Full Disclosure: This post is sponsored by the a2 Milk Company ® , but all thoughts are completely my own.  I only work with companies whose products are awesome and  I would personally use!

Seriously, have you ever met someone who said they don’t like smoothies?  I sure haven’t!  Whether their function is a as a meal, snack,  pre-workout or recovery shake, or convenient to-go meal, your smoothie is only as healthy as you make it!

5 Top Smoothie Tips

  • For a 16 ounce smoothie, use up to approximately 1 cup of fruit, ¾ cup of liquid and ½ cup Greek yogurt.
  • Don’t be scared to throw veggies into your smoothie for lots of added nutrients and fiber.
  • To reduce added sugars, always use unsweetened milks, plain yogurt, unsweetened nut butters and watch your portion size of added sweeteners. Protein powders are also often a hiding spot for added sugars.
  • Don’t have time to make breakfast in the morning? Prep a smoothie for breakfast the night before and take to work in a to-go cup.
  • Don’t want to take the time to clean a blender? Use an immersion blender.
  • persian cucumber, baby spinach and avocado half on white background

    Add veggies like spinach and cucumber, plus healthy fats from avocados!

Now let’s talk about 2 ingredients folks can get very passionate about when describing their typical smoothie rituals: fruit and liquid.  Adding fruit to a smoothie isn’t going to make you fat.  Yes, fruit has naturally occurring sugars, but it also has so many vitamins, minerals, immune enhancing & anti-aging antioxidants and phytochemicals, plus fiber!  The recommended daily amount of fruit for healthy men and women is 1-1/2 to 2 cups, so adding fruit to a smoothie is a great way to get your daily fill.

Now the liquid. Assuming you’re not vegan or don’t have an allergy to it, my #1 liquid to use in a smoothie is milk. In addition to containing calcium, magnesium, vitamin D and vitamin B12, cow’s milk has 12 grams of carbs and 8 grams of protein per cup,  ideal for fueling muscles and assisting in recovery.   Nut and coconut milks are super trendy, but unless you seek out an unsweetened one, many brands contains lots of added sugars and hardly any protein.  If your reason for not using cow’s milk in a smoothie is that you think your belly can’t tolerate milk, lactose may not be your problem. Your issue may lie with the type of protein.  I recently found out about the a2 Milk Company ® and can’t believe I didn’t hear about it sooner!!  For many of you who thought you couldn’t drink milk, this brand will be a game changer!

a2 milk half gallon cartons of whole milk, 2% reduced fat milk and fat free milk

Here’s the deal.  Back in the day when they were first domesticated,  all cows used to only produce the A2 beta casein protein.  Fast forward to today where cows produce either A1, A2 or a most likely a combination of A1 and A2.  Whether a cow has the A1 or A2 protein is a genetic variant, just like 1 person having blue eyes and another having brown. The A1 protein has been shown to cause digestive discomfort after drinking a glass of milk because of  just 1 amino acid that breaks off early during digestion, forming a complex that attaches to different receptor sites in the gut. That’s when you start feeling crappy.

Now on to the good news. The A2 protein has been shown NOT to cause post dairy digestive discomfort!  Emerging research has also shown that those with lactose intolerance may even be able to drink a2 Milk® without any discomfort!

The a2 milk isn’t adulterated in any way because it’s just milk! Nothing else!  The a2 Milk Company ® identifies the cows that only produce the a2 protein by performing a simple genetic test using the hair from the tail of the cow.  They then separate those cows into their own special VIP club and milk them. That’s it! So, if you used to enjoy milk, but stopped drinking it due to digestive discomfort, I suggest experimenting with a2 Milk® !

Keep your eyes open for upcoming research because I predict that this is going to be HUGE once more people find out about it. Fun fact: a2 Milk® is the most popular milk in Australia and has been around for many years!

hand holding a green smoothie in clear glass

Fat Tuesday Las Vegas daiquiri cup holding a smoothie

Daiquiri cups make the best smoothie to-go cups!!

The sky’s the limit on the number of flavor combinations you can create! Here are some ingredient suggestions to get you started!

Fruit: strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, black berries, cherries, apples, orange segments, bananas, mango, pineapple, pears, watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, etc.

Veggies: dark leafy greens like spinach or kale, zucchini, yellow summer squash, cucumber,  carrots, cooked beets, pureed canned pumpkin, cooked sweet potatoes.

Protein:  Greek yogurt, soy yogurt, cottage cheese, silken tofu, chia seeds, hemp seeds, milk powder, your favorite protein powder, nut/peanut butter, peanut butter powder.

Add-ins: oats, granola, unsweetened cocoa powder, matcha green powder, spices like cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, turmeric, herbs like mint or basil, extracts such as almond, coconut, vanilla or orange.

  • Sweeteners: honey, agave, maple syrup (just remember that even if a sweetener is “natural”, it’s still sugar, so use sparingly).

Healthy fats: avocado, nut butters, peanut butter, flax seed, hemp seed, chia seed.

Liquid: cow’s milk such as a2 Milk®,  unsweetened alternative milk, coconut water, 100% fruit juice or vegetable juice, unsweetened iced green tea or other tea, unsweetened iced coffee.

overhead view of blender with a2 milk, bananas and blueberries for a smoothie

Print

Healthy Green Smoothie with Strawberries and Mango

This plant based smoothie gives you 2 servings of veggies! If your fruit isn’t super sweet and ripe, try adding just a little bit of honey, about 1/2 teaspoon.
For added protein, use your favorite vanilla protein powder.

  • Author: TastyBalance Nutrition
  • Yield: 1 16 ounce smoothie 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup packed baby spinach leaves
  • 1/2 cup sliced Persian or English cucumber (leave skin on, unless you are using a cucumber with waxy skin)
  • 1/3 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1/3 cup frozen mango chunks
  • 1/3 cup ripe banana slices
  • 1/4 of a small avocado
  • 3/4 cup a2 Milk ®

Instructions

  1. Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Keywords: smoothie, green smoothie, avocado, vegetarian, nut free, gluten free

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Showing 42 comments
  • Elizabeth Shaw
    Reply

    LOVE this Linds! It’s the perfect way to make a BANG BANG smoothie every time! What’s a bang bang smoothie- oh simply an AMAZING smoothie, that’s all! 🙂 Nice work!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      lol ! thanks Liz!

  • Amy Gorin
    Reply

    Love a2 milk! Looks so good!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Me too! No upset tummy here! thanks Amy!

  • Emily Holdorf
    Reply

    I love this Lindsey! You definitely have the perfect smoothie formula down to a science! 🙂

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Thanks Emily! The possibilities are endless!

  • Sally @ Real Mom Nutrition
    Reply

    I haven’t tried avocado in smoothies yet but need to!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Because avocados are good in everything! 🙂

  • Marie
    Reply

    Great post, Lindsey! I’ve seen A2 milk in the store but haven’t tried it yet. Sounds like a nice alternative for people to try.

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      yes! Love that it tastes like real milk because it IS real milk. A lot of people expect that it’s going to have a sweet taste like with Lactaid, but it doesn’t!

  • Abby
    Reply

    This is fantastic! I’m just getting into smoothies now (late to the party)! Thank you!!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Thanks Abby!

  • Nazima
    Reply

    Great tips for a delicious smoothie! Love adding avocados to my smoothie!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      They seriously go with everything don’t they!

  • Sarah @ Bucket List Tummy
    Reply

    I love using oats to thicken up my smoothies. My husband was so scared of adding veggies at first but now he requests them every time!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      stealth health at its finest!

  • Jamie @ Dishing Out Health
    Reply

    Sounds great! I love adding avocado to smoothies!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Thanks Jamie!

  • Reply

    This smoothie looks so great and I keep hearing awesome things about A2- definitely need to try it out!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Yes you definitely do! I believe there’s a $1 off coupon on their website

  • Marie Spano
    Reply

    Great read! I’ll consider A2 for clients who think they can’t drink milk.

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Awesome! Their website has coupons for $1 off!

  • Reply

    I’m so interested in this! I can’t wait until I see some research on this milk, because the concept is so cool to me. And your smoothie sounds delicious 🙂

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Today’s Dietitian and DIFM had great webinars on the science of a2 protein. The Today’s Dietitian one was free, but not sure if it still is.

  • Bridget Swinney
    Reply

    Great ideas for flavor combinations Lindsey! I’m going to have to try a2 Milk!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Yes! It’s seriously a game changer for folks who think they can’t drink milk, but love milk!

  • Nutrition a la Natalie
    Reply

    Love me some a2 milk!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      I know you do! 🙂

  • Roxana
    Reply

    This looks great. So nutritious.

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      thanks Roxana! Only as nutritious as you make it!

  • Katie Cavuto
    Reply

    Love this! The add-ins are my favorite part 🙂

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      thanks Katie! the add-ins always make the smoothie more fun!

  • Emily
    Reply

    I had such a fantastic time working at the A2 Milk Booth st FNCE with you!! So glad this product is available!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      It was so nice to meet you too Emily! so glad we’re in the know about this product!

  • Wendie
    Reply

    This isn’t such a great tutorial! I will pin this!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Thanks so much Wendie! I love bulleted lists of ingredient ideas!

  • Kara @ Byte Sized Nutrition
    Reply

    So many great ideas for smoothie combos! And I definitely agree.. I think this product is going to be huge once more people get word of it!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      It’s already so popular in Australia!

  • Maria
    Reply

    Very interested in trying A2 milk–sounds like a great solution for a lot of people. Also love the smoothie add-in suggestions!

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      Thanks Maria!

  • Lauren Harris-Pincus
    Reply

    I need to trial some A2 milk in my house! Sounds like a fabulous solution for so many people 🙂

    • TastyBalance
      Reply

      I think you’ll love it!

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