Vanilla Date Smoothie
The BEST Date Smoothie is an easy treat naturally sweetened with dates and banana, with a hint of vanilla for a healthy and delicious breakfast or snack!
Why We Love This Recipe!
Just look at all those beautiful speckles of blended dates!
Dates naturally sweeten smoothies with their vanilla-caramel flavor, making for a refined sugar-free treat that’s healthy and delicious!
Vanilla date smoothies are a perfect sweet treat any time of day! Whether for breakfast, snack or after the gym, they’re decadent and so easy to make!
After my workout today, I came home and made myself this date smoothie, and as always, it was a perfect sweet treat for a job well done!
Earlier this month, I picked up this big beautiful box of dates from my local farmers’ market. How could I resist?!
These are Medjool dates, the extra fancy ones, and they are the most tender, soft, sweet, and caramel-flavored dates I’ve had in a long time.
Fresh dates are simply the best! They are sweet and ready to be put to good use like this smoothie, Raw Vegan Brownies, or Kale + Date Salad.
If you have some dates and frozen bananas on hand, I suggest you treat yourself to a simple and wonderful smoothie!
Ingredient Notes
This date smoothie recipe requires only 5 simple ingredients!
- Unsweetened almond milk – You can use your favorite plant milk – cashew, oat, soy, coconut, etc.
- Frozen banana – Adds creaminess and is good for gut health.
- Ice cubes – Can be optional.
- Medjool dates – Fresh are best when they are moist and soft.
- Vanilla extract – Complements the dates and banana, adding a delicious layer of flavor.
How To Make Vanilla Date Smoothie
Making a date smoothie is as easy as 1 – 2 – 3!
- Combine the dates, banana, vanilla, ice cubes, and plant milk into a blender cup.
- Blend until smooth, about 1 – 2 minutes. Add a splash of extra almond milk as needed.
- Pour into serving glass and enjoy.
You may see small pieces of dates within the shake, and that’s okay. Even with those bits of date, I didn’t have much trouble using my straw, only having to clear the bottom of it maybe once or twice. Those little chunks are caramel-y and delicious!
Smoothie Tips
- Soft dates blend best in smoothies. To soften dates, soak them in the milk for 5 – 10 minutes to help soften them before blending. Alternatively, let them soak in warm water for a few minutes.
- Add cocoa powder. Turn your smoothie into chocolate goodness by adding 2 – 3 teaspoons of cocoa or cacao powder.
- Add protein powder. A scoop of protein powder would bulk up the nutritional profile. Vanilla and chocolate-flavored protein powders would be terrific additions.
- Add a dollop of nut butter. You can opt to add a tablespoon or so of your favorite nut butter for extra creaminess and a healthy dose of protein. Those with nut allergies can use sunflower butter.
Commonly Asked Questions
Do dates blend well?
Yes, especially if they are fresh or softened before blending. It also helps to use a high-speed blender, but soft dates should blend well no matter the wattage of your blender.
How do you soften dates in smoothies?
If your dates are a little older or dried out, you can soften them before blending by adding the dates to the milk and letting them soak for 5 – 10 minutes to soften (or soak them in warm water for a few minutes). This will help them blend better and make for soft bits of goodness.
More Healthy Smoothie Recipes!
Whether in a bowl or in a glass, you can never have too many smoothie recipes to try!
- Chocolate Almond Butter Smoothie Bowl
- Chocolate Cherry Smoothie
- Berry + Yogurt Smoothie
- Super Berry Acai Bowl
- Enlighten Smoothie Bowl
- Or see all vegan smoothie recipes on TSV!
If you try this date smoothie recipe or have a question, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
PrintVanilla Date Smoothie
Date smoothie is an easy, sweet treat naturally sweetened with vanilla and banana for a healthy and delicious breakfast or snack smoothie! Vegan + wfpb recipe.
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: Serves 1
- Category: Breakfast, Smoothie
- Method: blender
- Cuisine: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (use your favorite non-dairy milk)
- 1 medium frozen banana
- 4 – 5 ice cubes (or another frozen banana)
- 2 – 3 medjool dates, pitted (soft and fresh is best)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Optional add-ins:
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- 1 tablespoon nut butter (peanut, almond, cashew, sunflower etc.)
- 2 – 3 teaspoons cacao or cocoa powder
Instructions
Combine ingredients into a blender cup and blend until smooth, about 1 – 2 minutes, depending on your blender. Add a splash or two of extra almond milk as needed, especially if adding protein powder.
Serves 1
Notes
Use soft dates: If your dates are a little older or dried out, you can soften them before blending by adding the dates to the milk and let them soak for 5 – 10 minutes to soften. This will help your dates blend better and make for soft bits of goodness.
For the protein powder, I’ve been using the Garden of Life Raw Fit lately. I love the fact that Garden of Life has a few protein powders that don’t contain stevia. I prefer to sweeten my shakes/smoothies with fruits and personally don’t care for the stevia aftertaste. I’m not on a weight management program but do love the high protein amount in this powder. The Raw Fit contains 28 grams of protein, which is half my daily recommended amount. For me, one shake a day is a perfect treat! If using protein powder, you may like to add 1/4 – 1/2 cup more of milk or water.
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I made this today and it was very delicious. It tasted like eggnog.
All of the GoL powders I’ve looked at so far on Amazon.com have Stevia (including the high protein one you mentioned). Where do you typically buy yours?
Can’t wait to try this smoothie!
I use the plain flavor. I believe all of the flavored ones have stevia. You’re going to love this smoothie. Enjoy!
Also super great when you sub the bananas for cocoa powder and nibs!
I added some unsweetened cocoa powder and it was divine.
This was so good! I didn't use the protein powder, and added in some coconut flakes. So good! Thank you!!! Just what I needed right now. Definitely a keeper!
Thank you for this simple recipe – I am savoring it as I write. I used 1/2 frozen banana, as that's all I had, and it is more than sweet enough – I added ice to make it really cool, as it is very hot where I live. What a lovely way to stave off afternoon hunger.
I'm drinking this now, post-workout. It's delicious! I'm new to using dates, but now I will keep them stocked. Also, thanks, Julie and Damani, for the tips on stevia-free protein powders. I also get that metallic aftertaste from stevia. It stays in my mouth for hours and ruins the taste of other good flavors. I'll check those out!
This is like the perfect smoothie! I just love dates…they are nature's candy. Truly amazing!
I feel the exact same way about going to the gym…even today, it's Monday and I'm quite tired from the weekend and the last thing I wanted to do was go to the gym after work. I stuck to my plan though, and went, and 40 minutes later, I came out feeling so much better than I had all day! :-)
PS. I love Sunwarrior protein too, and Boku Superfood Protein is amazing as well!!
That looks amazing! I love using dates in smoothies. :)
Looks really yummy! Have you ever tried Sunwarrior protein powders? They are very finely ground (the typical protein texture is not there) and they also have stevia free options. I am also not a fan of stevia. I think I actually may be allergic to it…
I will definitely look into them. I thought only Garden of Life had the option. I know Vega doesn't carry a stevia free version yet. I've heard good things about Sunwarrior in the past. Thank you for the knowledge! I'm on it! :)