This apple spinach smoothie is one of my go-to green smoothie recipes. It's perfectly balanced - slightly sweet, slightly tart, slightly creamy - vibrant, and great for any time of the day.

Have you ever made a green smoothie that ended up being foamy and frothy at the top? If green smoothies are on your regular rotation, you probably have. 

Now, do you know why it happened? And do you know how to prevent that from happening in the future? If you're curious, then read on because the solution is simple:  

• Reduce the amount of insoluble fiber: the number one reason for foamy smoothies is insoluble fiber, which doesn't dissolve in water. It naturally separates and can create foam. Apples are the most popular culprit, but dark leafy greens, celery, berries, cherries, and other fruits and vegetables eaten with the skin contain a high amount of insoluble fiber as well. 
• Increase the amount of soluble fiber: soluble fiber, on the other hand, does dissolve in water. In fact, when soluble fiber is mixed with water, it becomes thick and creamy, almost gel-like. The fruits and vegetables with the highest amount of soluble fiber are those that need to be peeled, so bananas, mangoes, papaya, pineapple or avocados. Other ingredients high in soluble fiber are flax seeds and chia seeds.
• Use frozen produce: if your smoothie contains a lot of produce with insoluble fiber, freeze it. The icy consistency helps prevent any foam buildup.
• Blend on low: I do let smoothies run on high for sure, especially green smoothies with tough leafy greens. Of course, all that air gets incorporated into the smoothie and is whipped into bubbles. So, at the end of the blending cycle, turn the blender to its lowest speed for a few seconds to draw the bubbles into the blade and allow them to burst. 
• Catch the foam: if you follow all the steps above but your smoothie still turns out foamy (very unlikely), the best thing to do then is to use a nut milk bag to catch the foam or skim some of the foam before pouring the smoothie into a glass.

So, now onto the actual apple spinach smoothie recipe with a lot of insoluble fiber!

Tips for Making Apple Spinach Smoothie

Ingredients

This apple spinach smoothie requires just a handful of ingredients:

• Apples: while you can use any apple variety in this smoothie, I find that green-ish apples yield the pretties bright green color when blended with the rest of the ingredients. My favorite variety is Golden Delicious, which lends a nice sweet flavor and helps to disguise the flavor of greens. If you like tart flavor better, go with Granny Smith instead. Finally, if you have the time to prep the apples beforehand, I recommend freezing them (for a creamier smoothie consistency). To freeze apples, cut them into 1-inch cubes and freeze them in a single layer on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet (so they don't freeze together in a big clump). After about 2 hours, transfer the frozen apples into an airtight container.
• Spinach: leafy greens give this smoothie a beautiful vibrant green color. You can use any leafy greens you like, but since it's apple spinach green smoothie,  I am going with spinach. If you have the choice, use baby spinach, which is milder and more delicate than mature spinach.
• Banana: a lot of smoothie recipes call for bananas because they are sweet, yield a creamy consistency, and pair well with pretty much anything. If you don't like bananas, mangoes are probably the best substitute.
• Flax seeds: as I already mentioned, flax seeds are a great source of soluble fiber, which is important for a smoothie based on apples and spinach (aka ingredients with a lot of insoluble fiber). I use golden flax seeds for a milder flavor and a lighter color, but brown flax seeds are fine too. A great substitute are chia seeds.
• Almond milk: my favorite milk in smoothies is almond milk (unless it's a tropical smoothie, for which I would use coconut milk). Oat milk would be my second choice.

How to Make Apple Spinach Smoothie

The most important thing when making a green smoothie is to use a high-speed blender (I own the Vitamix). This doesn’t mean that you have to have the newest, most expensive high-speed blender on the market. An entry-level Vitamix model is more than sufficient to make a smooth and creamy smoothie. 

If all you have is a standard blender (300-700 watts), you can still make this smoothie. However, the less powerful your blender, the finer you will need to chop your ingredients (a minimum of 1 inch/2.5-cm pieces, preferably smaller). If you have a low wattage blender (around 300 watts), I also recommend blending the liquid and soft fruit first, then add spinach, and finally frozen fruit.

Spinach Apple Smoothie Variations

Smoothies are one of the easiest recipes to customize:

• Fruit: swap the apple for pear and the banana for mango.
• Greens: I swap greens in my smoothies all the time. Any baby greens or even a mixed greens (with baby spinach, kale, and chard) are great. If you are out of fresh greens, you can always use powdered.
• Liquid: plant milks work the best – almond, cashew, oat… water, ideally ice cold, works in a pinch, but does dilute the flavor of the smoothie.
• Add-ins: protein powder, hemp hearts or bee pollen (for a protein boost), cinnamon or spirulina (for an antioxidant boost).

How to Store Apple Spinach Smoothie

• Refrigerating: transfer the green smoothie into an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
• Freezing: transfer the green smoothie into an airtight container and freeze for up to 1 month. 

MORE GREEN SMOOTHIE RECIPES

• Cucumber pineapple smoothie: tart-sweet, creamy, and refreshing. This pineapple cucumber smoothie is another one of my favorite green smoothie combinations – not too sweet, not too thick and super hydrating.
• Kale kiwi smoothie: kale can sometimes be overpowering in smoothies, but this smoothie is different. While it’s packed with dark leafy greens, it tastes fruity, slightly sweet, and perfectly tart. It’s a great morning pick-me-up.
• Detox Island Green smoothie: this is one of the most popular detox smoothies in the United States. It’s served at the Tropical Smoothie Café and continues to be their best-selling smoothie. This smoothie is a perfect combination of greens and tropical fruit.
• Zucchini smoothie: it seems like almost all creamy smoothies out there contain a banana, right? Well, not this one! Thanks to an avocado and frozen zucchini, this green zucchini smoothie is creamy without any banana. 

If you’d like to learn more about smoothies – how to make a custom smoothie, how to fix a not-so-good smoothie, how to build a better (healthier) smoothie, etc. – you can refer to this smoothie guide.

If you try any of these recipes, please, leave a comment and rate the recipe below. It always means a lot when you do.

Print Recipe

4.67 from 3 votes

Apple Spinach Smoothie

This apple spinach smoothie is one of my go-to green smoothie recipes. It's perfectly balanced - slightly sweet, slightly tart, slightly creamy - vibrant, and great for any time of the day.

Prep Time5 mins

Total Time5 mins

Servings: 1 smoothie

Ingredients

• 1 apple , cubed and frozen*
• 2 handfuls spinach
• 1 banana **
• 1 Tbsp. golden flaxseed meal
• 1 cup almond milk

Instructions

• Blend. Add the apple, spinach, banana, flaxseed meal, and almond milk into a high-speed blender and blend on high until completely smooth.
• Serve immediately.
• Store. Leftover smoothie keeps well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 day, though best when fresh. For longer term storage, freeze in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Equipment

blender

Recipe Notes

*Cut the apple into 1-inch/2.5-cm cubes. Arrange the cubes in a single layer onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and freeze until firm, 2-3 hours.

*My favorite variety is Golden Delicious.

**If you want to make the smoothie right away (rather than waiting for the apple to freeze), you can use a frozen banana instead (provided that you are like me and always have frozen bananas in the freezer). The frozen banana will make the smoothie thick and creamy. If you use both a frozen apple and a frozen banana, you will end up with a soft-serve smoothie.

***Prep time doesn't include freezing the apple (2-3 hours).

****Nutrition information is approximate and may contain errors. Please, feel free to make your own calculations.

Nutrition Facts

Apple Spinach Smoothie

Amount Per Serving (1 of 1)

Calories 319 Calories from Fat 81

% Daily Value*

Fat 9g14%

Carbohydrates 58g19%

Fiber 14g58%

Sugar 34g38%

Protein 7g14%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.