Green smoothies and green juice are all the rage.  There is nothing worse than going into your refrigerator to find wilted lacinato kale to make your kale juice.  What’s worse than wilted lacinato kale?  Spinach that has started to break down into a goopy mess.  Don’t get me started on old broccoli!  Yeah, I’ve been there. No fun at all.

I’m one of those people that needs a refrigerator full of produce to feel secure.  I’m also one of those people that get happy in the produce section of Whole Foods.  If I ever needed a serotonin booster for depression, all I would need is a trip to the grocery store.  That being said, my heart breaks when my greens have wilted before I have had a chance to use them all.  I set out to find a way to keep my greens fresh while I work my way through the produce in my fridge.

Here is a technique that has extended the life of my greens for green smoothies from 4 days to 2 weeks!

When you buy greens, know what you are going to use them for.  If you want a green smoothie or green juice or greens for a salad, you can separate them from the start once you know where your greens are going.

Wash your greens when you bring them home. I fill a bowl with pure water, add a little apple cider vinegar to the bowl and soak my greens. I swish the greens around the bowl to make sure the water gets to as much of the produce as possible and allow to soak for a few minutes. I then rinse them off at the sink.

You can lay the greens out to dry on a towel or put them in a salad spinner. Once dry, unroll a few sheets of paper towel and stack a few leaves on one end of the paper towel and fold the paper towel over, stack more leaves, and repeat.

Slide your wrapped greens into big labeled ziplock bags. Write Green Juice, Green Smoothies, or Salad on each of your bags.  This will ensure that you have what you need when you want to use it.  Make sure all the air is out of your ziplocks and store in the fridge. This give an extra two weeks before your greens go bad.

Note about Kale: Purchase thin kale, not thick paper-like feeling leaves. If I’m soaking and rinsing kale, I also de-stem it then too. If I am using kale in a green juice, I will not de-stem it.

To de-stem kale, hold it by the stem and with the other hand put your thumb and pointer finger on either side of the stem just above the leaves. Pull your fingers, along the stem, up to the part where the hard stem ends. The kale will be de-stemmed at this point.

If you want a super yummy Kale Chips Recipe, check out my super SUPER food kale chips that are like no other recipes out there.

If you loved “Green Smoothies – Keeping Your Greens Fresh,” make sure you check out how to keep your strawberries from going bad

Now that you know how to keep your greens fresh longer, you can buy more kale for your green smoothies! Here are the top 10 benefits from vegkitchen of  green smoothies – maybe you’ll find some inspiration.

And here’s a quiz for you: When are green smoothies not green smoothies? When they are red smoothies! (Check the link for more).