Beverages

August 4, 2021

Hibiscus Berry Smoothie

As the weather begins to warm up, so does my interest in smoothies. I know plenty of people enjoy them year-round, but when it’s cold out, frozen drinks just don’t appeal to me. Once spring and summer arrive though - it’s on! (My blender, that is.) This Hibiscus Berry Smoothie is my inaugural smoothie for the season, and it’s a great way to begin!

Over the past few months, I had been seeing lots of posts from my natural medicine community about hibiscus, specifically hibiscus tea. Hibiscus has wonderful nutritional benefits for heart health, including lowering blood pressure and reducing cholesterol, as well as supporting liver function. It’s loaded with antioxidants, which are what give hibiscus tea it’s vibrant red color.

Hibiscus tea is tart, and complements the flavor of strawberries and raspberries in this smoothie beautifully. To incorporate hibiscus into this smoothie, I brewed hibiscus tea from dried flowers, and froze it into ice cubes to blend into the smoothie. Hibiscus tea is absolutely wonderful on it’s own though! Hot or iced, with just a little sweetener, it’s delicious any time of day. Look for dried hibiscus flowers in the bulk section of your local grocery store, or in an aisle with South American or Caribbean foods (regions of the world where hibiscus has been consumed for centuries!). If you can’t find loose, dried hibiscus flowers, look in the tea aisle for sachets of hibiscus tea, and brew it the same way as below (using 2 tea bags for 2 cups of water).

Ingredients assembled for Hibiscus Berry Smoothies
Assemble your ingredients.

Pouring bright red hibiscus tea into a white plastic ice cube tray
Make sure you have prepared your hibiscus tea ice cubes at least one day in advance (see instructions below).

Hibiscus Berry Smoothie blended in a high speed blender
Add smoothie ingredients to a blender, and blend until smooth.

Hibiscus Berry Smoothie poured into two Mason jar mugs garnished with strawberries
Pour smoothie into glasses and serve!

Original publication date: April 22, 2021

Hibiscus Berry Smoothie

Hibiscus tea is tart, and complements the flavor of strawberries and raspberries in this smoothie beautifully.

Author:

Kira Freed - The Joyful Plateful

Prep:

15

min

cook:

10

min

total:

25

min

Ingredients

1 cup frozen strawberries

1/2 cup frozen raspberries

4 hibiscus tea ice cubes

1 1/2 cups coconut milk, beverage style

1 Tbsp. honey or agave

Juice of 1/2 lime

Instructions

  1. Start by making hibiscus tea ice cubes at least one day in advance. To make hibiscus tea, bring 2 cups of water to boil in a small pot on the stove. Once water is boiling, add 7-8 dried hibiscus flowers to the boiling water, turn off the heat, cover, and let steep for 10-12 minutes. After tea has steeped, strain into a 2-cup measuring cup, and let cool to room temperature. Once cooled, pour hibiscus tea into an ice cube tray, and place in the freezer to freeze overnight.
  2. To make the smoothie, place all ingredients in a high-speed blender, and blend until smooth.
  3. Pour into glasses and serve!

Notes:

  • 2 cups of hibiscus tea fills one standard ice cube tray, plus a little extra to enjoy right away.
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March 19, 2024
Hannah
Sounds sooooo yummy. I will definitely prepare this