The secret to successfully making a good pear smoothie recipe is making sure your pear is ripe so it releases the sweet and juicy goodness that screams spring.
Pears are one of the most underrated fruits out there, in my opinion. I have a feeling it has to do with how difficult it can be to find a ripe one and enjoy it before it goes bad. Reminds me of the avocado and this cute drawing from Simon Drew.
Its true: The window of perfection is short, yet if you time it right it's spectacular! And trust me, it's worth giving it a shot for this pear smoothie recipe.
Ripening pears for this smoothie recipe
Oftentimes grocery stores only sell hard pears that take a week+ to ripen. Look for ones that don't have any cuts or bruises since those will go bad quickly.
To speed up the ripening process, I put my pears in a brown paper bag and close tightly. As the pears ripen, a hormone known as ethylene is produced and emitted as a gas that is now trapped in the bag. This allows the fruit to ripen faster and more evenly than it would if kept in a plastic bag where air can't circulate, or out in the open where ethylene can't accumulate.
Add a banana
If the paper bag isn't doing the trick, try adding a banana in there! Bananas are pros at producing that ethylene gas for ripening and can speed up the process for you. This way you can turn those hard pears into softer + juicier ones, ready for your next pear smoothie.
Where did pears come from?
It turns out, pears are thought to originate in China. Jules Janick of Perdue University wrote that pears were widely planted in Japan as guardians of property because they were thought to ward of evil. Now that's a powerful tree and fruit. Kinda reminds me of how the fiber in this pear smoothie works like a prebiotic in our gut to ward off evil bacteria. Go pears!
Health benefits of whole food
Using plant-based whole food in your smoothies will exponentially increase the health benefits. These foods are the most natural, nutrient-dense foods on earth and are easy for our body to absorb the vitamins and minerals from them when blended. Examples are fruits like pears (of course!), peaches and bananas or veggies like spinach, kale and sweet potato.
What's good about this Pear Smoothie?
The ingredients in this pear smoothie are total nutrient rawkstars, in my opinion. If you blend it up, then you'll totally get these awesome benefits...
Pears: Pears are especially rich in folate, vitamin C, copper, and potassium. They’re also a good source of polyphenol antioxidants, micronutrients that are disease fighters.
Peaches: Peaches are low in calories and packed with minerals and vitamins such as antioxidants and vitamin C, which are required for the building of connective tissue inside the human body. Plus who doesn't need more vitamin C these days to boost immunity?
Spinach: Spinach is an extremely nutrient-rich vegetable according to Healthline. Consequently, it packs high amounts of carotenoids, vitamin C, vitamin K, folic acid, iron, and calcium.
Increasing your smoothie's protein count
If the nutritional benefits above aren't quite enough and you're looking for more plant based protein for your smoothie, check out Protein Smoothie Boost. All of the protein powders on the market these days seems to have extra ingredients I don't care to put in my hard working body. As a result, I decided to make my own protein powder - Protein Smoothie Boost! 1 serving nets an extra 10g of protein in any smoothie. Toss it in you next pear smoothie!
Pear Smoothie
Rate this Recipe Print RecipeIngredients
- 1 cup spinach
- 1 cup water
- 1 pear (ripe)
- ½ cup peach (frozen)
- 1 serving Protein Smoothie Boost (optional)
Instructions
- Blend spinach and water until smooth.
- Add remaining fruit and blend again.
Notes
- The more ripe your pear, the creamer the smoothie will be.
Nutrition (estimated)
Smoothie Challenge Recipes
This smoothie recipe is from our free Smoothie Challenge. If you're looking for more recipes, then make sure to sign up for the challenge to get your guidebook which has your shopping list, recipes and prep guide. I’ve also included the recipes below for you to access and leave reviews of all the recipes you try.
Janice
This recipe needs a little more pizazz. Perhaps some lemon juice. I used mangoes and perhaps they don’t have as much flavor as peaches.
Simple Green Smoothies
Peach def has a different flavor than mango. We especially love fresh peaches in this recipe, if you get a chance to blend again.
Lynne
The pear made this one have extra texture and like the combination of the peach with it. Again I used kale.
Cynthia
The pear and peach flavors are surprisingly refreshing.
ALBA ROCIO CLAVIJO
the smoothie was delicious, I just added flax seeds, coconut water and because I didn’t have pearI replace it for pineapple
Julie Best
Very refreshing and so easy to make. I love to keep a bag of frozen peaches on hand just for this smoothie!
Cheryl B.
This was just okay for me. My review isn't a true picture of the recipe since I didn't add as much fruit as called for. I subbed kefir for 1/2 of the liquid. I also added some cardamom and cinnamon, as well as hemp hearts.
Sushila Shah
ireally like with pear. I have neer added pear in my smootie but I really like this smoothie with pear. For me it is unique test. I will make it again.
Barbara
Great! Really enjoyed the pear flavor.
Nancy Lewellen
Refreshing!
Jenn.
Not my fave! But I tried it and now I know.
HOPE
Ok, this one really surprised me! I typically do not like pear. My grandma’s house sits in the country on 20 acres of land and I remember eating tons of fruit right off the trees growing up. I did not like pears and have avoided them throughout my life. Therefore, I was NOT excited about this smoothie. However, I took you advice and tried to get a really ripe pear. And boy did that make a difference! I remember pears having a gritty texture, juicy, but not really having a flavor. This smoothie was NOTHING like that! It was refreshing and light, smooth and creamy, and slightly sweet. Well, done! I will definitely be making this one again!
Simple Green Smoothies
Love that this was such a great experience for you, Hope!!! Isn't it so comforting when food memories take you back to good times growing up, whether it's a food we loved or not? Thank you so much for sharing!
Cheryl Robillard
Might be my favourite so far!
Joyce
The Spring Pear smoothie was good. My turned out very frothy. I didn't have peaches, so I used frozen pineapple. I think my pear could have be a little riper, but I still enjoyed it.
Simple Green Smoothies
For a frothy smoothies, def blend at a lower speed just prior to serving. Our high-powered blenders add lots of air in when moving fast and can cause a foamy or frothy smoothie. So glad you gave it a blend, Joyce!
Rachelle McCann
This smoothie has a wonderful fresh taste. Very good, but will be even better when I have fresh local pears from me neighborhood orchards.
Alannah
This smoothie was surprisingly not too sweet. I added kale to this one which might account for it not being as sweet as I thought it would be. I’d add banana next time to help with the creaminess. Still very tasty!
Ogechi Nwaokelemeh
A little gritty.. but tasty nonetheless!
Dora Suarez
Wow, I was so expecting grit with this one, totally blown away, not gritty, so yeah you need a ripe pear. I added cilantro and the flavors just pop.
Linda E.
My husband and I really liked today's smoothie. We will make this often when pears and peaches are in season.
This smoothie challenge has been interesting and fun. I never thought my husband would be eating smoothies with me.
Simple Green Smoothies
Yay Linda! Next step... He'll be cleansing with you for a Thrive 7-Day Reset like my hubby did in Jan! 😉
Holly
I will definitely be making this simple smoothie during peach season, my peaches today weren't very sweet! I can't remember the last time I had a pear....I forgot how much I like them 🙂 Great recipe! Mild but really good!
Ruby
Definitely did have a ripe enough pear! Still refreshing
Debbie A Meshishnek
I enjoyed using the pear, first time but will not be the last.
Simple Green Smoothies
Woo hoo!!! 🙂
Laura Young
Tasty and refreshing!
Jennifer A
I enjoyed this and I don’t even like pears because of the texture. I added about 1/4 cup of loosely packed cilantro for an herb boost., as well as some collagen.
Simple Green Smoothies
Smoothies are a great way for us to eat things that are good for us that we normally wouldn't care to munch on. So glad you have a way to rawk the health benefits of pears and really cool add-ins. Thanks for sharing!
Dawn
This was good with just a few items. I tried to herb it up with my rosemary made it ok. I'd like to try some of the other tasty sounding reviews.
Simple Green Smoothies
Love all the awesome ingredient ideas being shared. Def keep us posted on what you like, Dawn!
Dr. Aja Holmes
working with pears is always something that I say I want to do more of once I complete this challenge, then another year has gone by and I have not had one pear since the challenge! So I thank this challenge for getting us to eat pears! This smoothie was yummy! I like that it was easy to make and it got me to eat a pear!
Simple Green Smoothies
So glad we prompted you to rawk some more pear in your life! They are great to toss in salads too, with nuts like our Pear Salad with Pomegranates 🙂
Cristina Ribeiro
Mine tasted good at first fresh, but then flavour changed, maybe because. Added chia, hemp and flax seed? Thick but good
Simple Green Smoothies
Thanks for the feedback Cristina! A cool way to work with these recipes is to blend it as-is first, give a taste and then add as you feel led from there. It helps to keep from having any smoothie fails. 🙂
Janice
I thought this was too bland, so I added fresh lemon juice and Superfood.
Laura Jacobson
Very good -delicious! I will make this one again! It is always nice to have pear in a smoothie!
Simple Green Smoothies
Pear is such a great lower-glycemic fruit that's full of fiber. So glad you're loving them in smoothies!
Grace
Simply delicious. I bought my pear over a week ago so it was perfectly ripened. Tasted like Spring! I added hemp protein powder, black chia seeds and ground flax.
Simple Green Smoothies
Yum Grace! Way to rawk that perfect pear game!
Michele
This smoothie was not one of my favorites. It tasted watery and bland, maybe due to the pear that I used? The color was bright green, but the taste didn't compare to the previous smoothies. The next time I make this, I would add 1/2 a banana to give it some creaminess.
Simple Green Smoothies
Love the plan for adding creaminess. Avocado would do that too, if you want to leave out the sweetness from banana. Def give it a blend with a ripe pear, as that may improve the taste for you.
Pat L.
YUM! This one was so good my daughter took a sip and asked for the rest I hadn't poured in my glass! 🙂 Definitely a keeper....I have a LOT of ripening pears so gonna stock the freezer with prepped bags of this one!
Simple Green Smoothies
Prepping ahead is a great way to stay on track with a healthy smoothie habit Pat! When things are already ready for you, it's so much easier to grab what's good instead of the junky things. Nice!
Judith Walter
I think smoothies with pears in it are my favorite. I substituted the spinach for the kale and added Chia seeds. Amazing
ChuriceR
Definitely a hit a ripe pear is very prominent in this smoothie. Added ginger for a zing kick.
gloria
Not My favorite, I found the pear off putting when mixed in smoothies but it was a nice consistency.
Roxann
I blended it with 1/2 peeled ripe pear and had to add the other half. I’ll be making this one again and may add some ginger to it. Since this is my first time doing your challenge, I have not been adding other ingredients to any of the recipes. Thanks!
Clareen M
Wow was this smoothie great!! I bought my pears at the beginning of the challenge so they'd ripen & it was great!! Used coconut water, Chai flavored turmeric & collegen supplement for some spice & cumin for a lemony burst. First time I didn't want vanilla protein to mask any flavors
Jeannette Pepin
I added a frozen smoothie booster cube. Not a great fan of pears by themselves, but this was quite tasty.
Sharon
Added smoothie cubes and banana. Yummy
Alyssa
A nice and refreshing smoothie that's great for when you're out of bananas, yogurt or just want a break from your regular recipes! I made this as a breakfast smoothie by adding oats, matcha, chia seeds, and hemp hearts.
Amanda Peters
Not bad. Might need a riper pear (if that's a word) lol.
Amy Maxfield
Peaches and pear are my jam! Put a little Anaheim or Poblano too! Peaches and pepper. So nice!
Grace
Spring pear was simple and refreshing! I made one substitution by using organic silk dragon jasmine tea instead of regular water.
Shelley Anne
I don't like eating pears, they always tasted floury to me. By reading the above info, now I know why. It was not ripe enough.
Anyway I used a ripe pear in this smoothie.
It was delicious. Love this smoothie a lot. I also used coconut water instead of water.
Meagan
Is debated making another smoothie because my pear wasn’t ripe but I added cinnamon & allspice + blended pumpkin seed milk & thyme. I quite loved it!!! Delicious!!
Sher
Spring Pear Smoothie
It was creamy but not sweet and had a refreshing taste. I really enjoyed it. Will add this to my go to smoothies. Since this was lunch for me I added a teaspoon of unsweet almond butter, flaxseed and coconut oil.
Jean
I beefed this one up with a lot of protein: peanut butter powder, plant based protein powder, chia seeds, ground flax seed and some cinnamon. This makes it thick and somewhat grainy but not bad! I didn't have a pear so used an apple instead.
Simple Green Smoothies
That sounds really good!
Laura Young
Pretty tasty! Added salad burnet as herbs and it was refreshing!
Sherri Lyness
Pear and Peach!
Yum. So Sweet and Simple!
Erin
I am not a big fan of pears, but the peaches in this recipe help bring out the sweetness of the pears, creating a delicious smoothie!
Ella
I LOVE PEARS!
I just love it and this smoothie was so nice.
I made it into a meal - so it was a little bit thick.
Cristina Ribeiro
Made this 1 day early because didn’t have ingredients for spinach kale. Could really taste pear, delicious