A couple of Sundays ago, I chronicled how to quickly put together frozen smoothie packs for the workweek in my Instagram stories and got a number of questions about them. I've been making frozen smoothie packs like these for a while now and am wondering why I haven't properly shared the method here on the blog before. Well, today is the day so go ahead and get ready to have your mornings made oh so easy and breezy with this meal prepping hack. Are you sitting down, sis? Because here's the exciting part: You can spend about just 10 minutes putting these together on a Sunday evening then have fresh, nutrient-dense smoothies on any given morning in just two minutes. My morning routine is pretty time compressed but I have two minutes to spare for this. Do you? Let's get into the details then.
The most common complaint I get about meal prepping is that people don't want to eat the same thing every day. I am a creature of habit and can prep one or two options and be good for the whole week but I'm also not against changing things up. And you can totally have options with these smoothies. Put together a few different combinations of fruits & veggies, switch up your liquids, and you are set for a different groove every morning of the week. Use a permanent marker to label each frozen smoothie pack with the kind of liquid you want to add (shoutout to Momables for that tip!) and you can basically complete this process on autopilot before heading out the door to take on your day.
What I Put in My Frozen Smoothie Packs
- 1-2 handfuls fresh baby spinach
- 1 ½ cup fresh fruit & veggies (I used cherries, berries, nectarines, and carrots here)
- A one-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
- A few sprigs of fresh mint
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon cayenne
- One serving of protein powder
Once you're ready to make your smoothie in the morning, simply add the smoothie pack contents to your blender along with 1-2 cups of liquid and blend. It's really that easy. My go-to liquid options are pineapple juice, orange juice, and coconut juice. Feel free to add or omit whatever ingredients you want in order to make your frozen smoothie packs yours. Need ideas for your morning green smoothie? Try one of these delicious mixes:
Cherry Pineapple Ginger Smoothie | Glowing Skin Green Smoothie | Blacker the Berry Smoothie
Tips for Making Frozen Smoothie Packs
- Prep all produce before adding it to the smoothie packs. Examples of prep include peeling and cutting bananas, pitting cherries, hulling strawberries, etc. Your produce should be in the right state to toss into your blender before you freeze it.
- There's no science to the order in which you should add your dry ingredients to the bag but I recommend adding your protein powder and spices to the center, if possible. This will keep them from sticking to the sides of the bag as they freeze.
- I've also found that the spinach leaves do best when layered at the top of the smoothie packs. At the bottom, they can get soggy if your bags thaw at all.
- Place your smoothie packs in the freezer immediately after prepping them. This cuts down on moisture building up in the bags, which can lead to your ingredients freezing together in one hard chunk.
- To make it easy on your blender, pull the smoothie pack out of the the freezer about 15-30 minutes before you make the smoothie. This will allow the ingredients to thaw just a little.
- If you're including fresh greens like spinach, kale or mint in your smoothie packs, they will only keep for about a week. For longer term storage, I recommend using green cubes instead of fresh greens.
I know these frozen smoothie packs will make even your busiest mornings mornings breezy. Check out more meal planning tips here. Thanks for reading!
Frozen Smoothie Packs
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 1-2 handfuls fresh baby spinach
- 1 ½ cup fresh fruit & veggies
- 1 one-inch piece of fresh ginger peeled
- a few sprigs of fresh mint
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon cayenne
- protein powder
- 1-2 cups liquid of your choice
Instructions
- Add all ingredients except for liquid to a quart-sized zipper seal bag. Seal bag and label with the type of liquid you wish to add to the smoothie ingredients.
- Repeat first step for as many smoothie packs as you wish to make. Store in the freezer until ready to use (up to a week).
- Remove frozen smoothie pack from freezer and add contents, along with liquid, to a blender. Blend until smooth and uniform. Pour into a cup and enjoy immediately
Kaluhi says
I totally need this!!! Next week will be hella busy for me and i will 100% let this hack carry me through!
Jayne Rain says
This is a great idea to make the mornings at my house easy since my husband and I and love smoothies in the morning. I will be trying some of your recipes.
LaKita says
These frozen smoothie packs look so simple and delicious. The perfect on the go option!
Katrina Adams says
I have recently gained a new Love for smoothies so I will have to try some of your recipes!!
Desirée says
I've been wanting to test this out! Thanks for the reminder! 🙂
Aline says
Ahhhh this is perfect for me because I always buy things to make smoothies, but then never make them because I dont have enough time in the morning or the brain space to figure out what to mix with what lol I'm starting this today!!
Tamara J. says
This is such an awesome idea. These smoothies are a life saver to streamline our chaotic mornings! Thanks for the tips and idea.
Marta says
Okay, so don't laugh, but I've decided to eat better and start working out (this is going to last about a week, watch). So these smoothie packs are so timely!
Jazz says
PERFECT timing! These are so easy and you won’t regret them.