Tropical Smoothie Recipe (2024)

We’re celebrating Oster’s 75th Blending Anniversary with a Tropical Smoothie Recipe worthy of any special occasion. Filled with all your favorite tropical flavors – pineapple, mango, and coconut – this easy-to-throw-together smoothie turned dessert is irresistibly sweet, brimming with beach vibes and here to party. We top each ultra smooth, cold smoothie with toasted coconut and crushed shortbread cookies for the perfect play on texture. Don’t miss this one!

Tropical Smoothie Recipe

Call it breakfast. Call it a smoothie. A milkshake. Dessert. Whatever your decide to label this tropical summery piece of paradise is fine with me because the end verdict is conclusive. Our Tropical Smoothie Recipe is delicious.

In honor of Oster’s 75th Blending Anniversary, we’re whipping up one of our favorite ways to indulge with a blender – dessert in smoothie form. This smoothie turned dessert is brimming with tropical flavors thanks to a combination of mango, pineapple, and coconut.

I’d almost describe it as healthier version of a Pina Colada, but honestly, I think it’s so much better. While it is definitely more indulgent than a typical healthy smoothie, it’s still more figure-friendly than a full on milkshake thanks to REAL frozen mango, pineapple and low-fat coconut Greek yogurt.

The indulgence and prominent coconut flavor comes in the form of thick, rich coconut milk while a little bit of extra sweetness comes into play with light brown sugar (dark also works!).

To add texture and crunch, we top off each Tropical Smoothie with a generous dousing of toasted coconut and crushed shortbread cookies – a step we don’t recommend glazing over.

With only a handful of ingredients and about 15 minutes of “work” from start to finish, this is a treat I foresee in our future all summer long.

Ingredients in our Tropical Smoothie Recipe

Frozen mango and pineapple. When it comes to smoothies, I always reach for frozen, pre-cut fruit. Not only is it usually frozen at its peak, but it helps to keep your smoothie extra cold.

Yogurt. To up the coconut flavor while keeping this smoothie focused and not milkshake focused, I use low-fat coconut Greek yogurt. Any kind of coconut yogurt will do though.

Brown sugar. Even though the fruit and yogurt have natural sweetness to them, I like to add in a little bit extra to make it feel really indulgent. I love the molasses-like taste brown sugar has and find it pairs really nicely with the pineapple and mango. Of course, any sweetener such as honey or regular sugar.

Coconut milk. This is the secret ingredient in our smoothies that will make them extra coconut-y and super creamy and smooth. You’re going to use the coconut milk in the can, not the kind you can find in the refrigerated section with the alternative milks.

Coconut. Sweetened toasted coconut shreds are one of two ways we add texture to our tropical smoothie recipe and a little extra sweetness. You could also add a handful of shredded coconut to the smoothie itself, but I find there’s plenty of coconut flavor already impeded in it thanks to the yogurt and milk.

Shortbread. If you have any leftovers shortbread, sugar, or butter cookies leftover, any of those would be the perfect addtition to the crunchy topping. Otherwise, just pick up a bag or box in the cookie isle at the grocery store. They don’t need to be fancy, they just need to be able to crumble well.

Prep the smoothies

Freeze the glasses. You can obviously use any glass you choose for these guys, but I happen to love the nostalgic feeling I get serving them out of an ice-cold milkshake glass. While they aren’t technically a milkshake, their taste says otherwise. Chilling the glasses ensures each smoothie stays super cold while you slurp it up.

Also, keep in mind traditional milkshake glasses are LARGE. So while this smoothie recipe may serve four people, in a milkshake glass, there’s only enough for two. Well, two glasses, four straws.

Preheat the oven. Preheating the oven may seem counterintuitive to the steps in throwing together an ice-cold smoothie, but one of the best parts of our tropical smoothie is the sweet, crunch topping and they required toasted a handful of coconut while you make the smoothie. A gentle 325 is all you need.

Toast the coconut. Add the coconut to a small baking sheet and pop in the oven. The toasted process happens extremely fast, so even though I do want you to start adding your tropical smoothie ingredients to the blender, keep the coconut in the back of your mind. It should take about 3-5 minutes. Once it starts to brown and toast, pull it out. It’s okay if there are a couple stray pieces that didn’t turn golden brown, it simply adds an extra layer of flavor and texture.

Crumble the cookies. Because I want these smoothies to be ice-cold when they reach their destination (my stomach), I like to prep everything I can ahead of time. This means toasted the coconut and crumbling the cookies. However, crumbling them directly on top of the smoothie after pouring them into glasses won’t ruin anyone’s day.

Let’s make tropical smoothies

A good smoothie is nothing without a good blender. Trust me, I’ve learned this the hard way. After trying to make a velvety green smoothie but only being left with speckled chunks of green spinach throughout halfway pureed frozen bananas, I vowed I’d never use a subpar blender again.

Luckily, one of our favorite small appliance brands, Oster, makes a wonderful, POWERFUL, and affordable blender, and it’s what we’re using today. We use theirPulverizing Power Blender with High-Speed Motor to make smoothies, of course, but also love to use it for pureed soups, blended coffee drinks, and hollandaise sauce for eggs Benedict.

You can pick up your blender at Targethere.

Not only is it pretty to look at, but it’s 800-watt motor crushes ice, frozen fruit and anything in between in just a few seconds. When making a frozen smoothie, I like to pile all the frozen ingredients on the bottom first. So I start by layering the frozen mango and pineapple in the bottom of the glass jar (which fits six cups by the way). I then add the brown sugar and yogurt on top following by my liquid, which of course in this case is coconut milk.

To get it going I like to start by pulsing until everything starts to mix together. From there I turn the blender to liquify and watch the magic happen. If it’s not blending, you just need a little bit more coconut milk. You can also give it a little shake to make sure everything starts to turn and blend.

From there, taste to see if it needs any more brown sugar, I found 1/2 tablespoons to be plenty, but I don’t have as big of a sweet tooth and most others.

Garnish. Pour the smoothies into your prepped glasses, sprinkle with coconut and crushed shortbread cookies.

Prep in advance!

To have these guys ready to serve in just a few minutes here’s what you can do:

• portion out the mango and pineapple and store in small baggies in the freezer.
• toast the coconut and crumble the cookies. Store both in airtight containers (even together.)
• keep glasses in the freezer

Make it boozy!

To turm this slightly indulgent breakfast, snack or dessert into an adult beverage, add in a few ounces of white rum. You won’t regret it.

Substitutions and Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success

• Don’t forget to freeze the glasses. There’s nothing worse than a smoothie or milkshake melting before you’e ready.
• Variations I’d love try? Frozen banana, frozen coconut chunks, or a splash of pineapple juice.
• These tropical smoothies would also be delicious with a drizzle of salted caramel all over the glass and on top.

Some of our other favorite ways to transport ourselves to the tropics

• These Air Fryer Fish Tacos are ultra crispy and topped with a spicy pineapple slaw. We can’t get enough of them.
• One of my favorite meals of all time are these Blackened Fish Sandwiches with Brussels Sprout Slaw. Everything about them screams “I’m at the beach!”
• Our Baked Chicken Tenders with Warm Mango Salsa are perfect for kiddos and adults alike. At their core, they are the perfect kid meal, but throw that spicy, warm mango salsa on and you’re ready to entertain the adults.