Beat the summer heat with these three healthy, frozen fruit smoothies the whole family will enjoy, especially the kids! This post includes the recipes for our three favorite flavors: strawberry banana, tropical, and creamy green.
My children beg me to make these smoothies almost everyday. Their current favorite is the strawberry banana flavor. Or, as they like to call it, “the pink smoothie.” These three smoothies are perfect for a hot day when you’ve been outside and need a cold, refreshing treat when you head back inside to cool off. Living in Alabama, the summers here get VERY hot! Frozen fruit smoothies are excellent, healthy, homemade alternatives to store bought, sugary popsicles or ice cream. The kids can still enjoy a cold, sweet treat without any added sugars or dyes. Plus, it’s easy to sneak in a little spinach, avocado, or other vegetables. Let’s get started!
Why You’ll love these frozen fruit smoothies:
- They are cool and refreshing on a hot summer day.
- The bananas make them extra creamy, sweet, and delicious.
- All the frozen fruit in these smoothies make them as cold as popsicles or ice cream.
- The fruits make them naturally very sweet without sweeteners of any kind.
- You can add your own combination of fruits or veggies to make your own flavors!
- The creamy green smoothie is sweetened with honey as a healthy sweetener (optionally).
- These frozen fruit smoothies are quick and easy to make. A smoothie can be whipped together in just a few minutes with minimal clean up afterwards.
- The kids will actually enjoy eating their leafy greens!
- No dairy or soy is used! Perfect for dairy free, soy free breastfeeding mamas or for kids with milk or soy allergies.
Tools you may need:
Smoothie blender: We use the Ninja BL770 Mega Kitchen System and love it! You can also use a food processor if you do not have a blender.
Measuring cup: I use a basic, glass 2 cup measuring cup to pour the liquid into the blender.
Cups: We drink from glass mason jars.
Straws: I love to give the kids reusable silicone straws to cut down on waste.
Strawberry Banana Frozen Fruit Smoothie:
Ingredients:
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup frozen bananas
2 large ripe fresh bananas
1/2 cup non dairy milk
1 1/2 cup filtered water
Makes 5-6 cups of smoothie.
Tropical Frozen Fruit Smoothie:
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups frozen pineapple
1 cup frozen mango
1/2 cup frozen banana
2 large, ripe, fresh bananas
1/2 cup non dairy milk
1 1/2 cup filtered water
Makes 5-6 cups of smoothie.
Creamy Green Frozen Fruit Smoothie:
Ingredients:
1 cup frozen pineapple
2 fresh ripe bananas
1/2 cup non dairy milk
1 cup filtered water
1/2 cup fresh or frozen spinach
1 ripe avocado
1 tablespoon honey (optional)
Makes 5-6 cups of smoothie.
How to Make Frozen Fruit Smoothies in a Ninja Blender:
Step one: Add the frozen fruit to the blender and let it sit for 5-10 minutes to soften just a bit. This will ensure that the blender can easily crush the fruit without damaging the blender.
Step two: Add the fresh ingredients, filtered water, and non dairy milk or yogurt alternative to the blender.
Step three: Place the lid on the blender and lock it into place. Then, press the crush button on the blender and blend for about 1 minute.
Step four: Pour the smoothie into cups and enjoy the frozen fruity goodness.
Tips for making frozen fruit smoothies:
Use very ripe bananas
Make sure your fresh bananas are soft and ripe with no green on the peeling. Very ripe bananas will make your smoothie sweet and the flavor will be much nicer than if you use green bananas.
Should you thaw frozen fruit before making a smoothie?
No, you do not have to. However, I recommend you do so. This will ensure that the smoothie blends completely smooth with no hard chunks of fruit in it. This also ensures that the hard frozen fruit does not damage the blades of your blender. Thawing frozen fruit for just 10 minutes will not affect the nice, cold temperature of your smoothie and could preserve the life of your blender.
Add any additional sweeteners last
The fruit in these smoothies make them naturally extremely sweet. Taste a little bit before you decide to add honey or sugar. You may find you don’t need it! We never need additional sweeteners in ours. The tropical frozen fruit smoothie is the sweetest in the bunch because of all the pineapple!
How do you make a dairy free smoothie creamy?
Although these smoothies have bananas in them, which add to the creaminess, using only water in the smoothie will give you a very fruity and refreshing but not super creamy end result.
Add a non dairy milk to the frozen fruit smoothie to make it extra creamy and smooth. I like to use unsweetened Ripple Milk or oat milk to add creaminess to the smoothie. You can use whatever non dairy milk or yogurt alternative you desire. We enjoy adding So Delicious Vanilla Yogurt Alternative in the place of non dairy milk from time to time.
Clean up tips:
Rinse the blender, blade, and lid in the sink immediately after blending up the smoothie. This will keep the clean up afterwards very quick and easy! Make sure to rinse out the cups and reusable straws thoroughly after you finish the smoothies as well. Rinsing out the blender, cups, and reusable straws will keep the fruit from sticking to them like glue which makes it very difficult and annoying to clean up later. Once everything has been rinsed, it is super simple to wash them with a little dish soap and move on with your day.
Storage:
Because these smoothies have bananas in them, they will not keep overnight. They must be enjoyed immediately after you blend them up. However, freezing them into popsicles will cause any leftover smoothie to keep for another day. Simply pour the smoothie into popsicle molds, add the sticks, and freeze overnight for a healthy and delicious homemade popsicle! My kids love these as afternoon snacks in the summer time.
Check out more of my favorite cold summer recipes:
The Best Chicken Salad – Dairy Free Soy Free
Shop this post:
Ninja BL770 Mega Kitchen System
If you tried this recipe and love it, I would love to hear about it! Please leave me a comment below and tag me on instagram @simplysarahcatherine with your own Frozen Fruit Smoothie. Don’t forget to pin it for later!
Pin it for later:
Leave a Reply