Tangy Raspberry Smoothie Recipe
Fresh, ripe, red raspberries often get overwhelmed by other flavors and lose their unique tanginess. With this raspberry smoothie recipe, not only does the tart flavor of the raspberry get retained, but it also has a unique pop from a secret ingredient.
Summertime is perfect for sun-kissed ripe raspberries that are bursting with a fresh sweetness and tart tang. This also makes it the perfect time for enjoying a delicious raspberry smoothie with fresh from the market berries.
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Why This Recipe Works
First, this smoothie recipe is entirely blender-friendly! No need to stop the blades or tamp down the ingredients! Everything is put into the blender in the right order to keep your smoothie-making time to a minimum!
Secondly, many raspberry smoothie recipes use apple juice as their liquid. Juice is great because it doesn’t have fat that mutes the natural fruit flavor (like milk does).
Instead, this recipe mixes together a blend of juices to get the ultimate flavor pop that preserves the tartness of the raspberry.
Ingredients
To make this raspberry banana smoothie, you need:
- Raspberries. Fresh, ripe berries that you freeze yourself are best, but frozen from the store work well, too.
- Banana. This bulks up the smoothie a bit and gives it body. If you choose a perfectly yellow and not overripe banana it will disappear behind the other more prominent flavors.
- Plain Yogurt. I love greek or Icelandic yogurts because they have a lot of protein in them, which is great for anchoring the natural sugars in the smoothie.
- Honey. This is there to sweeten up the tartness of the yogurt.
- Salt. Salt enhances the sweetness and decreases bitterness. Just a pinch of it helps bring forward the flavors of the smoothie with very little added sodium.
- Juice. I recommend a combination of juices. This ensures that the single flavor of something like apple juices doesn't overpower the berries. Instead, this combination creates a more well-rounded, elevated flavor profile.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Fun fact: Raspberries continue to ripen after being picked. Make sure you know how to store berries correctly so they don't go bad before you make this raspberry banana smoothie.
Instructions
Begin by adding both juices to the blender. Also, add honey and salt.
Next, add in the yogurt. (See notes for tips about the best kind and how it impacts the texture.)
Finally, add in the banana then the frozen raspberries last.
Place the lid on the blender and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.
Hint: If you want to add in extra ingredients, like chia seeds, nut butter, or protein powder. Do it after the yogurt in step two.
Substitutions
This raspberry smoothie recipe leaves a lot of room for adjustment based on your needs. Some simple substitutions are:
- Reduced Sugar. If you want to reduce the sugar in this sugar, opt for a pure, no sugar added juice. You can also reduce the sugar by exchanging apple juice or pure cranberry juice for the dark cherry juice.
- Non-Dairy - use a non-dairy yogurt in place of the greek yogurt. Depending on the brand you may need to reduce the amount of juice added because non-dairy yogurts are often slightly thinner.
- Different Juices. In case of allergies, you can substitute the cherry juice with any dark fruit juice like: cranberry, pomegranate, blueberry, or even grape juice.
Variations
There are many great ways to enjoy this raspberry smoothie recipe. Try one of these variations for some extra fun!
- Flavored Yogurt. Instead of using plain greek yogurt, you can choose your favorite flavored one. If you do this though, omit the honey to prevent the smoothie from getting too sweet.
- Extra Fruit. This raspberry banana smoothie is a perfect base for other types of raspberry smoothies. Try making some of these variations:
- Strawberry Raspberry: Add one cup of frozen strawberries and ½ cup of extra liquid.
- Blueberry Raspberry. Add ½ cup of frozen blueberries and ½ cup of extra liquid.
- Raspberry Spinach: Add in 1 ½ cups fresh spinach and and extra ¼ cup of liquid.
- Chocolate Raspberry: Add in two teaspoons of cocoa powder.
See this high-protein coffee smoothie, or this blueberry spinach smoothie (with chia and ginger) to get you inspired.
Equipment
The type of blender you have impacts how long it takes to make your smoothie, as well as how seamlessly the ingredients blend together.
This can be important with this raspberry smoothie recipe because the seeds in the raspberries are hard and difficult to blend.
I personally use a Vitamix, but any commercial-grade blender will get you the smoothest texture and make the seeds unnoticeable. Aim for a blender that is 1200+ watts.
Anything below 1000 watts will struggle to pulverize the seeds.
You can still get it pretty smooth if you run the blades longer, but keep in mind that the friction from the blades is likely to warm up and thaw the frozen raspberries.
Storage
Store the smoothie in the refrigerator for 1-2 days in an airtight container. (I love to use working glasses. They seal really well.)
If the smoothie separates, add the smoothie and ½ cup of ice into a blender and give it a fresh blending. This will bring it all back together and get it extra chilly.
Expert Tips From A Chef
- Berries in general are difficult to measure by volume because they stick out of the measuring cup. This becomes even more difficult with frozen berries; especially if they have thawed out slightly and changed shape. You can measure by weight instead with 18 ounces of frozen raspberries instead.
- Use a high-quality tangy lemonade, like Simply Lemonade, to get the right flavor. Lemons help bring out the flavor of the berries like salt, so you want a lemonade that has real lemon juice that isn't degraded in any way. Minute-maid or powdered lemonade won't do the trick quite right. It will be too sweet.
- Greek or Icelandic yogurt gives you the most thickness, protein, and creaminess to the smoothie. You can use plain standard yogurt, but it will make the smoothie thinner.
FAQ's
If you want to make a smoothie creamy, use milk or non-dairy milk in place of juice or water. Additionally, adding more frozen fruit to thicken the smoothie, or using ingredients like avocado, yogurt, or tofu can have the same effect.
Add in extra frozen fruit! Blend in ¼ cup of fruit at a time until the desired consistency is reached.
A high-quality blender that blends with 1200+ watts will help pulverize any ingredient and give you the smoothest smoothies. They are incredible at grinding up seeds, nuts, cruciferous vegetables, and more.
More to Try
Raspberry Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup dark cherry juice
- ½ cup lemonade
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 5.4 ounce container plain greek yogurt
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 1 banana
- 2 cups frozen raspberries
Instructions
- In a blender pour in the cherry juice and lemonade, then add in the yogurt, salt, and honey.
- Break the banana in half and add it, followed by the frozen raspberries. Place the lid on the blender and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Berries in general are difficult to measure by volume because they stick out of the measuring cup. This becomes even more difficult with frozen berries; especially if they have thawed out slightly and changed shape. You can measure by weight instead with 18 ounces of frozen raspberries instead.
- Use a high-quality tangy lemonade, like Simply Lemonade, to get the right flavor. Lemons help bring out the flavor of the berries like salt, so you want a lemonade that has real lemon juice that isn't degraded in any way. Minute-maid or powdered lemonade won't do the trick quite right. It will be too sweet.
- Greek or Icelandic yogurt gives you the most thickness, protein, and creaminess to the smoothie. You can use plain standard yogurt, but it will make the smoothie thinner.
