By now you probably know that one of my life mottos is “Something Green with Every Meal” (on permanent loan from my dear friend, Laurie) and with today being St. Patrick’s Day, I really needed to go for the gold!

Kiss me, I’m Irish.

My maternal great-grandparents immigrated from Cork, Ireland to Boston back in the early 1900s. Their daughter, my beloved Gram, instilled in me a deep pride for my Irish heritage through her charming stories, clever sayings, and her love for the New York City St. Patrick’s Day parade. Though we missed watching the parade again this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we celebrated the day by wearing our Kelly-green attire, feasting on the traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner, and of course, starting the day with a lucky green smoothie—which was far more appetizing than that time I dyed scrambled eggs green as a kid.

I make lots of green smoothies, but when I thought about what I could include in this one to make it feel as Irish as possible (also knowing it was for breakfast and my four-year-old would be drinking it too, you bartenders), two ingredients came to mind: a handful of frozen broccoli florets, which kinda look like shamrocks, and clover sprouts.

Lucky Green Smoothie Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make your own lucky green smoothie any day of the year:

Coconut Milk – Though a variety of milk would work here, I love how this sweet, tropical flavor compliments the fruit and balances out the greens.
Banana – Makes the smoothie sweet and creamy.
Spinach – Packed with nutrients and green power.
Clementine – We need a little orange to represent the Irish flag and brighten the flavor.
Lemon – I usually add 1 small, peeled lemon to my smoothies for their health benefits and delicious zing.
Super Seed Mix – A powerhouse pantry staple. My super seed mix is equal parts chia seed, hemp seed, and flaxseed.
Matcha Powder – An antioxidant-packed boost I’m always looking to sneak into recipes. And it’s green!
Frozen Mango – High in nutrients and tropical sweetness to balance out the greens.
Frozen Pineapple – Same as her tropical friend, mango.
Frozen Broccoli – Little shamrock lookalikes and basically one of the healthiest foods on the planet, so get it in your body!
Clover Sprouts – Full of Vitamins C and K, they put the “CK” in lucky.

Add all the ingredients to a high-powered blender and blend until smooth!

See the full recipe below.

Lucky Green Smoothie Recipe Tips

Use frozen fruit and veggies. I like a thick, frosty smoothie and frozen ingredients double as ice without watering it down.
Add the liquid to the blender first. When you’re blending frozen ingredients, it’s important that you add the liquid to the blender first so the blades don’t stall. Next, I add the remaining fresh ingredients followed by the frozen ingredients last.
Trust your tastebuds. One of my favorite things about smoothies is that you really can’t go wrong. After you blend it together, try a spoonful. Add more fruit or honey if you want it sweeter, more greens if you want it richer, or more liquid if you like it thinner.

While that blends…

Would you look at what I woke up to this morning: my little leprechaun standing in front of me fully dressed in everything green she owned. She even managed to find and snip the tags off of the ombre tulle skirt and shamrock headband I bought her and thought I had securely stashed away. This is going to get fun!

My little lucky charms, Summer and Jasper.

True or False.

Summer knows she’s drinking spinach, broccoli, and clover sprouts.

True. She helped me make the smoothie. But she can’t really taste them. And you probably won’t either. All of the bright citrus, tropical fruit, and coconut milk sweeten and mostly mask the flavor of the greens. See, lucky!

Any day is a good day for a green smoothie, especially one sprinkled with the luck of the Irish!

“Bless us with good food, the gift of gab, and hearty laughter. May the love and joy we share be with us ever after.”
—Irish Kitchen Prayer