Pina Colada Smoothie

When given a long list of foods I need to increase in my diet, fruits were high on that list. I was also having a hard time getting enough protein, so I started making daily fruit smoothies, with a serving of protein powder added.

I’m someone who needs novelty in order to stick to any sort of diet, so I quickly started coming up with a bunch of protein-rich smoothie recipes.

This tropical smoothie is one of my favourite protein smoothie recipes to date!

Based on a basic pina colada cocktail, this delicious smoothie trades the actual rum for a little rum extract and adds a scoop of protein powder.

Just a couple small changes turns the popular cocktail into a healthy smoothie recipe!

Sure, it can be a little weird to start seeing pina coladas as the perfect breakfast - especially for busy mornings on the go - but hey, we’re living in weird times - lean into it, LOL!

Anyway, let’s look at the ingredients...

Ingredients

This high protein Piña Colada smoothie recipe uses super simple ingredients. You shouldn’t have any trouble finding everything you need in any larger grocery store.

As always, I have a few ingredient notes for you:

Frozen Pineapple Chunks

Not a ton to say here, other than I’ll usually use frozen fruit, to do double duty as the pineapple, and the “ice”.

If you cut up fresh fruit, you’re going to need a LOT - it tends to be much more economical to buy pre-frozen pineapple, than fresh pineapple.

On that note, if you prefer to use thawed pineapple (I get it, I’m not always into having SUPER cold drinks!)... measure first, then thaw.

If you thaw it first, it’ll mush a bit and condense a bit - 2 cups of thawed pineapple can end up to be WAY more pineapple than if you measure before thawing.

Delicious, of course - but your macros will be very different!

Greek-Style Yogurt

I use some plain Greek yogurt mostly for texture reasons, but also to bump the protein a little.

Feel free to use coconut Greek yogurt if you’d prefer, to boost the coconut flavor a bit. It also boosts the sweetness - and carb count! - so keep that in mind!

Recently I went through a short period of time where I cut dairy entirely, so I used the solids from a can of full fat coconut milk instead, and it worked well.

Vanilla Flavored Protein Powder

This high protein pina colada smoothie recipe uses Vanilla Flavored Whey Protein Powder.

Personally, I keep a big canister of Revolution Nutrition's High Whey in Vanilla Cake on hand at all times, and use it in a TON of my recipe - baked goods, beverages, etc.

Use whatever vanilla protein powder that you like to drink, is the best protein powder for your macros.

One thing to note: I’m finding that different brands have wildly different sweetness levels.

If you’re finding that your protein powder - combined with the natural sweetness of the pineapple - isn’t quite sweet enough for your taste, try adding a touch of honey.

If you’re trying to keep the carbs down, a couple squirts of monkfruit sweetener goes a long way!

Unsweetened Coconut Milk

While I tend to use Unsweetened Almond Milk in almost everything, I use coconut milk in this smoothie recipe, just to stay on theme!

When it comes down to it, though... depending on your macros, you can use pretty much any kind of milk as your liquid for this recipe.

As far as non dairy milk goes, Oat milk, Cashew Milk, Flax Milk, Macadamia Milk and Coconut Milk are all great options.

Almond is the most neutral tasting option, though - so just know that the other plant-based milks may change the overall flavour of the spinach blueberry protein smoothie a bit.

Anyway, beyond the non-dairy milk options, regular milk works, too - just a bit higher carb.

You can use whatever you like, but I’d recommend at least 2% fat, for texture reasons. Whole milk is great... I find 1% / skim milk to be too watery, IMHO.

Everything Else

Rounding out this recipe, you will need:

Coconut Extract
Rum Extract

... I just don’t have anything else to add, as far as these last few ingredients go!

How to Make High Protein Pina Colada Smoothies

The full recipe is in the printable recipe card at the end of this post, here is a visual walk through.

Measure all ingredients in a high-speed blender, blend until smooth.

Divide into two glasses, garnish if desired - I’m a big fan of the traditional “pineapple wedge and maraschino cherry” combo, when I’m feeling fancy!

Serve immediately.

More High Protein Shakes and Smoothie Recipes!

Looking for more high protein smoothies and shakes? Here are a few more tasty recipes for you to try!:

Blueberry Spinach Smoothie
Chocolate Malt Protein Shake
Malted Milk Protein Shake
Mango Daiquiri Protein Smoothie
Mango Lassi Protein Smoothie
Pumpkin Pie Protein Shake
Strawberry Daiquiri Protein Smoothie
Sugar Cookie Protein Shake