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If you’re new to smoothies—or new to adding greens—this vegan tropical smoothie is a great place to start. It’s light, fruity, and refreshing, with just a handful of easy-to-find ingredients. The tropical flavors from pineapple, banana, and orange shine through, while the spinach blends in seamlessly (promise—you won’t taste it).
This is the kind of smoothie that builds confidence. No fancy powders, no complicated steps—just whole foods that come together into a smooth, bright blend you’ll actually want to make again.
Table of Contents
Why This Vegan Smoothie Is Perfect for Beginners
This recipe keeps things simple and forgiving. Spinach has a mild flavor that disappears when blended, making it ideal for first-time green smoothie drinkers. Frozen pineapple adds natural sweetness and chill, while banana creates a creamy texture without dairy. With water as the base, the flavors stay clean and light, letting the fruit do the work.
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Ingredients You’ll Need
You only need five ingredients to make this smoothie:
- Spinach: This leafy green vegetable adds fiber and nutrients without changing the flavor.
- Water: A neutral base that keeps the smoothie light and refreshing, yet can be swapped with non-dairy milk.
- Orange: Brings brightness and natural sweetness.
- Frozen pineapple: Adds tropical flavor and a cold, creamy texture. You can alway cut pineapple and freeze it yourself.
- Banana: Smooths everything out and balances the citrus. You can alway freeze bananas to have on hand at all times for smoothies.
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How to Make Vegan Tropical Smoothie
- Start by adding the spinach and water to your blender. Blend until completely smooth—this helps prevent leafy bits. Next, add the orange, frozen pineapple, and banana. Blend again until creamy and fully combined.
- If the smoothie is too thick, add a splash of water. If it’s too thin, add a few extra pineapple chunks.
- Pour into a glass and enjoy right away.
Recipe Tips
- Always blend greens with liquid first for the smoothest texture. You can learn all about that in my how to make a smoothie guide.
- If you’re using one of my recommended blenders for smoothies, keep as much of the white-pith around the orange as possible because that pith contains more Vitamin C than the rest of the orange.
- Using at least one frozen fruit will give you a refreshingly cold vegan tropical smoothie. I don’t recommend freezing the orange for this smoothie since it acts as part of the liquid as well. If you do freeze the orange, then just add a bit more water to break down the ingredients.
More Tropical Smoothie Recipes
Tropical smoothies are delicious and easy to make. Here are some other popular recipes I’ve created over the years that you might enjoy:
If you make this vegan tropical smoothie recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below. Your feedback helps me and all the readers in this community. And if you’re interested in more plant-based recipes (and exclusive content), sign up for my weekly recipe newsletter.
Vegan Tropical Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup spinach
- ½ cup water
- ½ orange peeled
- ½ cup pineapple frozen
- ½ banana
- 1 serving homemade protein powder optional
Instructions
- Blend spinach orange, and water until smooth.
- Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.
Helpful Tools
Notes
- Use at least one frozen fruit for a refreshingly cold smoothie
- Use coconut water instead of regular water for an electrolyte boost
- This recipe uses less water than my other smoothie recipes because the orange acts like fruit AND liquid. If your orange is extra watery, don’t be afraid to lessen the amount of water to start.
- Feel free to swap spinach with other leafy green vegetables you have on hand (kale works great in this recipe too!)
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review for a chance to win signed copies of my cookbooks!Lots of smoothies ordered at restaurants contain dairy in the smoothie mix, protein powder, or boosters. If you want a true vegan smoothie, stick to a plant based milk (or water), real fruit, and leafy greens. Use vegan protein powder and dairy free yogurt to boost.
I recommend blending your smoothies in two steps. First, blend the leafy greens and liquid. Once there are no leafy bits remaining, then add in the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Thaw frozen ingredients slightly to make them easy to blend.
For the smoothest smoothies, look for a blender with a strong motor and good blade design. High-speed blenders are great for frozen fruit and greens, while personal blenders work well for quick, single-serve smoothies. Mid-range countertop blenders can be a solid option if you blend regularly. For a full breakdown and specific model recommendations, check out my in-depth article on the best blenders for smoothies.
A classic, all time favorite. What’s there not to like with this combo????
100%. So glad you enjoyed it.
Love this recipe! Have gotten brave and tried a few variants, the most surprising being substituting butternut squash for banana. At our house, we actually like this flavor better as it isn’t quite as sweet as banana.
Yum, either version!
This is such a nutrient protein packed smoothie I love it it’s delicious abs satisfying. Tastes great too.
Very similar to the orange Julius one but I like the added pineapple. I use pineapple a lot.
Pineapple’s nutritional profile is so lovely for boosting your immune system. Bonus points, Lynne!
I loved this one!! I added cucumber.
Cucumber is a great add. Very hydrating and refreshing! Thanks for sharing!
Love this recipe. The color is beautiful. I didn’t use as much fruit as the recipe called for or as much liquid and it was still great. Will make this again.
Perfectly sweet & refreshing. I have to watch my sugar count, so I left out the orange and the smoothie was delicious!
Enjoyed this smoothie and its vacation vibes on the back deck in the sunshine! Very refreshing!
I really like the taste of orange, and pineapple. After fourth day I felt that I experience some reduction in my pain and some improvement in my sleep.
That’s fantastic! That reduction in pain is most likely the inflammation calming in your body as you blend these ingredients daily.
This one made me feel like I was on island somewhere in the caribbean!! It was really refershing to taste.
Yes! A staycation via your blender!
This smoothie gave me vacation vibes, a winning combination!
Delicious and so easy.
Favorite!!!
You’ve done it again! This one is definitely a keeper. I did add collagen peptides, so mine was not vegan anymore, but I sure did love it.
Another star smoothie from Simple Green Smoothies. I love all of them including this one. Thank you!
Really liked the flavor. Need to blend a little longer as the orange did not fully blend up.