Not many recipes can top a sweet, refreshing smoothie for breakfast. It’s amazingly nutritious because you can throw anything from kale and beans to almond butter and chia seeds in there, it offers all the fiber, protein, and healhty fats you need to give you energy and help you lose weight, and it’s lightning-fast to make. So how do you make one of the quickest breakfasts in even less time? You make these smoothie freezer packs.
All you need is 20 minutes of prep time, and instead of your smoothie taking five to 10 minutes to pull together each morning, just grab one of these packs and you’ll be done in about 60 seconds. Not only that, it allows you to use ingredients that may take a little more time to prep like melon, avocado, apples, and pears that you can’t find in the freezer section. And you’ll save money by buying greens and fruit in bulk — and they’ll actually get used instead of going bad in your fridge. Smoothie packs are also a great way to use up fruit that’s almost too ripe to eat.
These packs are made with just five ingredients: kale, bananas, blueberries, mango, and avocado. They add up to 243 calories, which allows you to customize your smoothie by adding any extra ingredients such as protein powder or coconut water. Of course, you don’t have to stick to these ingredients. Hopefully this will inspire you to make your own creative combinations.
Ingredients
10 cups spinach or baby kale
2 1/2 bananas
2 1/2 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)
2 1/2 cups mango (I used frozen)
1 1/4 ripe avocados
Directions
- Grab five freezer-safe sealable plastic bags and divide the ingredients between them. Add: 2 cups of greens, 1/2 a banana (sliced), 1/4 cup blueberries, 1/4 cup mango, and 1/4 avocado.
- Close them up and feel free to write any notes on the bag such as the date or ingredients you want to add later, then place them in the freezer.
- When you’re ready to make your smoothie, empty the contents of the freezer pack into your blender, add the extra ingredients like water or coconut water, almond or soy milk, protein powder, flaxmeal, chia seeds, cinnamon, beans, tofu, or whatever you please. Blend it up and enjoy!
Here’s the calorie breakdown of other smoothie ingredients you might want to add to your blender:
1 cup unsweetened soy milk: 80 calories
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk: 40 calories
1 cup coconut water: 43 calories
1 serving (about 35 grams) vanilla protein powder: 110 calories
1/2 cup nonfat vanilla Greek yogurt: 83 calories
1/2 cup vanilla soy yogurt: 105 calories
1/2 cup coconut milk yogurt: 90 calories
1/2 tablespoon chia seeds: 30 calories
1 tablespoon flaxmeal: 40 calories
1 serving soft tofu (1/5 package): 60 calories
1/4 cup cannellini beans: 50 calories
1 tablespoon almond butter: 95 calories
Information
- Category
- Drinks, Smoothies
- Yield
- 5 packs
- Cook Time
- 20 minutes
Nutrition
- Calories per serving
- 243
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Source: How to Prep a Week of Smoothie Freezer Packs : PopSugar
