Smoothies make a great quick breakfast meal, but they’re often a hassle during the busy morning rush. These smoothie freezer packs will help you get your day off to a good start, without adding more stress to your morning routine.
Smoothies are supposed to be a convenient, on-the-go meal, that’s easy and makes you feel good about drinking it. But are they? Let’s talk about what we know about smoothies:
- They’re made up of whole foods – fruits, veggies, oats, or whatever you decide to put in yours, so they’re super healthy!
- They make you feel like a super parent when you see your kids drinking all of that fruit + veggies goodness.
- BUT there is a bit of prep work involved, and some mornings it’s hard to find the time to take all the ingredients out, blend them up and clean up afterwards.
So there’s the good and there’s the bad, right?
But the bad can be really bad when you’ve also got a toddler (or teenager haha) running around, demanding your attention. I can barely get the ingredients out of the fridge without a struggle, and I still have to wash, cut, blend, and clean up.
That’s just not happening for me most mornings. Well, unless I’ve prepared ahead.
Let me introduce you to the amazing idea of “make ahead” smoothie freezer packs. Just take a few hours and prep up some individual bags of smoothie ingredients, then on those crazy mornings… just grab a bag from your freezer and blend.
Today I’m sharing nine of my favorite smoothie recipes that you can freeze ahead of time, plus the easiest way to start any smoothie with my Yum Yum Smoothie Base!
If you’re also looking for more quick & easy breakfast recipes, check out these make ahead French toast sticks and these easy cinnamon roll overnight oats.
What Is The “Yum Yum Smoothie Base”
Adding yogurt is one of the easiest ways to make a smoothie richer, creamier and just plain delicious. However, I don’t always have yogurt on hand, and a big tub of yogurt takes up a lot of precious real estate in my fridge.
After experimenting, I found that mixing greek yogurt with vanilla extract and orange juice concentrate created the perfect combination for any smoothie, and my Yum Yum Smoothie Base was perfected!
I make this yum yum base up, and freeze it in ice cube trays then add them to the make ahead smoothie kits. These elevate your smoothie status from Smoothie Newbie to Smoothie Queen – you’ll be rocking it!
Ingredients
- Greek yogurt: Greek yogurt will make the smoothie creamy and smooth, while still keeping calories down.
- Vanilla extract: A hint of vanilla will bring out all the flavors of the fruit.
- Frozen orange juice concentrate: The juice concentrate it’s perfect to dilute the smoothie while still keeping the fruity flavor.
- Other ingredients: Fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, protein powders, and more. Check the recipes below for 9 delicious different flavors of smoothie packs.
What Goes Well In A Smoothie?
Frozen fruits such as blueberries, strawberries or mangoes make a great starting point. Other fruits, such as bananas or pineapples, compliment berries and can create a more rich flavor for your smoothie.
If you feel like you need more vegetables in your diet…and let’s be honest, sometimes you don’t just want to snack on a carrot stick…I’ve found that spinach (easy enough to grow yourself!) or beets can work really well in smoothies.
Nuts or oats can help make the smoothie feel more like meal, giving you fuel for the day.
Some more offbeat ingredients, like cilantro or ginger, can brighten flavor.
So simple, right?
After years of experimenting with my daily smoothie, I’ve found a lot of combinations that work, and some that don’t. I’ve included eight of my best recipes below but I’m sure there’s many more. Be sure to comment with your favorite smoothie ingredient combos!
How Do You Freeze Your Make-Ahead Smoothie Freezer Packs?
This is the easiest part! Simply gather all your ingredients (without the water), portion into ziplock freezer bags, and squeeze as much air out of the bag as you can before labeling and freezing. That’s it!
And the best part is smoothie packs can be kept in the freezer for up to three months – meaning you can enjoy more variety, more often!
Mornings may be busy, but with make ahead Smoothie Freezer Packs, there’s no excuse not to start your day with something healthy, and so delicious.
Make Ahead Smoothie Kits
Ingredients
Yum Yum Smoothie Base
- 1-½ cups greek yogurt 24 oz Greek God Yogurt (1 lb 8 oz container
- 1-½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1-½ cups frozen orange juice concentrate partially thawed (12 oz container)
Other ingredients for smoothies
- 6 cups frozen fruit see recipes below
- 3 bananas optional (see recipes below)
- other optional ingredients to add to your smoothies such as nuts oats, spinach, kale, cilantro, flax seed, protein powder, ect.
Instructions
- In a small bowl combine yogurt, vanilla and orange juice concentrate. Stir until smooth.
- Place into silicone based ice cube trays measuring 1 tbsp (15 mL) into each spot. Or if you don’t have the trays you can line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and measure out 1 tbsp sized blobs onto the tray.
- Place in freezer and freeze until solid, about 2 hours. This should make 48 cubes or blobs that are 1 tbsp each.
- If using banana in your smoothie, slice banana into 1/4 inch slices and place individually on parchment lined baking sheet. Freeze until solid, about 2 hours.
- Label 6 freezer quart sized bags. Remove ice cube trays and any frozen fruit from freezer; add smoothie base cubes and all ingredients as listed below to each bag. Seal bags, removing as much air as possible and freeze.
Notes
Nutrition
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How to make the Smoothies
Add contents of freezer smoothie bag to blender with 1/2 cup (125 mL) water. Blend. Add more water if necessary to get desired consistency. Each recipe makes two smoothies.
Click these links to jump to the smoothie recipes:
- Green Smoothie
- Orange Dream
- Blueberry Orange
- Strawberry Banana
- Cherry Bliss
- Blackberry Coconut
- Just Beet it
- Mango Pear
- Pina Colada
Green Smoothie
- 2 cups (500 mL) packed fresh green spinach
- 1/2 banana frozen slices
- 1 cup (250 mL) frozen pineapple chunks
- 8 cubes or blobs of Yum Yum yogurt base
Orange Dream
- 1/2 cup (125 mL) frozen orange sherbet cut into chunks
- 8 cubes or blobs of Yum Yum yogurt base
Blueberry Orange
- 1 cup (250 mL) frozen blueberries
- 1/2 banana, frozen slices
- 8 cubes or blobs of Yum Yum yogurt base
Strawberry Banana
- 1 cup frozen strawberries
- ½ banana frozen slices
- 8 cubes or blobs of Yum Yum yogurt base
Cherry Bliss
- 1 cup pitted cherries, fresh or frozen
- ¼ cup sliced raw almonds
- 8 cubes or blobs of Yum Yum yogurt base
Blackberry Coconut
- 1 cup blackberries, fresh or frozen
- ¼ cup shredded or toasted raw coconut
- 8 cubes of Yum Yum yogurt base
Just Beet It
- 1 cup strawberries, fresh or frozen
- 1 small raw beet, peeled and diced
- ½ banana
- 8 cubes of Yum Yum yogurt base
Mango Pear
- ½ cup mango, fresh or frozen
- 1 pear, cored and chopped
- ½ banana
- 8 cubes of Yum Yum yogurt base
Pina Colada
- Yum Yum smoothie base change: omit orange juice concentrate and substitute coconut extract for vanilla
- 1 cup frozen pineapple
- ¼ cup shredded coconut
WANT MORE SMOOTHIE RECIPES?
If you come up with any other amazing smoothie recipes using my yum yum base please share it in the comments below – I’d love to try it out!
Comments & Reviews
Amy Hearst says
I think this is a great idea; however, I’m trying not to use plastic bags and cut down on my single use plastics. Maybe the next time you promote this you could try to use something other than a Ziplock bag? Thank you.
Karrie says
I do a mix of my reusables and my ziplocs. The images looked clearer with ziplocs for the pics! Haha! But if you are looking for the best reusables I did a research on which ones did best for freezer meals here: https://happymoneysaver.com/reusable-freezer-bags/
Rikki says
Not sure if you will see this since your post is from so long ago.
Could I add chia seeds to the yum yum base to make those additions simpler? I was thinking just on top of each cube as opposed to mixing into the whole thing? How much would you add to each cube?
Karrie says
Yes for sure!! For one batch I think I’d add like 1/2 cup – but just add as much for your preference.
Pat says
I’m confused about the Yum Yum base recipe. Should that read 1 1/2 pounds of yogurt instead of 1 1/2 cups, therefore using the whole container instead of just a partial?
Tina Arnette says
Thank you. I had surgery, with no one to help during the day these came in so helpful !!!
Stephanie says
All of these recipes sound delicious. I can’t wait to try them with my kids.
My question is.. if I want to add oats or flax seeds can they also go in the make ahead bags or will I add it when I’m making the smoothie the morning of?
Also not all these recipes have greens.. do you think adding greens will change the taste too much? I guess I can experiment too, just curious if you already tried it and it wasn’t as good..lol…
Thank you
Karrie says
You can add the grains if you like to save you time. It’s fine either way. Make it how you like!
Carol says
Stephanie –
I try to use baby spinach and baby kale (up to 2 and 3 cups fresh greens per serving) as I found the “mature” greens could be strong tasting, even when I blend them fresh for breakfast.
A few years ago, a jaw injury restricted me to liquids and soft foods for several weeks. I whirred up several portions of my smoothies, greens and all, and froze individual portions so I could throw a blended portion in my lunch bag before heading to work. They would thaw by my lunch break so I could pour them in my travel mug. I never had any problems with the greens overpowering the other ingredients and add ins (chia seeds, oats, nuts, etc.) I think it would work well with these frozen kits, no problem.
Ronna says
Do you have any idea what the calories are per smoothie?
Christine says
Is there a way to make the yum yum base dairy free?
Happy-Money-Saver says
I have never tried to make it dairy-free but I bet you could substitute the greek yogurt for an alternative like Kite Hill Almond Milk Yogurt, Forager Unsweetened Plain Cashewgurt, or Stonyfield Organic Dairy-Free Vanilla for it. If you try it out let me know what you think!
Kera says
Is the orange concentrate necessary or could I use orange juice and freeze it?
I love this idea and all the tasty sounding blends!!
Emily says
Hi!
Do you think substituting almond milk (unsweetened)for the water would work?
Thanks!
Karrie says
Yes, that would be fine!
Zandre says
Your smoothie recipes sounds amazing, cant wait to try some. Do you make your own orange juice concentrate or do you use store bought?
Karrie says
Store bought. Making oj concentrate looked like a really long process, haha!
Zandre says
Thanks for the response, here in Cape Town South Africa we only have mango and orange concentrate and I tried it. It was delicious but I’m sure it’s the orange concentrate that makes it amazing. Thank you for all the recipes, I am enjoying all your content. Greetings from far far away 🙂 stay safe
Vanessa says
Thanks for sharing! How long are they good in the freezer?
Suzanne says
This looks so good! I love the yumyum base idea! What a great way to get those ingredients in!
Cari says
I’m about to make the yum yum smoothie base. It states 1 1/2 cups of Greek god yogurt, but also says the 24 oz container. Are you supposed to use the whole container or only 1 1/2 cups? I want to make sure I get the parts per correct
Karrie says
It’s 1-1/2 cups!
Megan says
How many frozen sherbet balls is equal to 1/2 cup?
Cant wait to try these recipes!!
Karrie says
I think it depends on how big your scooper is…. or ice cube trays. Maybe measure out how many of your scoop goes into a half cup, or take the frozen ones and see how many can be squeezed into a measuring cup.
Whitney says
Hi! If I am adding oats and protein powder, do I place that in the freezer bag or add it the day I make the smoothie?
Karrie says
You can do it either way, but yes you can add those to the freezer bags. 🙂
Karen says
Hi Karrie,
I made these this morning and they are so good. I did have to add 1 cup water to get a smoothie consistency but it may have been due to using up plain whole milk yogurt with added honey that I had purchased by mistake. Then my sharpie went dry. I’m learning that using your check off list to make sure I have everything I need before I start will help me succeed. Oh and the clips to hold bags open…. ordering today! I love the cookbook!
Thanks
Karen
Karrie says
Yay!!! You can totally add more water to get it to the consistency you like! 🙂
Angela says
We have made the blueberry orange and strawberry banana smoothies. The base takes a homemade smoothie from good to amazing. The base is what finishes it off. My girls (3 & 18months) now cheer when they see me making one for dessert or snack time. I did use plain yogurt for the base because it is what I had. As far as I am concerned it has the right amount of creaminess. Not sure what it is like with Greek yogurt. I am sure it’s is delicious.
Karrie says
Thanks so much! I’m so happy you love these as much as I do!!!
Julie says
Do you use just the plain Greek gods yogurt or one with a flavor? Thanks
Karrie says
I love the honey or vanilla flavored ones the best. But plain will work too!
Fawn says
Yumm! Can’t wait to try these, especially the Pina Colada one!
(So for clarification, the Yum Yum Base in the Pina Colada one has just yogurt and coconut extract? Please help me make sure I got that right! )
Thanks!
Karrie says
yep!
Jessica says
These look delicious & I can’t wait to try them!
I do have a question/suggestion – have you tried freezing the ingredients in glass Ball jars instead of freezer bags?
You could prep a set & then wash & reuse the jars to lessen the plastic you put in the landfill.
(Last year we used Ball jars to freeze the tomato sauce from our garden & it kept much better than it ever did in the freezer bags, so that’s what made me think of it!)
Karrie says
Hi! Yes you totally can do that! 🙂 Great idea Jessica, thanks for sharing.
Jasmine P. says
Do you think it might be harder to get the frozen ingredients out of the jar? Maybe a wide mouth would be OK.