scum color which I don’t feel like facing some mornings. It also changes the texture, making it thicker. I agree with others…it’s a must to remove the stems from the kale; to blend well to get that smooth consistency, and to grind or use pre-ground flax seeds to get the benefit.

Fantastic smoothie! I keep a bag of chopped frozen bananas to use in my smoothies for the chill factor. I also use agave nectar since that is what I usually have on hand. Kale is super nutrient dense!

WOW! I have to admit I was surprised by how delicious this is. I was even more surprised that my children AND husband love it as much as I do. My 4 year old hates kale, cries when she see's it on the dinner table and will drink this and ask for another serving. I always use 2 banana's, 1 cup of milk and a Tablespoon of sweetner but some of my other tweaking varies. Honey/agave nectar either one is fine, cow's milk or rice milk both taste fine and I prefer to use frozen banana's but unfrozen is tasty to. I strongly suggest giving this a good whirl in the blender to makethe kale and flax seed smooth. Thanks for sharing the recipe Rice!

Nothing can really make kale (a ridiculously bitter, naturally disgusting vegetable) taste good except for some syrup/honey and that's exactly what did the trick. Except don't skip out on the sweetener! Overall this mostly kale smoothie is not too shabby.

Wow! Loved this.. I changed it up a little instead of using maple syrup I used honey and skim milk... who knew kale would taste great as a smoothie! Will be making more of these. Thanks for the recipe!

YUM

I was pleasantly surprised by the flavour of this smoothie! I had rice milk and worked great. Needed a good amount of blending to make perfectly smooth. A word of warning to 1st time eaters of raw kale-as I was and learned this the hard way this morning. It can be pretty hard on the digestive system to the point of nausea. If your not sure I would recommend trying this later in the day rather than on an empty stomach and in smaller quantities.

I switched out the soy milk for unsweetened coconut and added chia along with the flax. Loved it - may be my new go to smoothie :)

I was looking for a natural, light, and not overly sweet tasting smoothie and this was perfect! All I used was 1 banana, 2 c. chopped kale, 1 c. light vanilla soy milk, and some ice to chill it (though I tried a little before adding the ice and it still tasted great!). Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!

A frozen banana would have been much better. As is, it wasn't at all cold as a smoothie should be. I added ice cubes to help with this but that of course diluted the flavor. It was still pretty good, but definitely would do a frozen banana next time and skip the ice.

This is an excellent snack. Very nutritious, packed with vitamin C, and B vitamins. I added a tablespoon of all natural peanut butter for some added protein, and it was delicious. Instead of maple syrup, I used a packet of Truvia, or local honey.

I used coconut water (no sugar added)and did not add the maple syrup. I think the coconut water made it sweet and it was the tastiest smoothie ever!

This was the worst smoothie/green drink I have ever tasted, BY FAR. If I could have not given any stars, I would have. I read multiple positive reviews and decided to try it. To be honest, the taste and texture were so bad that the only reason I continued to drink it was so as not to negatively affect my 3 and 5 year olds who were also drinking it. My grandma and mom have both been making green drinks my entire life, and I usually like them. Never have I felt I could hardly swallow. My kids, who both love green drinks, finished their small amounts, however, the older one did say it didn't taste as good as others. She always asks for more, but didn't today. I'm not one to take time to rate, this is the first time I've done it. But with this recipe, I had to. If you want a GOOD green drink, try a different recipe.

the recipe itself isn't great. actually, i couldn't bring myself to put in maple syrup so i'm not sure how much better that would have made it. i immediately had to add more almond milk (i don't use soy) and then threw in some yogurt to thicken it up. it tasted flat and too banana so i added 1/2 mango. still wasn't sweet enough so i added 1/2 c. blueberries and 1/2 pack sweetener (i use truvia). then it was tastey enough to enjoy. i didn't taste the kale at all, just like when making smoothie with spinach. it was fresh, organic kale. good to know i can use this green also but the recipe requires tweaking for sure!

I made using spinach instead of kale as that is what DH brought home. That being said this made a nice very light breakfast for us. I might try making it without the maple syrup next time as it was a bit sweet for my taste but DH thought the sweetness was just right. Thanks for the post.

To be fair, I didn't have very high hopes for this recipe to begin with, but I was trying it because I was looking for healthy smoothie ideas for our dinner club. While it was better than I thought, I didn't like the texture at all and that was probably the biggest drawback. I did enjoy the interesting flavor that the flax seed and the maple syrup combined made, kind of nutty and breakfasty, but I just couldn't get past the texture, so I will not be making this again.

My kids love this, believe it or not! They think it's cool to get to add syrup to a smoothie. I think it's cool to get them a serving of green leafs first thing of the day. Thanks, Rice!

This is awesome! I don't particularly like how green kale tastes, but I know that it's very good for you! This smoothie tasted wonderful with some mods like...I didn't put in the stems. Used homemade almond milk instead of soy and filled it to the 2 cup mark on my vitamix after the kale and banana were put in. Used 2 T. of agave syrup instead of maple. Added 5 ice cubes, also. This tasted great! It's so good I can't wait to drink it!

I have to admit, I thought the author of this recipe was insane when I read this. Kale, bananas and maple syrup? An odd combination it seemed. It intrigued me enough to want to try it though. I tried it for the first time 3 days ago and have had it once a day since. It is AMAZING not to mention healthy. It has a very smooth taste and is fantastic as a snack when you are not hungry enough to justify a meal. I would highly recommend this. And to the author, thank you so much for submitting this! I now drink this smoothie daily.

awesome

Just okay. Mixed reviews with the kids. I would add some frozen berries and OJ for extra sweetness and vitamin C to help absorb the iron from the kale.

Sooooo yummy! Great way to start the day! I've used apple juice instead of soy milk.

you can't taste the banana and soy milk at all. The problem isn't that it's too bitter, the problem is that it tastes only like kale. I think there *might* be a way to make it better if you cut the amount of kale in half, or add two to three times the amount of fruit and milk.

I did not care for this recipe. Really strange since I love smoothies and veggies..

I really wanted to like this...but I couldn't get past the strong kale taste. I used nonfat milk and didn't have any flaxseed (not sure if the flavor would have been very different). Anyway, I feel healthy for drinking it!

Surprisingly delicious!

I just love this smoothie! My very picky nieces decided they loved it before they realized they were having kale. They guessed that kiwi gave it its colour, and I didn't tell them otherwise. They now know my secret ingredient, and they even enjoy helping me make the smoothie, adding different fruits each time: blueberries, strawberries, mango... Kale has got to be the only leafy vegetable they eat, thanks to this recipe!

Next time I'll try it with some raspberries to help sweeten it, and I'll replace the maple syrup with honey. I doubled the maple syrup, replaced the soy milk with skim, and flax with chia. I can't imagine these substitutions ruined the recipe...

Surprisingly good! Didn't have soy milk so I used regular milk and ice... blended nicely! Delicious and nutritious - the best combo.

I like kale and I like bananas and I like smoothies, but this was not good to me! Sorry peeps, but this was not good. Too bitter or astrigent tasting.

I used regular milk, instead of soy (due to the negative effects of soy's estrogen-like effect on your body) and flax powder. Maybe that's why it tasted sooo terrible. My poor family barely got it down :(

This could be pretty descent or really bad, if it is not fully blended. I used all of the ingredients, except I had to subtitute the soy milk for unsweetened almond milk. I don't care for or have flax seeds, so I used 1 Tlsp. of quick oats. I poured it over the ice and it still tasted warm. So, I put 3 ice cubes into the blender and blended it with it. After about a minute, the smoothie will still have kale bits in it. As someone else said grass bits. If ice is added and it is left to blend for closer to 2 minutes or until it is a complete uniform color, with no green bits, it is pretty descent. If I closed my eyes, I would just think it was a really unsweet banana smoothie. I may make this again, just for the pure health of it.

I simply had to try it because it sounded gross. I was surprised that it tatsted pretty good, and my boys were able to eat some because it smelled like bananas.

Love this Smoothie!!! Even the skeptics in my house agree that it's "not so bad". Not to mention that it's GREAT for you!

Absolutely delicious. I enjoy the beautiful color that 2 cups of kale gives to this healthy delicious way to start the day. I have added 3 oz of yogurt, a few strawberries on occasion, but the original recipe is super. Thanks for sharing.

This was ok after adding more milk, another banana, and some splenda to sweeten it up. But the kids still didn't drink it.

It does taste like grass as other reviewers noted, but it is surprisingly drinkable. Kale has a strong smell, so it is best to drink it with a straw.

I was making dinner and jumped on the Internet for a recipe for fresh kale. I came across this recipe for kale and banana smoothie. I decided to steam some vegetables for dinner and try this recipe for my fresh kale instead. I used plain yogurt instead of soy milk and molasses instead of maple syrup with 4 cubes of ice. It was delicious. My blender has been revived and now I will be using this recipes as a basis for a daily healthy drinkable lunch. Thank you.

Taste very healthy.

I really loved this because it is so healthy and chock full of vitamins and nutrients> mine was not sweet because I used an unripe banana but i am sure if i use a ripe banana it would be sweeter> the only thing i changed was using honey instead of maple syrup. nom nom nom!!!!

Excellent! Great flavor! Great nutrients! I add a little more bottled water for texture~ love it!

I just use a frozen banana, and it was perfect.

Wow! I was dubious after a failed spinach smoothie I once made, but am so glad I gave this a try! I used a frozen banana and whole milk and didn't have any flax seeds, and it was amazing! Almost had an apple sort of taste. My 14 month old daughter loved it so much, I had to make another one right away so there'd be enough for me! Thanks!

This is great as it is but, I like to blend in 4 or 5 cubes of frozen cappuccino. It almost tastes like a creamy frappuccino.

I TRIED THIS RECIPE LAST WEEK AND IT TASTED SO GOOD I COULDNT BELIEVE IT!!! I ADDED SOME DATES FOR SOME SWEETNESS (ONLY 70 CALORIES PER DATE) I USE 3 DATES WHICH IS ENOUGH PLUS THE BANANA IS SWEET ALSO.. PUT HALF KALE 1 WHOLE BANANA (CUT IN PIECES) 3 DATES BLEND I ALSO ADD APINCH OF CINNAMON WHICH IS GOOD FOR DIGESTION....I MAKE THIS 5 TIMES A WEEK....GAVE ME A TON OF ENERGY--- KDUBB

This smoothies didn't look very appetizing, but it tasted great! I used really ripe bananas, almond milk instead of soy, and agave instead of maple syrup.

Kept it simple and the whole family loved it! Used 1 cup vanilla soy milk and didn't have flax seed.

I used RAW Kale. Perfect! I didn't have soy or rice milk, so I used Vanilla Yogurt and "liquified" it with a little orange juice. Great recipe. Thanks.

Delicious and healthy! The only substitution I made was adding some mixed frozen fruit in place of the maple syrup.

Good but not the best Green Smoothie

What a great way to get a good portion of greens down the hatch. I was pleasantly surprised by this recipe. I really liked it, reminds me of adding wheat grass. My husband thought it was too 'grassy' but that's just not his cup of tea.

I was like the others...it sounded so bad that I had to try it. It really is AWESOME!!! Not only does it taste good but it is VERY healthy. Highly recommend.

YUM!! I used green kale (the super curly kind) and did not find it bitter at all. It could help to do half kale, half spinach if you find it too bitter. I don't have any flax seeds (keep meaning to get some of those!) and used honey instead of maple syrup. DELICIOUS!!!

sans flax, and i did organic blackstrap molasses as the sweet part (along with the banana). still very palatable.

After the birth of my daughter, I became anemic and needed to add more iron to my diet. With much hesitation I tried this recipe because of the nutritional value. It was not bad. I will also only make half next time due to the richness. The smootie is very filling.

Not for me - I really wanted to like it but it tasted like eating grass :(

Just like almost every other reviewer, I am trying to fit more veggies into my diet and as I can't stand V8...I thought I would give this a try. So much better than I could have imagined, great smoothie & holy cow was it filling...I could barely finish all of it. I followed other reviewers advice by grinding the flaxseeds & freezing a ripe banana. I tried not to alter the ingredients much more so to give an honest review. Next time I may thin it a bit with a little water or orange juice before serving & definitely blend it longer to grind up the kale a bit more. Thanks Rice for posting this recipe, so long V8 (yuck)!

we have made this many times and love it. we use coconut water in place of they soy milk.

Sounds good I love smoothies

I was surprised that we didn't taste the kale! I used unsweetened almond milk and honey instead of molasses. I also didn't use the flax seed-one step at a time trying these:) Kale and banana is a very good mix! Next I'll try kale and blueberries. I gave 4 stars because I changed the recipe but guessing I wouldn't care for the soymilk as much.

Love this! I use almond milk because I like the flavor better. For a frostier smoothie, I freeze a peeled banana and big handful of kale in plastic zipper bags, then each morning pull one out of the freezer. Really yummy!

This was perfect! Not too sweet, not bitter.. I didn't have flax seed on hand so used 1 Tlb almond butter. I made it with the maple syrup the first time and it was very good. I switched out the syrup for 1/2 apple and I preferred the sweetness of the apple to the syrup. I also added a few ice cubes to make it icy cold. This will be my new staple for a green smoothie!

This is really quite amazing! We made it with regular soy milk and 1 T maple syrup, and my 10-year old daughter loved it. Her comments: "It was really not bad! I will recommend it to other people. (: <3 (;

It was good. Next time I will use a date instead of maple syrup and add some water as it was thick. I might try adding berries and chia seeds. For the people using cows milk instead of soy milk - why purposely add cruelty to this nutritious drink?

Absolutely delicious! I used Lacinato (Dino) Kale - the dark green variety. I also added half an apple. The smoothie has more calories than I like to consume at once, but it was worth it for the packed nutrition. It served as a meal for me. I have a Blendtec so I packed ice in it as well - the texture was perfect - cold, thick, sweet and very tasty. Thank you Rice for this recipe!

I plan to try this recipe this afternoon, but have a question. I normally have a morning smoothie with grinded flaxseeds, frozen banana and blueberries....I also add some cacao nibs. For this recipe, do I grind the flaxseeds first, Ive never eaten them unground! Thanks!

Thank you. Thank you thank you thank you! Taking advice from previous posters, I added a little more soymilk and a teensy bit more maple syrup. Amazing.

Really was expecting grass, but very tasty!

yum

I wanted to get my 16 month old to eat more greens - this did the trick :) My skeptical husband loved it too! I used honey in place of the syrup and vanilla soy milk vs. unsweetened. Omitted the flax seeds simply b/c I didn't have any. Yummy.

I changed it a little bit the second time I made it. I used coconut milk instead of soy, chia seeds instead of flax, and coconut oil instead of maple syrup and enjoyed it

this was yummy, just what I was looking for. I gave it 4 stars cause I changed it up just a hair. I used fat free milk ( didn't have soy) added some strawberries and sweetened with stevia instead of maple syrup.

I used rice milk as a substitute for soy milk and agave syrup instead of maple syrup. It was delicious!

It was better than expected, I too used cow's milk (twice the amt recommended), ice and used grounded flaxseed.

Tasted good. I added 1 cup of almond milk instead of half and I also added a TBS of peanutbutter. I liked with with the peanut butter. It hides the taste of the kale.

I forgot to put any sweetener in this, and was still delicious! I bought a big bag of kale, but decided I was really not into it. But I could drink this smoothie every day.

not bad at all. added a squirt of flax oil cinnamon, and about 1/4 cup aloe vera juice.

This is a good, and quick recipe. Not too sweet and not too bitter. I don't like to pour it over ice cubes, so I freeze the bananas the night before. I've been using unsweetened vanilla almond milk.

I did not care for this recipe, even after adding honey to sweeten it.

This is a great staring off point for a smoothie recipe!! I changed it up a bit. Added blueberries, raspberries, and chia seeds. I also used vanilla soy milk and forgo the maple syrup. Delicious!!

Yummy! Makes me feel so good!

This is awesome and also considering kale and flax help you lose weight!

This is amazing. I was skeptical but thought I'd give it a try since it was so simple and I needed to use up some kale. I make this all the time now, using a sugar free maple syrup. It freezes well, so it's easy to make the night before and put in the microwave briefly in the morning to thaw. Easy breakfast.

Interesting! I used regular milk and added 2 tablespoons of powdered peanut butter because I didn't have any flaxseed. I don't think I would have liked it without the PB. I blended the heck out of the kale and couldn't really taste it, but then afterwards I had a weird aftertaste.

this is a great basic recipe. I use kale in all of my smoothies now... you can barely taste it and it fills you right up! this is a lot of banana for me the morning, so I modified a little: 1/2 frozen banana (I wait until slightly brown, then freeze them in chunks), 1 cup (about 5 leaves) kale without the stems, 1/4 - 1/3 cup vanilla soy milk, 1 heaping teaspoon of nonfat plain yogurt, a tiny bit of flax seed oil, and then 4-7 pieces of frozen fruit. My favorite is 4 pieces of pineapple and 2 pieces of mango :)

I just tried this recipe and added pineapple, left out the maple syrup, used sprouted flax powder instead of flax seeds, and used light coconut milk instead of soy milk (doubled the amount) and added some water. Perhaps I created a totally different recipe altogether, but anyway, it was great!

Made mine with 1 c. vanilla soy milk and skipped the flax seed and maple syrup. Did not enjoy the taste.