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Table of Contents
- Ingredients You’ll Need
- Adding Protein to a Pineapple Smoothie
- How to Make a Pineapple Smoothie
- Tip for Blending Frozen Pineapple
- Easy Ingredient Swaps
- Canned, Fresh or Frozen Pineapple?
- Best Season to Buy Pineapple
- Common Questions
- More Smoothie Recipes with Pineapple
- Healthy Pineapple Smoothie Recipe Recipe
Pineapple is one of my favorite natural sweeteners for smoothies. I also love eating it plain, as a smoothie bowl topping, in salsas, or grilled for dinner. If you’re craving something sweet, this pineapple smoothie recipe is a healthy treat you can make for breakfast, a snack or a satisfying dessert.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Pineapple (Fresh or Frozen): Pineapple is the star of the show, providing a naturally sweet, tropical, and slightly tangy base. Grab it fresh or frozen—both work beautifully!
- Frozen Peaches: Frozen peaches introduce a subtle sweetness and a juicy, slightly floral note that complements the tropical flavor of pineapple.
- Plain Vegan Yogurt: This adds a creamy texture and a neutral base that balances the sweetness of the fruits. I like to use cashew yogurt to boost the creaminess in my pineapple smoothies. Many of the dairy-free brands add a lot of extra ingredients, additives, and dyes, so ALWAYS read labels when shopping for a new kind.
- Pineapple Chunks in Juice: These ramp up the pineapple flavor, add extra sweetness, and provide the liquid for blending. If you’re a pineapple fan, they’ll make your smoothie even richer and fruitier. Look for one that says 100% pure pineapple juice on the label.
Adding Protein to a Pineapple Smoothie
Adding a clean protein powder (look for unflavored and unsweetened) is a great way to boost protein and keep you full longer. I rotate between collagen and a plant-based option like my homemade protein powder.
How to Make a Pineapple Smoothie
- Cut pineapple (if using fresh). If you don’t know how to do this, check out my instructions on how to cut pineapple.
- Toss all the ingredients into a blender.
- Blend until smooth. Stop and scrape down the sides as needed. If your blender struggles, add a bit more liquid.
- Pour into glasses and enjoy your delicious pineapple smoothie!
Tip for Blending Frozen Pineapple
If your blender isn’t too powerful, try thawing the frozen pineapple (and peaches) for about 15 minutes before blending. The soften your fruit, the easier it is on your blend to puree everything.
Easy Ingredient Swaps
- You can swap out the cashew yogurt for coconut yogurt, coconut cream, homemade vegan yogurt recipe or a dairy-based yogurt— if it sits well in your body. Make sure to look for a yogurt without a lot of added sugar, and with as few ingredients as possible. I used Forager brand, which adds 3 grams of protein (always a win).
- Most of my smoothies with pineapple in them use water as the base. So I decided to switch it up and use a juice base for this one by adding in the entire contents of the canned pineapple. If you are trying to keep your sugar low, then swap that fruit juice for coconut water, coconut milk, or plain water. This pineapple smoothie drink isn’t short on flavor, so using water won’t let you down on taste.
- Another easy way to reduce the effects of the natural sugar content is to add in leafy greens. High in fiber, spinach or kale are great additions to this simple smoothie. Pineapple has a strong flavor and helps cut down on the sharper taste of kale. Leafy greens are loaded with fiber, which our bodies use to process sugars.
Canned, Fresh or Frozen Pineapple?
While we can all agree that fresh pineapple tastes AMAZING and has the most nutrients, that’s not always possible. It takes time to cut a pineapple and is often more mess than joy. When making a smoothie bowl, I like to cut up fresh pineapple to use on top and will also blend in some chunks.
I usually blend smoothies with frozen pineapple. Frozen is typically picked in its peak season and then frozen right away to preserve nutrients. Frozen pineapple also chills the smoothie so you don’t need ice, which can dull your blender blade overtime. It stores up to a year in my freezer and you can save money by buying big bags of frozen pineapple at Costco or Sam’s Club.
Canned pineapple is also processed within hours of harvest, helping to preserve nutrients. It’s also packed in liquid, which can be 100% fruit juice or a syrup. Look for one in 100% pineapple juice so you can blend it into your smoothies. Canned pineapple also has a long shelf life and good to keep in the pantry when you’re in a pinch.
Best Season to Buy Pineapple
Pineapple season is Spring and Summer in the United States, so buy up between March-July for the most bang for your buck. You can chop and freeze fresh pineapples to enjoy year round if you find a great deal.
Common Questions
All of them! But seriously, pineapple easily pairs well with berries, other tropical fruits like oranges, limes, mango, stone fruits like peaches and nectarines… the list goes on and on. Remember that ripe pineapple is naturally sweet, so pairing it with less sweet fruits like blackberries works well too.
Yes! I often use coconut milk in smoothies with pineapple, as the flavors go well together. This smoothie uses creamy yogurt in it, which blends well with pineapple as well.
Pineapple is loaded with nutrients, especially vitamin C. It’s rich in antioxidants and is a good source of fiber. Its anti-inflammatory properties make it great to take if you are fighting inflammation.
To switch up your pineapple smoothie, try adding mango for an even more tropical twist. Simply blend fresh or frozen mango, pineapple, and coconut milk until smooth and creamy. For an extra kick, toss in a squeeze of lime juice or a scoop of homemade protein powder for added flavor and nutrition.
More Smoothie Recipes with Pineapple
Pineapple is the perfect smoothie ingredient because it’s naturally sweet as well as inexpensive. You can find it both fresh and frozen in almost any grocery store.
Here are my top pineapple smoothies; I hope you can find a new fav too!
Which one of these sounds like a smoothie you wanna try? Let me know in the comments below… and don’t forget to try this new pineapple smoothie recipe!
Healthy Pineapple Smoothie Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup pineapple frozen
- 1 cup peach frozen
- 1 cup vegan yogurt plain
- 1 can pineapple chunks in juice
- 1 serving homemade protein powder optional
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients until smooth.
- Pour into glasses and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Swap the pineapple juice for coconut water or plain water for a less sweet treat
- Swap the canned pineapple for fresh pineapple
- Peach can be subbed with nectarine or mango
- Add up to 1 cup of leafy greens to cut down on the sugar in this recipe as well as provide extra nutrients.
- Use your own vegan yogurt if you want to know exactly what’s in the ingredients.
i hat size can of pineapples?
Hi Jessica, the recipe calls for ½ cup pineapple frozen! For the canned you could do 8 oz. Enjoy!
This was so refreshing. I taste tested this before adding the yogurt. I used a plain coconut milk yogurt since that was in my fridge. It added a creaminess to this smoothie that made it feel more dessert like.
LOVE this smoothie! Pineapple = yummy 🙂
Love how tropical this smoothie is. One of my favs!
HI! what size can of pineapple chunks do you use? want to try this!
I can;t find plain cashew yougart ? A suibstitute ?
Thank You, something without bananas, which I totally dislike.
Made this with all frozen pineapple (no canned on hand), water, and vanilla cashew yogurt. A little sweeter than my normal smoothies but so good! I could easy add spinach to it to cut down on the sweetness too.