This tropical spinach and kiwi smoothie is vegan and gluten-free, and is made with just five simple ingredients.

I wasn’t going to do a post today. I had planned to share a new chicken recipe, but I burned the chicken. I’m still getting used to the broiler at our new house. Evidently it’s mega strong, because literally 45 seconds after I put the chicken under it (and not even on the highest rack!) the top was totally charred. It tasted OK, but nobody wants to look at pictures of incinerated poultry.

File that one away under #foodbloggerproblems.

But then I made this smoothie for breakfast yesterday and it was so yummy I just had to snap a few quick photos and jot down the recipe!

It has been so unseasonably cold in the Northeast this week, and I think I’ve been digging tropical flavors as a way to compensate. This spinach and kiwi smoothie is no exception.

Last weekend we had brunch some of our old friends from Brooklyn. We all met through a new moms group in Park Slope, so we all have kids exactly the same age (October 2012).

There was a giant fruit salad on the table right in front of Owen’s chair and, fruit lover that he is, he kept trying to stick his hands in it. I even caught him trying to put back a strawberry that he had bitten.

He was very intrigued by the kiwis, and I realized that I don’t think he’s ever had one before.

So a few days later, I bought a whole bunch and made a big deal out of trying a new food. I showed him the fuzzy outside, we peeled it together (he’s obsessed with the vegetable peeler), and then we sliced it into fat wheels. He popped a piece in his mouth and deemed it “yummy!”

But then a minute later: “Mommy?”

“Yes?”

“Can you take out the black things?”

Aaaand fail. I tried to explain that it’s pretty much impossible to seed a kiwi, and that the seeds are part of the delicious fruit, but I could tell it was over, and that I had lost.

So I have been eating kiwis for the past few days, and loving them.

I don’t know why I don’t think to buy them more often. They are so cheap and I love adding them to a bowl of cereal, tossing them in with some yogurt, or blending them up in a healthy green smoothie like this one–ripe juicy kiwi, frozen banana, fresh baby spinach, almond milk, and chia seeds for extra fiber and crunch.

Spinach and Kiwi Smoothie

2016-04-07 15:32:15

Serves 1

The granola topping is optional, but I think it makes this smoothie a little more toothsome and filling. Feel free to swap baby kale for the spinach.

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Ingredients

1. 1 kiwi, peeled and cut into chunks
2. 1 banana, peeled, frozen, and cut into chunks
3. 1 cup loosely packed fresh spinach
4. 1 cup unsweetened vanilla flavored almond milk
5. 1 tablespoon chia seeds (or 1-2 tablespoons gluten-free oats)
6. 4-5 large ice cubes
7. Granola (optional)

Instructions

1. Combine the kiwi, banana, spinach, almond milk, chia seeds, and ice in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass and sprinkle with the granola (if using).

By Turnip the Oven

Turnip the Oven http://turniptheoven.com/