Pretend summer is already here with a Tropical Island Green Smoothie. Full of nutrients and beachy flavor, this easy breakfast smoothie recipe is a perfect way to start the day.
Anyone else ready for summer to get here? Until then, I'll be enjoying summer through food, from fruit salad to smoothies.
Table of Contents
Tropical Island Green Smoothie recipe
This Tropical Island Green Smoothie is the best summery breakfast smoothie because...
- It tastes like a drink you'd order on a tropical vacation.
- It's made with healthy ingredients. (Hello, did you see that green color?!)
- It's incredibly easy to make in the blender.
We all know I love a morning smoothie, whether it's a Strawberry Kiwi Smoothie or a Blueberry Greek Yogurt Smoothie. I'll never turn down a snack smoothie, either.
What is a green smoothie?
Drinking green smoothies is a great way to add some healthy, leafy greens to your diet. The greens bring in extra vitamins and minerals.
Green smoothies typically contain a blend of fresh or frozen fruit, fruit juices and greens, such as kale or spinach. Avocado, mint and spirulina are also often added to bring in more green color.
My Kale Fruit Smoothie is a great example of this — and it's kid-approved too! This kale smoothie also contains frozen fruit, unsweetened applesauce and water.
This Apple Kiwi Smoothie brings in granny smith apples, kiwi fruit and spinach, whereas this Avocado Smoothie uses fresh avocado and spinach.
Best greens for green smoothies
While kale and spinach are the most common ingredients for green smoothies, there are a number of ways you can make your smoothie green.
- spinach
- kale
- swiss chard
- romaine lettuce
- carrot tops
- collard greens
- mint
Feel free to add or substitute any of these for the kale and spinach in this recipe; however, they may affect the tropical flavor.
Green fruits for green smoothies
You can also add fresh green-colored fruits and supplements to your smoothies to add more green color.
- celery
- avocado
- spirulina powder
- green apples
- kiwi fruit
Keep in mind any of these may change the flavor of this recipe, but experimentation is what makes smoothie recipes so fun!
Tropical Smoothie Cafe Island Green Smoothie Copycat Recipe
This tropical island smoothie is inspired by one I've tried at Tropical Smoothie Cafe in the past. We don't have one near me, so making it at home is something I've gotten in the habit of doing.
Tropical Smoothie Cafe has two of these tropical green smoothies, the Island Green Smoothie and the Detox Island Green Smoothie.
The regular Island Green contains spinach, kale, mango, pineapple & banana. Their detox green smoothie includes all of the above plus naturally-sweetened fresh ginger.
Ingredients
Here's what you will need to pick up at the grocery store to make my version of this Tropical Island Green Smoothie recipe:
- frozen spinach
- frozen chopped kale
- frozen mango
- frozen pineapple
- a banana
- coconut water
If you'd like to make a "detox smoothie," you can add a 1-inch piece of peeled, fresh ginger.
These tropical ingredients should be available at most grocery stores. Check the freezer aisle for these ingredients.
You can also freeze your own from fresh. I like to throw fresh spinach and kale in the freezer before it turns bad to use in smoothies.
You can do the same for fresh fruits — just chop up mango and pineapple and store in airtight, freezer-safe containers.
However, you are welcome to use fresh fruit, though you may wish to add some ice to the blender to chill the smoothie. (Learn how to cut fresh mango and fresh pineapple.)
Also, feel free to add in your favorite protein powder or collagen powder into the mix for a boost of extra protein.
Toppings
If you are the type of person who prefers a smoothie bowl over a cup or glass, then you may like to try these toppings:
- chia seeds
- granola
- fresh banana slices
- fresh pineapple chunks
- fresh mango slices
- fresh apple slices
- coconut flakes
- almonds, macadamia nuts or cashews
- mint sprigs
- fresh berries
- dried fruit or berries
- bee pollen
- hemp seeds
- cacao nibs
Any of these would be delicious on a Tropical Island Green Smoothie Bowl, but I'd choose fresh fruit, coconut flakes and chia seeds if it were me!
You could also make this smoothie into parfaits with some fresh honey-sweetened whipped cream or Greek yogurt on top.
Variations & substitutions
There are a number of ways you can make this Island Green Smoothie recipe your own:
- Use fresh fruit and greens. Frozen greens and fruits help to add substance and cold temperature to the smoothie. If needed, you can substitute fresh fruit and add ½ cup of ice.
- Missing an ingredient? Double up. No kale? Use extra spinach. No mango? Use extra pineapple. This smoothie is easy to customize.
- Use your favorite liquid. Liquid is key to softening the frozen fruits, but you can have fun here. I used coconut water which doesn't add a lot of extra flavor. You can use coconut milk, almond milk, orange juice, mango juice or pineapple juice as your liquid. Even regular, filtered water will work just fine.
- Sweeten it. Feel free to add honey, agave or maple syrup (or your favorite sweetener) if this smoothie isn't sweet enough for you.
- Make it less sweet. Use more greens to combat the sweetness, if needed.
- Make it thicker. Use an extra banana, chia seeds, tofu or Greek yogurt to thicken the smoothie.
If you wind up with leftover spinach kale, consider using it in these Sausage Kale Frittata Egg Muffins or this Spinach Veggie Egg Casserole — two of my favorite breakfast recipes.
How to make an Island Green Smoothie
Making a super-smooth smoothie is easy if you have a quality blender! I love love love my Vitamix.
- First, add your coconut water, spinach and kale to the blender and blend well.
- Then add the banana, pineapple and mango. Blend until smooth.
- If ice is needed, add it last.
- Pour into glasses and enjoy!
If you're using a high-powered blender, you may be able to add all the ingredients at once, but this is going to vary per blender.
More tropical smoothie recipes
If you love tropical smoothies, give one of these recipes a whirl for that taste of summer flavor.
For some reason, this Strawberry Banana Smoothie always makes me think of summer. However, this Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie puts a delicious dessert-like spin on it.
This Papaya Coconut Smoothie by my friend Aline brings in some fun fruits you might not normally think about for smoothies.
Maxed out with summer berries, this Blueberry Greek Yogurt Smoothie is a favorite around my house.
Filled with tropical flavor, my friend Susannah's Mango Pineapple Smoothie packs a tropical fruit punch.
If you loved this recipe, I'd love to know! (Especially if it left you with a grin like one of those above!)
Please leave a rating and review below — I'd love to hear how it went.
Tropical Island Green Smoothie
Yield: 32 ounces
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Bright and colorful, this tropical smoothie is packed with flavor, vitamins and tropical vibes.
Ingredients
- ½ cup frozen spinach
- ½ cup frozen chopped kale
- 1 ½ cups coconut water (see note)
- 1 ripe banana
- ½ cup frozen mango
- ½ cup frozen pineapple
Instructions
- Place greens in the blender and top with coconut water. Blend until combined.
- Add banana, frozen mango and frozen pineapple. Blend well.
- Pour into glasses and enjoy!
Notes
For the coconut water, you may substitute water, coconut milk, almond milk pineapple juice, mango juice and/or orange juice.
To make a "detox smoothie," add a 1-inch piece of peeled, fresh ginger root.
Feel free to add your favorite protein powder or collagen powder for an extra boost of protein.
You may use fresh fruit and fresh greens, though you may wish to add some ice to the blender to chill the smoothie.
To thicken the smoothie, add another banana, chia seeds, tofu or a heaping spoonful of Greek yogurt.
If the smoothie is too sweet, add more greens. If not sweet enough, add honey, agave nectar or maple syrup.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4Serving Size: 8 ounces
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 95Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 122mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 4gSugar: 16gProtein: 3g