Zucchini Smoothie (5 ingredients!)

Zucchini - Obviously you're going to need some zucchini to make a zucchini smoothie. But don't use raw zucchini! Chop the zucchini up into large pieces and freeze them before making this smoothie. Frozen zucchini is practically tasteless and creates a creamy, frosty-like smoothie.

Banana - Just like the zucchini, you're going to want to use frozen banana in this recipe. I still can't believe I ever used raw bananas in my smoothies. Frozen bananas make any smoothie taste like a milkshake. I like to wait until my bananas are nice and brown and spotty, then peel them before breaking them into pieces and placing them in a freezer-safe zip-lock bag.

Non-Dairy Milk - I personally love to use homemade cashew milk (so creamy!) in this recipe, but any non-dairy milk will work. Usually I opt for unsweetened milk so that I can control the sugar content in my smoothies. To bulk up the protein content in this smoothie, use soy milk!

Vanilla Protein Powder - I love adding vanilla protein powder to this smoothie. It makes this zucchini smoothie so creamy and sweet. Just use whatever brand of plant-based protein you like best! I personally love California Gold Nutrition Vanilla Protein and Orgain Protein Powder.

Nut Butter - You can use any nut butter you have on hand. Peanut butter will add more protein, but cashew and almond butter are more neutral flavored and just add richness to this zucchini smoothie. If you can't eat nuts, sunbutter would also work!

See recipe card for full list of ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions & Variations

• Zucchini - Frozen zucchini is the star of this zucchini smoothie, but another vegetable I love to add to smoothies is steamed and frozen cauliflower. If you don't have either on hand, just add more frozen banana.
• Protein Powder - Vanilla protein powder adds so much flavor to this smoothie and helps to thicken it up. If you don't have any, I would add another ½ of a frozen banana.
• Chocolate Zucchini Smoothie - To make this zucchini smoothie like a chocolate milkshake, add in a tablespoon of cocoa powder! YUM! Plus, the cocoa powder will help to cover up the green color of this smoothie.
• Nut Butter - Like I mentioned above, any nut butter would work in this recipe. I like to add peanut butter for added protein, but my favorite nut butters to is cashew butter because it makes this smoothie taste like ice cream.

I've added both fresh and frozen zucchini to my smoothies and, technically, both work. However, I think frozen zucchini is the best option. When you cut and freeze zucchini, it makes the zucchini practically tasteless. Frozen zucchini also helps to thicken up your smoothies and makes them nice and creamy.

How to Freeze Zucchini for Smoothies

I like to buy a few zucchinis at a time and prep them all at once so I always have frozen zucchini on hand for smoothies. First I wash them and then I chop them up into fairly large pieces. I've found that they don't blend as well if you cut them too small. Once chopped, I simply place them in a freezer-safe zip lock bag and freeze them in a single layer (if possible). Then, whenever I'm making a smoothie, I can just throw a handful of frozen zucchini into the blender to add volume and nutrition!

I don't recommend storing this zucchini smoothie. Personally I like smoothies best when I drink them immediately after making them, especially if there is frozen banana in the smoothie! If you wait to drink this smoothie (even if you stick it in the fridge) the frozen banana will thaw and start to oxidize which isn't my favorite flavor.

However, if you want to make a large batch in advance, I recommend dividing the smoothie into single servings using freezer-safe glasses and storing them in the freezer. To thaw, transfer the smoothie from the freezer to the fridge and allow it to thaw for a few hours. The colder you keep this smoothie the better!