This Overlooked Gem Adds More Fiber And Nutrients To Your Smoothies

Smoothies are just one of many drinks that can boost your fiber intake and are easy to customize with your favorite fruits, vegetables, and other flavorful ingredients. While strawberry and banana is a standard base for a smoothie, you should consider a unique twist on this combination to infuse even more fiber into your drink. With notably less sugar than their yellow and ripened counterparts, green bananas are a delicious, nutritious, and endlessly versatile inclusion in your next smoothie.

Green bananas are a total nutrient-rich powerhouse. Whereas both yellow and green bananas contain around 3 grams of fiber per 118-gram serving, green bananas are also rife with a carbohydrate called resistant starch, which has similar properties to dietary fibers. The fiber-rich fruits also contain a significant presence of vitamin B6, manganese, potassium, and vitamin C.

It's worth noting that green bananas bear a flavor profile that is significantly less sweet with a firmer texture that can be somewhat waxy. While this may sound off-putting to those with a sweet tooth, imagine how easy it would be to mix in other high-fiber foods such as fresh berries, pears, or persimmons for a nutritious addition of sweetness. Much like ripe bananas provide a mostly bland base on which to build out your overall fruit or vegetable smoothie flavor, green bananas will seamlessly blend into the mix to provide extra fiber and a fuller-bodied beverage.

Green bananas will provide an excellent nutritional boost to any of your favorite refreshing smoothie recipes. Try swapping these in place of typical ripened bananas in a recipe to lessen the sweetness and elevate the presence of fiber and other nutrients. Even using half the amount of yellow bananas and supplementing this with green bananas is a great start.

If fiber is your primary goal, choose other ingredients that will elevate the green banana base of your smoothie. Berries and apples are ideal choices for fiber-rich fruits, and you can let either one inform the overall flavor profile of your smoothie. For example, imagine mixing apples, green bananas, and your choice of milk with a natural sweetener such as honey, and a generous shake of cinnamon for an apple pie-inspired drinkable treat.

For those who want to include more vegetables in their smoothies, start with leafy greens such as spinach and kale, and mix them with green bananas and your favorite tropical fruits, including pineapple and mango, for a tangy, vibrant beverage. To get a better idea of how a green banana will affect your smoothie, start by tasting a small bite and letting this inform your choice of coordinating ingredients. Don't be afraid to get creative by blending your favorite fiber-rich fruits and vegetables into a new nutrient-rich concoction.