Kale Beet Smoothie

The beet kale smoothie uses simple ingredients and only takes about 10 minutes to prepare.  It's also an easy way to pack more veggies into your day, using raw beets and fresh kale.

For more smoothies with beets, try a pineapple beet smoothie, a beet blueberry smoothie, or a spinach beet smoothie.  For more vegan smoothie recipes, try a cucumber apple smoothie or a cherry mango smoothie.

Recipe features

• Naturally sweet!
• Plant-based and dairy-free!
• It comes together in 10 minutes!
• It's packed with veggies and fruit!
• Kid-friendly and for the whole family!

Ingredient notes and substitutions

The beet and kale smoothie recipe has simple ingredients, but please see the recipe card below for the exact measurements.

Raw beet - Wash one red beet and remove the ends.  Then peel it and give it a rough chop.  I cut the beet into large chunks, it works fine for my Vitamix. If you're not using a high-speed blender you may need to dice the beets to blend more smoothly.  Then blend them with the kale and water before adding the rest of the ingredients.  

If the greens are still attached to the beetroot, they can be used as a substitute for some kale.  When I used the stems and leaves, the smoothie tasted more like beets. I only tested with red beets; I haven't tried canned beets, so I can't say for sure how they would turn out.  For leftover beets, try a beet and pineapple smoothie or a beetroot Buddha bowl.

Ripe banana - Use a ripe banana to add creaminess and sweetness to the beet kale smoothie.  Fresh or frozen can be used.  A frozen banana will thicken the smoothie slightly more.

To freeze bananas, start by peeling the banana, then slice it.  I like to slice the bananas into quarters, so I know when I have a bag of frozen bananas, four pieces will equal a whole.  We use a high-speed blender, but if your regular blender has trouble with larger pieces of frozen bananas, then slice the pieces smaller before freezing.  For another recipe using frozen bananas, try a carrot banana smoothie or a banana beet smoothie.

Kale - Use about two cups of fresh chopped kale with stems removed.  For leftover kale, try it in a tropical island smoothie. Want to add new greens to your smoothie? Try an arugula smoothie that pairs the peppery greens with pineapple and oranges.

Frozen mixed berries - I use frozen mixed berries from the store for the kale beetroot smoothie.  We enjoy the variety of frozen berries that contain cherries.

Water - Use 1 to 1 ½ cups of water depending on the size of your beets and if you're using a frozen banana.  While testing I needed about 1 cup for the small beets and up to 1 ½ cups when I used larger beets and a frozen banana.  Coconut water will work instead of water for a different variation. 

Tips

• To make it less sweet, use more greens or reduce the recipe's suggested amount of fruit. 
• To make it sweeter, add more ripe bananas or a soft pitted Medjool date.  Firmer dates may not blend well.
• Make sure to peel the beet before adding it to the blender.
• You can wear latex gloves while peeling the beet if you're worried about the beets staining your hands.

Variations

• Try different frozen berry mixes.
• Use spinach instead of kale.
• Add orange juice or a freshly peeled orange.
• Use coconut water instead of water
• Grate a little fresh ginger into the beet kale smoothie.
• Add hemp hearts, ground flax seeds, or chia seeds.  If the smoothie thickens up too much add a splash of water to thin out.

How to make a kale beet smoothie

Wash the veggies.  Remove the ends of the beet, then peel it, and give it a rough chop. Remove the stem from the kale and tear the leaves into pieces.  

Add the beet, kale, ripe banana, frozen berries, and water to a blender.  Start with 1 cup of water and add more if needed.  Blend until smooth.  

If you don't have a high-speed blender try dicing the beets and tearing the kale into bite-size pieces.  Make sure to remove the stem from the kale leaves.  Blend the beets and kale with the water first before adding the banana and frozen berries.

Storage

The beet kale smoothie is best if served immediately, but store the leftover smoothie in an airtight container with a lid in the refrigerator and consume it within 24 hours.  If there is any liquid separation, stir it back in. Leftovers can be frozen in ice cube trays and used later.

Frequently asked questions

Related recipes

• Arugula smoothie
• Tropical island smoothie
• Spinach pineapple banana smoothie
• Orange carrot ginger smoothie
• Blackberry strawberry smoothie
• Ginger lemon cucumber water

I hope you enjoy the dairy-free smoothie!  If you did feel free to rate the recipe and leave a comment.