Smoothies are an easy way to get fiber and phytonutrients. You can get your whole family to eat veggies and fruits in the form of smoothies.
Many people get only 15-20 grams of fiber a day. The minimum recommendations are 25 grams for women and 38 for men. I do recommend though higher intake. I personally try to get 40 grams a day. A general guideline is to get 14 grams of fiber per 1000 calories you eat. This is the minimum.
What can you add to your smoothie to get fiber
All plants have fiber, fruits, berries, spinach, kale, and seeds are a great fiber source for smoothies. Some fruits and veggies have more fiber than others. Here is a list of high fiber ingredients I recommend using for smoothies. List of fruits are further down.
| Food item | Fiber in grams/50 g |
|---|---|
| Kale | 3,4 |
| Broccoli | 1,8 |
| Avocado | 3,4 |
| Chia seeds | 17,2 |
| Rolled oats | 5 |
| Dates | 3,6 |
| Raspberries | 1,9 |
| Blueberries | 1,6 |
| Strawberries | 0,9 |
| Dried figs | 4,7 |
To make your smoothie taste good, it needs some sweetness. If you want to add greens, it is good to pair them with some fruits. Dates are a great fruit that works as sweeteners; dates also have fiber in themselves. 2-3 soft dates often give smoothies enough sweetness so that your kids love them as well. Banana, mango, pear, and apple are also common fruits for sweetening.
Are fruit smoothies high in fiber?
By choosing high-fiber fruits, you can maximize your fiber intake. The highest fiber fruits are passionfruit, avocado, pomegranate, and pear. Adding 1 tablespoon of chia or flax seeds or some oats increases the fiber amount by 3 grams.
Here is a list of fiber content in some fruits that go well in smoothies and make them sweet and delicious.
| Fruit/peeled, without stones | Fiber in grams /100 g |
|---|---|
| Pear | 3,1 |
| Kiwi | 3 |
| Banana | 2,6 |
| Apple | 2,4 |
| Avocado | 7 |
| Persimon | 3,6 |
| Orange | 2,4 |
| Papaya | 1,7 |
| Pineapple | 1,4 |
| Cherries | 1,5 |
| Apricots | 1,9 |
| Mango | 1,6 |
| Peaches | 2,1 |
| Plums | 1,7 |
| Watermelon | 1,1 |
Bananas are often the fruit to use to get sweetness, creaminess, and thickness for a smoothie. If you are not banana fan mangoes are a great replacement. They also give some creamy consistency. Coconut cream is the ultimate creaminess giver.
Get extra fiber from seeds
Flax seeds, chia seeds or hemp hearts are a great addition to your smoothie.
- Flax seeds 1 tbsp, 2,6 grams fiber.
- Chia seeds 1 tbsp, 3,4grams of fiber
- Hemp hearts 1 tbsp, 2,8 grams of fiber
- Hemp heats , peeled, 0,4 grams of fiber
Seeds are a nutrient bomb; they have proteins, omega 3 fatty acids, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Seeds are a good source of iron, calcium, magnesium, and zinc. Seeds are a good source of healthy fats that don't contain any cholesterol. Flaxseeds contain lignan, and this can help to prevent some cancers.
With seeds, it is good to limit them somewhat, since they have phytic acids. This is an antinutrient that can reduce the absorption of Iron and Zinc. Flax seeds in some areas also can have cadmium, so limiting the intake to 1 tablespoon is good. In another study, the safe limit was 50 grams a day.
Top with greens to boost with fiber and phytonutrients
I think greens are a must to add in your smoothie. Sometimes t can feel hard to get enough greens and you might think if it is that necessary. They are so easy to add in the smoothie and you get a lot of vitamins if you add some. Just a couple of kale leaves(30 grams) gives you 35% of vitamin A and 30% vitamin C-need that you need a day.
Greens you can add to your smoothie
- Kale
- Spinach
- Broccoli
- Celery
- Mint
- Collard greens
- Carrot tops
- Swiss chard
- Bok choy
- Watercress gives a spicy flavor.
Spinach is the one mildest and often kid approved also, it does not taste is you add some fruit aswell. I buy spinach as frozen, it comes handy in small cubes in the freezer bag, and it is so simple just to toss 1-2 cubes to the blender. This also makes the smoothie nice cold and refreshing.
It is also easy to add some green powders like chorella, spirulina, nettle or wheat grass powder. Remember to start with small doses since they are quite powerful and can give you for example headache or diarrhea.
Add grains to your smoothie
Some grains can be an addition of fiber to your smoothies. Oats and quinoa are for example high in soluble fiber. Rolled oats you can add directly to your smoothie. Other grains are best as cooked. Add a maximum of ½ cup grains to a big smoothie, otherwise they might take over tastewise. I like to add 2-3 tablespoons of oats in my smoothies.
| Grains 50 grams | The total fiber in grams |
|---|---|
| Rolled oats | 5 |
| Cooked quinoa | 1,5 |
| Amaranth flakes | 3,4 |
| Cooked barley | 0,9 |
Benefits of fiber
- Regulates bowel movements
- Helps to stabilize blood glucose levels
- Helps to prevent cancers
- Lowers cholesterol
- Helps to feel satiated
- Helps to maintain a healthy weight
Blending does chop up the fiber smaller. This results in a bit faster absorption of the sugars in the smoothie.
A non sugary smoothie with greens and fruits is great to have every day. Don´t overconsume high oxalate foods every day though, otherwise you can get kidney stones.
Supplements you can add to your smoothie for fiber
Psyllium husk is one fiber type you can safely add to smoothie. One common brand name for it is metamucil.
Oat fiber is also common. Oat brans or other grain brans are a great addition to get fiber.
High fiber smoothie recipes
Smoothies are great to make in a high-speed blender, you get a smooth consistency even when using frozen berries or fruits. If you don't have a blender you can read tips on how to make smoothies in a food processor in this article of orbit kitchen.
Banana-Raspberry-Kiwi smoothie
This recipe has 10,2 grams of fiber! You also get all the vitamin C you need for the day. All of these fruits are ones that have a high fiber content so you get naturally lots of fiber. This is also topped with some additional chia seeds. To get a nice summer drink you can use a frozen banana instead of ice.
- Calories 230
- Fiber 10,2g
- Carbs 43g
- Protein 4g
- Fat 3g
Blueberry Spinach Banana smoothie
This smoothie has a creamy consistency. The original recipe is made with Greek yogurt, but I used coconut-based vegan yogurt, so delicious with that also. In this smoothie, there are some flax seeds added. They have added fiber and omega 3 fatty acids. This smoothie is an easy way to get some greens; you can't taste the spinach. Also, a couple of kale leaves would work great in this.
- Calories 280
- Fiber 8,5g
- Carbs 40g
- Protein 8g
- Fat 7,5g
Broccoli smoothie
Broccoli is a really healthy green, it can be hard to get in your diet, but this smoothie is perfect in "hiding" it. This smoothie gets sweetness from cherries, banana, and juice. Cherries and banana are also high in fiber. Avocado gives healthy fats, is filling and also very high in fiber. Recipe makes 4 glasses or 2 big portions.
One big portion of the smoothie contains:
- Calories 310
- Fiber 9g
- Carbs 38g
- Protein 6g
- Fat 13g
Fiber smoothie cubes
This was such a fun idea from Jen Hansard. Such a simple way to meal prep smoothies and especially fiber into your diet. You make a mix of chia, hemp, psyllium husk, dates, cacao, and some liquid and pour it into ice cube trays.
I tried these without the cacao, since I think this way the tastes go well with all kinds of flavors. I added some apple puree to my cubes.
When you make your smoothie just add 1-4 fiber bombs in it.
One cube has:
- Calories 70
- Fiber 2,7g
- Carbs 8g
- Protein 2,5g
- Fat 3,9g
