Kale Smoothie
Updated Dec 12, 2025
This kale smoothie blends kale, apple, banana, ginger, and coconut milk, with ginger and apple helping mellow the bitterness.
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My Kale Smoothie is So Good!
My husband swears he hates kale. If he sees a green smoothie, his first question is always, “Does this have kale in it?” If the answer is yes, he’s out. But if it’s spinach green smoothie? No problem. So when I made this kale smoothie, I had him and anyone else who’s skeptical about kale in mind.
I always see kale in smoothies at those fancy smoothie cafes, and somehow, they make it work without that bitter, earthy taste. I wanted to figure out how to do the same at home. So, I took inspiration from one I tried recently and blended up kale with ginger, green apple, coconut milk, and banana. The ginger adds warmth and a little spice, the apple gives it a tart contrast, and the coconut milk and banana smooth everything out with a little sweetness.
The verdict? He side-eyed the green color but took a sip… and loved it. He couldn’t taste the kale at all, and the combo of flavors totally won him over. If you’re on the fence about kale, give this one a shot. I think you’ll be surprised. And if you’re a fellow kale skeptic, I need to hear what you think!
Kale Smoothie Ingredients
- Kale: I like to use Lacinato kale (also called Dinosaur or Tuscan kale) for this smoothie recipe, but any variety of kale will work!
- Apple: You can use whichever type of apple you like best, but green apple is my favorite.
- Ginger: Go for a knob of fresh ginger (rather than powdered), if you can!
- Coconut milk: I love the taste of full-fat coconut milk in this smoothie, but almond milk, oat milk, or even coconut water will work, too.
- Frozen banana: I like using frozen fruit in smoothies because it keeps them cold (and creamy) without the need for ice! But a room temperature banana with a few ice cubes will also taste great.
How to Make Kale Smoothies
Kale Smoothie Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups kale stemmed
- 1 frozen banana
- 1 ½ cups coconut milk
- 1 green apple
- 1 tablespoon ginger grated
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients in a blender in the order of appearance.
- Blend the ingredients in a high-speed blender for 2-3 minutes until you get a smooth and creamy texture.
- Taste the smoothie, adding more coconut milk if it is too thick or adding more sweetener if it’s not sweet enough for you.
- Pour into a cup or mason jar. Enjoy cold immediately, or store in fridge for up to 24 hours.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Recipe Tips
- Remove your kale stems. Kale stems are tough and can make your smoothie taste more bitter! To remove them, just hold the kale leaf by the stem with one hand and run your other hand down the stalk to strip off the leaves. You can also fold the leaf in half and slice the stem off with a knife.
- Freeze your kale. Freezing kale helps break down its tough texture and mellow out the flavor! Just wash, dry, and tear the leaves into smaller pieces before freezing them in a bag. No need to thaw—just toss them straight into the blender!
- Massage your kale! I like massaging my kale with a squeeze of lemon juice before adding it to my smoothie to ease out some of that bitterness.
- Drink your smoothie as soon as you make it. The nutrients decrease once the ingredients are blended and exposed to oxygen. If you can’t drink it straight away, cover it with plastic wrap and store in the fridge, but make sure to drink it within 24 hours!
- Use a high speed blender for the best consistency. If you don’t have a high speed blender, blend the kale and coconut milk first, then add the other ingredients to make sure you don’t end up with any lumps!
- Grate your ginger. It’s the toughest ingredient in the bunch so grating it will help ensure you’re not left with any chunks of ginger in your smoothie.
- Use frozen apples. Pre-freezing your ingredients will make your smoothie as thick and cold as possible, but you can also add ice cubes to the blender as well (or serve your smoothie over ice).
FAQs
If you used an extra large apple or banana (or extra kale), your smoothie may come out a little thicker than usual. Try adding ¼ cup of extra liquid at a time (whether you used coconut milk or an alternative), then blend on high speed for 10–20 seconds.
It’s best to massage and/or freeze your kale before you blend, but if you’re smoothie is still tasting bitter, I recommend adding some extra frozen banana if you have any on hand, or a bit of sweetener like honey or maple syrup.
Comments
As soon as I saw you making this smoothie in your Stories, and since I have all the ingredients cut and clean, I put everything in the blender and got the most nutritious healthy smoothie.
Love ginger .