A typical fruit smoothie will have the bases of liquid, vegetable greens, and fruit. One of the best and healthiest vegetable greens you can add in your smoothies is spinach. Spinach is very healthy with an array of fiber, vitamins, and minerals.
Spinach is one of the most if not the most widely used vegetable greens for smoothies. Read on to learn all about including spinach in your smoothies.
What is spinach?
Spinach is a leafy green cruciferous vegetable. Spinach is a flowering vegetable and is an annual plant. The plant gets about a foot tall and has a stem with edible stem branches and leaves. The leaves are larger at the base of the plant and smaller towards the top where the plant flowers. Spinach is thought to originate in western and central Asia specifically near Persia/Iran and is now cultivated in many parts of the world including in the U.S. China accounts for most of the world’s production of spinach.
What does spinach taste like in smoothies?
Fresh Spinach has a very mild taste when blended up in a smoothie. Some greens like kale have a more bitter taste to them which can detract from the sweetness of a smoothie. With spinach, it is much milder and you can hardly notice any taste from spinach.
Spinach mostly just turns smoothies green and injects a bolus of vitamins, minerals, and fiber into it. I usually add two large handfuls to most of my smoothies and just about any fruit or liquid will overpower the taste of spinach. There are two kinds of readily available spinach to try regular mature spinach and baby spinach. Baby spinach will have smaller leaves and has less of a strong taste. If you are very sensitive to spinach taste try baby spinach.
What are the nutritional facts of Spinach?
Fresh raw spinach is mostly water with 4% carbs, 3% protein, and minuscule amounts of fat. Typical smoothie recipes contain 2 cups of spinach.
Two cups of spinach will have 14 calories with 2.2 grams of carbs, .2 grams of fat, and 1.7 grams of protein.
Also, spinach will have the following
- Calcium 59.4% daily value
- Iron 1.6 % daily value
- Potassium 334.8mg
- Vitamin A: 281.4% daily value
- Vitamin C 16.9% daily value
- and many more vitamins and minerals
Is spinach a superfood and is it healthy for you?
The category superfood is a bit of a loose definition. Typically superfoods are foods that are nutritionally dense while being good for you. Spinach easily falls into the superfood category. Spinach is a nutritional powerhouse.
Spinach is packed with Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, magnesium, manganese, iron, folate, B vitamins, Vitamin E, calcium, potassium, and Fiber. Spinach also contains many phytonutrients, antioxidants, flavonoids, and carotenoids.
With all of these different bodybuilding and maintenance blocks, spinach is purported to have many health benefits including eye health, heart health, bone health, cancer prevention, blood pressure-lowering, and can even help with skin and hair issues among many other health benefits.
What are the drawbacks of spinach in smoothies?
One of the biggest risks with regular consumption of spinach is if you are on blood-thinning medication such as Warfarin. Spinach is packed with vitamin K which impacts blood clotting and can reduce the efficacy of blood thinners.
You should also take caution with spinach if you have kidney issues. Spinach contains high levels of potassium. If excess potassium can’t be removed by the kidneys’ it can have negative impacts.
Another precaution with Spinach is its oxalate content. Spinach is an oxalate-rich food. Like many leafy greens, spinach contains oxalate which gives it its earthy bitter taste. Oxalate in high doses can have harmful effects on the body. A 15-30 gram oral dose of oxalate can be lethal to a person. With that said a study suggested that it take 3-6 pounds of spinach to reach that lethal dose. Eating that much spinach is highly unlikely. High amounts of oxalates can also increase the risk of kidney stones and upset stomach. It is best to consume spinach as part of a well rounded balanced diet and consult with medical professionals when needed.
Can you have spinach in your smoothies every day?
Having spinach in your smoothies every day is a great way to pack nutrition into yourself. A couple of cups of spinach per smoothie will not trigger the oxalate concern above; it will take pounds to do that.
What are the different kinds of spinach you can use for smoothies?
There are three main spinach varieties Savoy, Semi Savoy, and flat-leafed. Within these varieties, many sub-varieties are grown across the globe with subtle differences in taste and texture.
- Savoy: Mostly characterized by crinkled leaves that grow lower to the ground.
- Semi Savoy: Taller plants with less crinkled leaves.
- Flat Leafed: Easy to clean smooth flat surface often used for frozen and canned spinach products.
To be honest I’ve tried a few varieties and because spinach is so mild in taste I couldn’t tell the difference in smoothies that contained fruit.
Beyond the different types of spinach, it comes in different forms including canned, fresh, and frozen.
What is the best spinach for smoothies?
The best spinach to use for smoothies is fresh organic baby spinach. Baby spinach will have less tough fibers are the mildest spinach flavor for smoothies.
Before purchasing spinach take a close look at the spinach to make sure it is at its optimum freshness. The leaves of the spinach should be dark to bright green with no discoloration or spots. The stems and leaves should look and feel crisp with no wilt to them. Also, have a look at the composition of the spinach. I prefer to buy young spinach that has less of a fibrous stem for smoothies.
How to store spinach for your smoothies
To keep your spinach fresh and at its peak nutritional value you’ll want to consume within a few days or freeze it to lock in freshness and nutrients. If you need to store it for a few days before consumption there are a couple of tips to help keep it good. First, try to keep the spinach as cold as possible in your refrigerator without freezing it. Keep it in the coldest part of your fridge or if your fridge is equipped with a crisper box keep it in there. Try to keep your spinach as dry as possible, as moisture can cause the spinach to wilt prematurely. You can wrap your spinach in a paper towel before putting it in a container to keep it fresh longer. Try not to keep spinach with ethylene producing items like bananas and apples as they will cause spinach to wilt and deteriorate quicker.
Another great product that I’ve used to keep greens longer in the fridge is the Rubbermaid FreshWorks produce Saver Storage Containers. These work great by allowing airflow through the container as well as a crisper tray on the bottom to keep moisture away from the greens and other produce that you store in them.
If you don’t mind a colder thicker smoothie, freezing your spinach right away is a good option. Spinach nutrition begins to degrade the longer the plant has been harvested. Freezing the spinach will lock in the plant’s highest nutritional value it will have after harvest. To freeze spinach, first, wash the plant and thoroughly dry it with paper towels. Once the plant is completely dry place it in a plastic freezer bag or other freezer container and places it into your freezer. Frozen spinach will keep for many months frozen. Frozen spinach tastes the same, blends the same, but may make your smoothie colder and thicker.
How to use spinach in your smoothies.
I like to use fresh spinach in my daily morning smoothies. I will usually buy a big plastic box and use it daily throughout the week. I use both mature and baby spinach in my smoothies depending on what is available at my local grocery store. My normal routine is to grab two large handfuls and add it to my blender. This method equates to about 2-3 cups of fresh raw spinach. If I happen to have leftover spinach at the end of the week I simply put it into a zip lock freezer bag and freeze it for later use. I use the leftover frozen spinach the same way I use fresh in the same amounts. Frozen spinach may take a little bit longer to blend then fresh, but it tastes the same. Using frozen spinach will make your smoothie a tad bit thicker. I’ve not found the need to ever use or buy canned spinach or pre-frozen spinach.
Get your Popeye on!
Spinach is a superfood that is very easy to incorporate into most smoothie recipes. It is widely available and easy to sneak into recipes, so much so that my kids consume smoothies with copious amounts of spinach without question. I drink my warrior smoothie daily and the spinach is the star attraction. Click here to get the recipe.
Simple Spinach Banana Smoothie
- 1 cup Almond or Coconut milk
- 1 sliced frozen banana
- 2 cups spinach
- Optional- additional frozen fruit
Simply combine and blend till smooth