Make-Ahead Smoothies: My Grab-and-Blend Smoothie Bar

This make-ahead smoothie system turns freezer smoothie packs, portioned mix-ins, yogurt and milk into an easy grab-and-blend breakfast or snack. Everything is prepped ahead and organized in bins, so anyone can make their own smoothie without measuring ingredients.

All three of my boys love smoothies. I am far too proud of this. Somewhere in my brain, children voluntarily drinking blended fruit has been filed under things I did right as a mother.

One of their favorite treats is stopping for a smoothie, which is adorable until you buy three. They will study the giant menu of fruit, add-ins and combinations for twenty minutes and then order strawberry-banana. As a recovering Starbucks coffee junkie, I am in no position to judge. Which is also how I know they do not need thirty ingredients at home to feel like they have choices.

so i made a smoothie bar

What I can do is give them a handful of choices I already know they like, portion everything ahead of time, and let them make their own combinations.

There are four bins in the freezer: fruit, greens, mix-ins, and nut butter. Yogurt gets its own bin in the fridge, with a few flavors to choose from, and milk stays right beside it. It is enough choice that nobody has to make the same smoothie every day, but not so much choice that I am suddenly stocking passion fruit purée.

We are only five school days in, but every afternoon they have come home and made themselves a smoothie. Today Campbell told me it is the coolest thing I have ever done. My head is now completely unbearable.

what goes where?

fruit first

Woman portioning frozen strawberries into freezer bags for smoothie packs, alongside prepared strawberry-banana and blueberry-banana fruit bags.

shown here: freezer bags · bag holders · freezer bin

I usually make two fruit options at a time. Each bag gets 1 cup of fruit and half a banana.

Fresh or frozen fruit both work, but I almost always use frozen. It’s easier. Berries, mango, peaches, pineapple, cherries, whatever you like. Don’t skip the banana, it helps make the smoothie creamy.

Break the banana into a few pieces before adding it so it blends more easily once frozen. Press as much air as you can out of the bags before sealing them, then line them up in the fruit bin.

greens are optional

Woman portioning fresh spinach into freezer bags for smoothies, alongside a clear bin filled with prepared spinach bags.

shown here: freezer bags · bag holders · freezer bin

I use pre-washed baby spinach because it can go straight from the container into the bags. Regular spinach works too, and so does kale, although I can taste kale in a smoothie and spinach mostly disappears.

I keep the greens separate from the fruit because not everyone here wants them. If everyone in your family wants greens, add the spinach right into the fruit packs and skip this bin entirely.

Otherwise, portion a handful into each bag, press out the air, freeze the bags, then line them up in their own bin. This is a great way to use up extra greens..

pick your mix-ins

Smoothie mix-ins portioned into individual cups, including protein powder, chia seeds and ground flaxseed, arranged in a clear storage bin.

shown here: condiment cups · freezer bin

This bin is optional. I keep chia, ground flaxseed, peanut butter powder, and protein powder portioned into small cups so nobody has to measure anything when they make a smoothie. I usually do both chocolate and vanilla protein powder.

Pick one: 1 tablespoon chia seeds, 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed, 1 tablespoon peanut butter powder, or 1 tablespoon protein powder.

Chia has a little more noticeable texture than flax, at least according to my kids. If you use flax, use ground flaxseed rather than whole. Protein powder varies by brand, so you may need an extra splash of milk.

nut butters get their own bin

Peanut butter and Nutella portioned into individual smoothie servings, first frozen on a silicone-lined sheet pan and then transferred to small cups.

shown here: condiment cups · 1-tablespoon scoop · silicone mat

I portion peanut butter and Nutella by the tablespoon onto a silicone mat and freeze them until firm. I tried storing the frozen portions in bags, but they still stuck together, so condiment cups work better.

You can spoon room-temperature nut butter straight into the cups, but freezing it first keeps them much cleaner and makes them easy to reuse.

Use whatever nut butter your family likes. Peanut butter and Nutella are my go-tos. And yes, there is nothing that sounds grosser than chocolate hazelnut spread in a fruit smoothie. The kids like it.smash

yogurt + milk

Individual yogurt cups in a clear fridge bin alongside milk and a marked measuring cup for making smoothies.

shown here: condiment cups · 1-tablespoon scoop · silicone mat

shown here: freezer bin

I keep individual 6-ounce yogurt cups together in a bin in the fridge. One whole container is the right amount for one smoothie, so there is nothing to scoop or measure. I buy a few flavors, which gives them another choice without giving me anything else to prep.

Milk stays next to it. Use whatever milk you normally buy. The only thing anyone has to measure is ½ cup of milk, so I keep the measuring cup right beside it with a line drawn where to fill it.

make your smoothie

Labeled freezer bins organized for a make-your-own smoothie bar with fruit packs, spinach, mix-ins and portioned nut butter.

Grab one fruit pack and one 6-ounce yogurt cup. Add a greens pack, one mix-in, and a nut butter portion if you want them. Add ½ cup milk and blend.

That is the smoothie. Everything beyond the fruit, yogurt, and milk is optional.

If you use protein powder or nut butter, you may need another splash of milk. Protein powders especially vary, so add enough to get the consistency you like.

yep, it's a lot of plastic

There are freezer bags and condiment cups all over these photos because that is what makes this system easy for us to use. I reuse both.

If you want less plastic, use reusable silicone bags for the fruit and greens and small reusable containers for the mix-ins. Use whatever makes sense in your kitchen. The important part is having everything portioned before anyone wants a smoothie.

printable pdfs

Alt text: Printable smoothie bar cheat sheet and color-coded bin labels with portions and instructions for fruit, greens, mix-ins, nut butter, yogurt and milk.

The labels tell everyone what to grab, but they do not tell me how much chia goes in a cup or what goes into a fruit pack when it is time to restock. So I made a one-page cheat sheet too, with the smoothie formula and all the amounts in one place.

Enter your email and I will send you the smoothie bar cheat sheet + bin labels.