This Cucumber and Celery Smoothie includes some leafy greens in the form of spinach, celery as well as cucumber for some extra hydration. It's naturally sweetened, packed with nutrients and makes the perfect healthy breakfast.
Green smoothie recipes are such a good way to get in some leafy greens even when you're not a fan of greens in general. Even though packed with green goodness, together with all the other ingredients, this smoothie tastes sweet and delicious. You won't even know that it includes celery, cucumber and spinach!
For more healthy smoothie recipes check out Frozen Spinach Smoothie, Healthy Salted Caramel Smoothie, Beetroot Smoothie or Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Smoothie.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This healthy smoothie includes a great variety of plants!
- There's no additional sweetener added- it gets it's natural sweetness from fruits.
- It can be enjoyed as breakfast or a nutritious snack!
- It's ready in 5 min!
Ingredient & Substitution Notes
- Baby Spinach: Fresh spinach has a quite neutral taste and makes an amazing addition to green smoothies. Instead of spinach you could also use any other leafy greens of your choice such as kale. If you use kale, make sure to not wait too long before serving it because kale can turn smoothies bitter quite easily.
- Celery Stalk: Don't throw away the celery leaves, they can be eaten as well! They do however add a little bit of taste too, so don't add them if you want a more neutral-tasting smoothie.
- Green Pear: Besides the delicious taste, it also adds some sweetness to the smoothie. Could be replaced with a green apple or any other fruit of choice.
- (Seedless) Cucumber: Adds a lovely refreshing element to this nutritious drink. Feel free to deseed before using it or choose a seedless cucumber instead. I used a regular English cucumber.
- Plant Milk (Optional): I tested this recipe with my almond milk but feel free to use any non-dairy milk of choice such as soy milk or oat milk. I haven't tested this with regular cow's milk. Alternatively, you could use only water instead.
- Frozen Bananas: They act as a sweetener and also contribute to a thick and creamy texture. I recommend using very ripe bananas. If you're not a fan of bananas you could use more ice cubes for a thicker texture and dates as a sweetener instead.
- Fresh Lime Juice: You could also use lemon juice instead.
Step by Step Instructions
This cucumber celery smoothie comes together in 5 minutes! You'll need a fairly strong blender though to ensure a smooth and creamy smoothie texture.
Step 1: Blend
Simply place all of the ingredients into a (high speed) blender and blend until smooth. The stronger your blender, the smoother your green smoothie will turn out.
Step 2: Adjust taste
Taste and adjust sweetness by adding more banana. Alternatively, you could add a date or two to add some additional sweetness. Make sure that you're using soft dates though. If they aren't soak them in very hot water for about 10 minutes.
Add-In Ideas
- Fresh Ginger: The addition of ginger will add a tangy, fresh taste. Ginger is packed with immune-boosting vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin C, Magnesium and Potassium. It's also said to have anti-inflammatory properties. Start by adding about ½ a teaspoon of grated ginger, taste and work your way up from there. Adding too much will leave you with an overpowering ginger taste
- Fresh Mint: Another delicious flavor option to choose from! Add a couple of fresh mint leaves for some refreshing mint flavors.
- Other Fresh Fruits: Feel free to play around with different fruits. Sweet apples, fresh pineapple, mango or fresh berries all make great smoothie ingredients!
- Ice Cubes: For a cold and refreshing celery smoothie, add a couple of ice cubes. This might also result in a thicker smoothie though so you may need to add a little water.
- Coconut Water: Also makes an amazing addition and adds some delicious subtle coconut flavors.
- Nut Butters: Such as peanut butter or homemade almond butter add some extra texture as well as plant-based protein.
- Dates: If you feel that the smoothie isn't sweet enough, feel free to add a couple of soft dates as a natural sweetener.
Top Tips
- Strong Blender: To ensure that you'll end up with a creamy, non-chunky smoothie, I recommend using a high speed blender such as a Vitamix or similar.
- Frozen Banana: Batch freezing helps to not run out of frozen bananas! Chop up a couple of very ripe bananas and put them into a zip-lock bag. Store them in the freezer, that way they are ready to use!
Storage
This smoothie keeps in the fridge for up to 1 day but tastes best when enjoyed right away! Make sure to store it in an airtight container or mason jar with a lid and give it a good stir before serving.
FAQs
Juices are the extracted liquid that occurs when veggies or fruits are pressed in a juicing machine. Smoothies on the other hand are made in blender and contain the whole fruit still. The big difference is that all smoothies have a high fiber content while with the juices you're only left with the liquid juice only. Fiber plays an important role in a healthy diet and is associated with numerous different health benefits.
You could strain it using a fine sieve or milk a nut milk straining bag to achieve a juice-like texture. However, this will get rid of most of the fiber.
The body has it's own detoxification system and according to studies there's very little to no evidence that suggests that the body needs help with eliminating toxins. The kidney, the liver, the skin, the respiratory system all help with detoxifying our body.
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📖 Recipe
Cucumber Celery Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 frozen banana
- 1 pear *prewashed & chopped
- 1-2 stalks of celery *prewashed & chopped
- big handful of baby spinach (or kale), *prewashed
- ¼ English cucumber *prewashed & chopped
- juice of ½ a lime (or lemon)
- 1+ cup (230 ml) plant milk (soy milk, almond milk) or replace with water or coconut water
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients into a high speed blender, starting with the harder veggies first (pear, frozen banana, celery).
- Start with 1 cup plant milk (or water) and gradually add more if you prefer a thinner consistency.
- Blend until smooth.
- Taste and adjust sweetness by adding more banana or dates.
Video
Notes
- Frozen Banana: In case you haven't got any frozen bananas in the freezer, cut 1 banana in half and freeze it overnight. I always keep a couple of very ripe, chopped up bananas in the freezer so that they are ready to use in smoothie recipes. If you're not a fan of bananas you could use more ice cubes for a thicker texture and dates as a sweetener instead.
- Plant Milk: Feel free to use any non-dairy milk of choice. Alternatively, you could use only water or coconut water instead but this will result in less of a sweet taste. I haven't tested this recipe using regular cow's milk.
- Add-In Ideas: tiny bit of minced ginger, fresh mint, other fresh fruit, ice cubes, coconut water, nut butters (homemade almond butter), dates
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