This Tart Cherry Protein Smoothie is a delicious banana-free, meal prep-friendly smoothie that’s packed with flavor and nutrition!
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This recipe is…
I’m such a sucker for tart cherry ANYTHING. I love a tart cherry candy, a tart cherry reduction, and especially a tart cherry + sparkling water mocktail (my pregnancy sip of choice). This smoothie is really another excuse to enjoy some tart cherry! It’s another really simple smoothie solution (like our Green Protein Freezer Smoothies) that can be EASILY packed up in a freezer bag.
Tart cherries made their way into health food isle stardom because of two main reasons: 1, they’re DELICIOUS and 2, they’re densely packed with antioxidants and are generally regarded as anti-inflammatory.
For this smoothie, we used frozen tart cherries (regular frozen cherries work, too) that were already pitted. The cherries are meaty enough that this smoothie really doesn’t need a banana for thickness, which is a big score for all the folks who can’t enjoy bananas! The cherries are blended with some protein powder (of your choice, my favorite grass-fed whey option is THIS ONE), a few cubes of frozen coconut milk (for creaminess), a few chia seeds, and some kind of water or juice.
Looking for more healthy breakfast recipes? Try our quick and delicious Green Tropical Smoothie, Mint Chocolate Chip Green Smoothie Packs, and Probiotic Kefir Smoothie.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Just 5 ingredients
- Tart cherries offer a big nutritional punch
- A healthy breakfast ready in less than 5 minutes!
Cherry Smoothie Recipe Ingredients
It just takes 5 ingredients to whip up this quick and easy smoothie recipe. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
- Tart Cherries – 1/2 cup of frozen tart cherries is the MVP of this smoothie recipe
- Coconut milk ice cubes – you’ll need 3 pre-frozen coconut milk ice cubes from a can of full-fat coconut milk
- Chia seeds – you’ll need 1 teaspoon chia seeds
- Protein powder – we call for 1 scoop of protein powder (like this one)
- Coconut water – choose 1/2-3/4 cup of coconut water, OJ, or plain water
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Recipe Variations and Modifications
Here are a few easy ways to adjust this recipe to your liking.
- Cherries – if you don’t have tart cherries on hand (or you find their taste to be too puckery), feel free to use regular frozen cherries instead.
- Coconut milk – we like the rich flavor and texture of full-fat coconut milk, but you can swap in lite coconut milk instead if you’d like.
- Protein powder – we like whey-based protein powder like this one, but you could use those made with hemp, egg whites, or peas instead.
How to Make Cherry Smoothies
See how easy it is to whip up this healthy smoothie!
Step 1: Combine all ingredients in a blender.
Step 2: Blend for 1-2 minutes until smooth.
Cherry Smoothie Recipe Tip
Choosing your liquid – We suggest 3 different options to use for your liquid here. If you want an especially tart version of this smoothie, use orange juice. If you want to up your potassium intake, we recommend coconut water. And lastly, if you’d prefer to not add any more (natural) sugar to the smoothie, simply opt for water.
How to Serve Cherry Smoothies
Serve this smoothie cold, straight from the blender.
How to Store
This recipe makes 1 serving of our cherry smoothie, so you won’t have leftovers if you make the recipe 1x.
To make a batch of the smoothies to keep some on hand for later, double or triple the recipe and portion the extra smoothies individually in freezer bags, and freeze for later.
Frequently Asked Questions
We like whey powder (like THIS ONE), but protein powders made with casein, peas, soy, and hemp are popular choices too.
Tart cherries are not only a good source of antioxidants, but research has linked them to a number of health benefits, including heart health, anti-inflammatory properties, pain relief, and muscle recovery.
More of Our Best Smoothie Recipes
If you tried this recipe for Tart Cherry Protein Smoothie, or any other recipe on the Fed & Fit website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Tart Cherry Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup frozen tart cherries
- 3 pre-frozen coconut milk ice cubes, from a can of full-fat coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon chia seeds
- 1 scoop protein powder
- 1/2-3/4 cup coconut water, OJ, or water
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend for 1-2 minutes until smooth.
Nutrition
This looks great! Sorry for the silly question, but when freezing the coconut milk ice cubes – do you suggest just freezing the cream on top or the entire can with the added water?
Not silly at all! Freeze the entire can with the added water (but blend it up first)!
Do you let the chia seeds soak for a little while so that they softened?
No, but they do soften a bit in the smoothie and provide a little crunch!
Hello, freezing the coconut milk is brilliant. Is this coconut milk from a can or coconut milk from a carton?
Canned coconut milk!
This looks delish! I haven’t found any frozen tart cherries at my local store, but I have found tart cherry juice (without a bunch of crap added). Does the nutrient absorption change if I were to use a different frozen fruit and cherry juice instead of the coconut water?
Thanks!
Not at all! As long as you’re adding a different fruit you’ll still be getting the fiber that would come with whole cherries.