Pear-Spinach Smoothie
Pear and Spinach Smoothie

If you’re a little intimidated by the idea of green smoothies, this pear smoothie is the perfect way to ease yourself in. Yes, it has baby spinach in it, but it also has pear, banana, and dates. All of their sweet and fruity flavors will outweigh the flavor of the greens. Let’s do it!

Pear-Spinach Smoothie

What do I need for a spinach pear smoothie?

I used Medjool dates to sweeten this particular pear smoothie. To get the dates soft enough to blend into a smoothie, I soak them in boiling water for a few minutes, but if your dates are particularly soft (it can be hit or miss with the dates we get here) and you have a powerful blender, you might be able to skip that step. And hey, worse comes to worse, you have a few delicious chunks of date in your smoothie.

You’ll also need: 

  • Baby spinach. Don’t worryโ€”the green flavor will be masked by the pears and dates! If you’re feeling a bit more adventurous, you could use baby kale instead.
  • Banana. The banana is a double threat here: it sweetens and it thickens the smoothie.
  • Pear. Can’t have a pear smoothie without the pear!
  • Milk. To give you the perfect smoothie consistency.
  • Ice. To give your smoothie some chill!

Pear-Spinach Smoothie

Can I make a pear smoothie with no banana?

Absolutely! You can replace the banana with 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt or half a ripe avocado. You might want a little more sweetener if you go this route.

How I make this smoothie vegan?

Good news! As long as you used plant-based milk, this pear smoothie is already vegan!

 

Pear-Spinach Smoothie

 

What kind of blender do I need?

Nobody wants to be drinking chunks of spinach. So to get this pear smoothie super smooth, you’ll need a high-powered blender. These are our favorites:

  • BUDGET: Ninja Professional Blender. With it’s under-$100 price tag, this powerful blender is the one to go with if you’re on a budget or new to green smoothies. We used it for several years and loved it!
  • SPLURGE: Vitamix Professional Blender. This blender is top-of-the-line, and the one we use today in the Wholefully test kitchen. If you’re a smoothie pro who makes tons of smoothies and other blended recipes, you might want to consider saving up for a Vitamix.

 

Pear-Spinach Smoothie

 

How can I pack more nutrition into this pear smoothie?

You can add whatever mix-ins sound good to you. For a pear smoothie, I like to add:

  • Ginger. The pear-ginger flavor combination is always a good one, and ginger has loads of health benefits, so sometimes I’ll add some dried or fresh ginger. Just remember, a little ginger goes a long way!
  • Local bee pollen or honey. Keep your seasonal allergies in check with local bee pollen or honey. 
  • Hemp seeds. Hemp adds so much plant-based protein, without the chalky texture of protein powder. 

To save yourself some time, you can mix your favorite add-ins with the spinach and freeze them into booster packs for some faster smoothie making.

Enjoy!

Pear and Spinach Smoothie

Pear and Spinach Smoothie

Yield: 2 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

This Pear and Spinach Smoothie is sweetened using Medjool dates and bananasโ€”no added sugar at all. It's a great way to start off your morning!

Ingredients

  • 2 Medjool dates, pitted
  • 1/2 cup boiling water
  • 2 cups baby spinach
  • 1 ripe banana, broken into pieces
  • 1 ripe pear, cored and cut into chunks
  • 1 1/2 cups unsweetened milk of your choice
  • Handful of ice

Instructions

  1. Place the dates in a heat-proof small container (I like a small glass measuring cup). Pour the boiling water over the dates and let soak for 5-10 minutes, or until the dates expand.
  2. Combine the dates and soaking water, plus all the remaining ingredients in the carafe of a high-powered blender. Blend on high until smooth and no chunks of dates or spinach remain. Pour into two glasses and serve.

Notes

Use whatever milk you like (almond, cashew, soy, coconut, cow's, goat's, etc.), just make sure it is unsweetened and unflavored.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 1 smoothie
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 270Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 124mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 7gSugar: 32gProtein: 9g

At Wholefully, we believe that good nutrition is about much more than just the numbers on the nutrition facts panel. Please use the above information as only a small part of what helps you decide what foods are nourishing for you.

 

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12 Comments

  1. Hadn’t done the hot water with dates technique before and dang it helped them blend better and the smoothie seemed way more sweet-Naturally! So delish and, with what I can imagine, a healthy dose of fiber. Thanks!

  2. I’m gonna apologize in advance because I know I’m gonna ramble here, lol! I am a menu planner, and like to stick to it as much as possible. For a mixture of snacks and lunches for school today, We were supposed to have yogurt topped with dates and pecans, egg salad with crackers, a fresh pear and a spinach salad. Well I realized as I went to bed last night that I forgot to buy yogurts. I woke up this morning with a fresh idea to use the dates in a smoothie, but I didnt have a clue what I would mix it with. Hello Pinterest, and Thank you Cassie. We kept the egg salad with crackers, and turned the pear, spinach, and dates into a delicious smoothie, I always have frozen bananas in the freezer, and I added the pecans that were supposed to top our yogurts, and I do have to admit, I piled the ingredients into the blender and then didnt blend them right away because my baby was still sleeping, Eventually hubby came around to blend it, and I noticed him squeezing honey into the top of the blender as it was blending, I quickly yelled at him, “thats enough” as he looked at me and said,, “oh sorry, it just looked kind of green”. I give my kids what we call green monster smoothies (literally just milk, bananas, and spinach) all the time, but I guess hubby was a bit scared of the monster this morning, lol! anyway, the whole family agreed it was delicious, and next time, I’ll try to blend it before hubby gets to it with some possibly unneeded honey.

  3. I gave up sugar too. I am even used to drinking coffee without sugar and for me that was the hardest.

    It is harder if you are thinking about sugar all the time, the secret is just totally forget about it.

  4. i dont know if i can completely give up sugar but i have found that the more i eat, the more i want..its like a drug for real. i am glad you are doing so well without it. im ready to start bringing smoothies into my life again.

  5. Hey Cassie, great post! I am curious too about changing my tastebuds with added sugar.

    How would this recipe work with date paste? Like that kind that you can get on the cheap

  6. I once did a 14 day sugar cleanse that included not only added sugar but fruits/vegetables that were naturally high in sugar as well. By day 7 I was losing my mind. All I wanted was 10 pineapples, a bunch of bananas, and all the dates I could swallow. I felt like a drug addict haha. I can definitely relate. Now, when I eliminate sugar it’s in baked goods, white/brown sugar, etc but I keep honey, agave, and coconut nectar.

  7. I am doing another round of no sugar right now too for the month of March. I’m not being nearly as strict this time around either in that I’m eating fruit and using honey and agave. But still always reading ingredient labels. Last week was rough! I’m not a restrictive person, not much is ever off limits and I’m lucky I like normal, healthy foods rather than junk and processed stuff, but i was missing my nighttime dessert. Or just grabbing a caramel or chocolate if I felt like it. I was so tired and it took me a couple days to realize why. Realized how much I’d been eating and while it wasn’t too crazy much I still was eating more than enough. I’ve kinda decided that maybe Friday nights and Saturdays can have some sweets but for the most part, I’m staying away from foods with sugars in the ingredient labels and desserts all the time.

  8. I gave up sugar for Lent and have found it easier than I imagined it’d be. This smoothie looks great! I’ve never tried pear+spinach so I’ll be excited to try this new-to-me combo.