7 Tips for Making Your Smoothie Ingredients Last Longer

Making a smoothie is one of my favorite ways to start my day. They’re simple, versatile, cold, creamy and easy on the tummy, which is important for your morning meal. It’s also a cheater’s way to get a ton of nutrition into one meal – something I happen to love. Anything that makes breakfast simple and fast is something I’m all about, but before you head off to the store and load up on tons of fresh ingredients for smoothies, let me share a few tips for making your smoothie ingredients last longer.

Anytime you go to make a smoothie, chances are you head for fresh ingredients such as fresh greens and fresh fruit. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, but if the week gets busy, you might not have time to run to the store often enough to buy fresh produce. Or, perhaps you got a little excited and bought two pounds of organic mangoes on sale and you’re just a wee bit sick of mangoes in your smoothies. Been there, done that. 

I have some easy ways to not only save money on your smoothies, but also some tips for making your smoothies last longer if you’ve ever found yourself dealing with any of the situations above. Typically, I only shop once a week for ingredients and nothing ever goes to waste. Check out these tips below and see how they work for you:

1. Freeze Your Greens

This is my number one tip for making smoothie ingredients last longer. I buy fresh, organic greens, then leave them in the package and just pop them in my freezer as soon as I get home. This works great for a few reasons. First, it preserves the nutrients longer. Second, it lessens the bitter taste of greens like kale and collards, and third, it’s so easy to do! The only green this won’t work for is lettuces like romaine or other lettuces (if you use those in smoothies like I do). They have too much water to freeze and if you do, they end up rather icy and not very palatable. Once you open a package of greens, just pop the whole bag or container into a jumbo freezer-safe baggie, seal it up, and be on your merry way.

2. Buy Frozen Greens

You can also buy frozen greens for the same benefits above, and believe it or not, they’re not inferior to fresh greens when you consider they’re flash frozen right after harvesting. I’ve been lucky enough to find 16-ounce bags of organic frozen spinach at Whole Foods for anywhere from $2.50 to $2.99, which lasts me at least two or three smoothies. That would cost me at least $5.00 to $7.00 in fresh form, not to mention frozen greens make creamier, frostier smoothies without the need for much ice. I like to use a mix of frozen and fresh greens for the best flavor and texture, even though I technically freeze all my greens to preserve them longer.

3. Chop and Freeze Your Fruits

Fruits spoil very quickly since their sugars cause the starches to breakdown as they ripen.  To keep your fruits fresher and more nutritious, chop and freeze them in freezer safe bags or glass containers as soon as you get home from the store. This will not only preserve the nutrients, but also make your smoothies extra thick and creamy. You can also buy frozen fruits if you like, which are often cheaper than fresh fruits and just as nutritious, if not more.

4. Keep Your Superfoods in the Fridge

Most superfood powders used in smoothies don’t require refrigeration by the package instructions,but keep in mind that items like freeze-dried fruit powders, superfood powders with probiotics added, raw nut butters, and seeds like chia, flax, and hemp will last much longer and stay fresher when refrigerated. Seeds and raw nut butter can also go rancid at room temperature, and most probiotics in superfood powders need to be refrigerated anyway. The same goes for raw protein powders, which are more nutritious than heated varieties that may be shelf stable. Refrigerating your superfoods prevents you from eating rancid products and ensures you get the most use out of them before they go bad.

5. Count Out How Much You Need

Another tip to make your smoothie ingredients last longer is to only buy what you need for one week’s worth of smoothies. There’s no need to buy an overload of greens when you may only use 16-32 ounces each  week. Count out exactly how much you usually use in your smoothies, then add up how many packages you’ll need to get you through the week. Personally, I use a lot of greens, so I buy more, but I always make sure to count out how many day’s worth I’ll use so I never end up with too much or don’t have enough.

6. Only Use Half the Serving Size

If money is an issue, then obviously you know the best superfoods don’t run cheap. One trick I like to take advantage of in order to make my superfoods last longer is to only use half the serving size recommended on the package. This means I get to use them double the amount of time and still get to use them everyday.

7. Make Almond Milk Ice Cubes

Do you have a carton of almond milk that’s close dated and don’t want to toss it out? Then don’t! Just freeze it to make ice cubes in an ice cube tray and use that for smoothies instead of the fresh milk. You’ll need to add water to achieve a blending consistency, but you can easily use the almond milk ice cubes for the regular ice cubes you normally use. This is also a great way to make your smoothies more thick and creamy like a milkshake, and it’s simple enough for anyone to do.

If you have a tip to make your smoothie ingredients last longer, I’d love to hear it. Feel free to share and also feel free to check out some other great smoothie tips and check out smoothie recipe section here at One Green Planet.

Learn How to Cook Plant-Based Meals at Home

Reducing your meat intake and eating more plant-based foods is known to help with chronic inflammation, heart health, mental well-being, fitness goals, nutritional needs, allergies, gut health, and more! Dairy consumption also has been linked to many health problems, including acne, hormonal imbalance, cancer, and prostate cancer, and has many side effects.

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• Weekly Vegan Meal Plans
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• The Ultimate Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition
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