Pitaya Bowls are a perfect breakfast, snack or dessert. They are expensive at juice bars, but this simple process of making them at home yields and even better bowl. This. method makes a super thick, soft serve consistency smoothie. Another bonus? At home, you can load on all your favorite toppings!
Love superfood smoothie bowls? Also try this Acai Smoothie Bowl or this creamy & delicious Chocolate Smoothie Bowl.
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A Vibrant THICK Smoothie Bowl
The smoothie bowl craze is here to stay. Frozen fruit, processed into a creamy, ice-cream like consistency, and served with delicious toppings. They are a healthy and delicious breakfast or snack option!
I started making smoothie bowls at home when I got tired of being served soupy bowls in restaurants. If you also want a thick soft-serve consistency, that can hold up all your favorite toppings, this method is for you.
While living in SE Asia, I experimented a lot with dragon fruit. It’s perfect for Dragon Fruit Smoothies, but it’s also creamy enough to whir into a thick consistency along with other tropical fruit.
What is Pitaya?
Dragon fruit, also called pitaya, is a beautiful tropical fruit, full of fiber, and bursting with nutrients that has been found to boost immunity, prevent cancer, and slow aging.
The flesh inside is either white or a vibrant magenta.
In the States, dragon fruit are difficult to come by. Popular juice bars are selling Pitaya Bowls for $7-$10 each.
If you can’t find dragon fruit in your local market, try an Asian or Latin import store, or you can buy frozen pitaya packets at Whole Foods. If you’re lucky, some Costcos now carry organic dragon fruit or fruit blends with pitaya.
What is a Pitaya Bowl made of?
- Frozen Dragon Fruit (also called Pitaya)
- Frozen Banana
- Frozen Mango
- Note: Blueberries, pineapple, and strawberries can also be used as a sub for one of the other fruits!
- Full Fat Coconut Milk (this is the creamiest option. Other non-dairy milks, like almond or oat milk, work as well!)
*I recommend avoiding orange juice or other fruit juices as the liquid, which add sugar to an already high sugar bowl.
Can I add protein powder?
Yes, adding protein powder is a great way to make this recipe more blood sugar friendly, since it uses high sugar fruit.
Collagen will maintain the consistency the best.
Feel free to blend in a scoop of your favorite vegan protein powder. Whey protein is delicious, but note that it lightens the texture and “fluffs up”, so that it is more of a frozen mousse texture.
Topping Suggestions
- Nuts and seeds (almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, flax seeds, hemp seeds, etc.)
- Flaked coconut
- Fresh fruit (kiwi, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries)
- Cacao Nibs or shaved Dark Chocolate
- Nut Butter
- Bee Pollen
- Homemade Granola
How to Make a Pitaya Bowl
Step 1: Chop dragon fruit and mango into small dice-sized cubes, and slice bananas, and freeze them solid. I like to freeze them overnight, but you can freeze them faster if you have a deep freeze.
Step 2: Add frozen fruit and a splash of coconut or almond milk (you can also use coconut water) to a food processor bowl. Note: You can also blend these in a high speed blender, but it will take about 1/4 cup more liquid and will be slightly less thick.
Step 3: Process until the fruit is broken up. Continue to process until the fruit “fluffs” up and is a soft serve consistency.
Step 4: Fill bowls with dragon fruit smoothie, and top with fresh fruit, coconut, nuts or nut butter.
Topping your Red Dragon Fruit Smoothie Bowl
This smoothie is such an amazing texture, you can enjoy a bowl similarly to how you would ice cream. However, the toppings are where all the fun is!
I love adding toppings for flavor and texture! Try adding:
- Fresh fruit (like chopped white dragon fruit, kiwi, berries, or bananas)
- Toasted Coconut Granola
- Almond Butter or my Toasted Pecan Almond Butter
- Dark chocolate chips or Cacao Nibs
- Unsweetened coconut flakes
- Almonds, walnuts, hemp seeds or pumpkin seeds
Tips for Making Dragon Fruit Smoothie Bowls
- If you can’t find dragon fruit, or don’t want to pay the high price for the smoothie packs, this can be made with bananas and mango. Add fresh raspberries for a burst of color.
- Make sure fruit is solidly frozen. The texture won’t be thick and creamy if the fruit isn’t fully frozen.
Can I make a Pitaya Bowl in a Blender? Yes! You can use a high speed blender, like a Vitamix, to make these. Add 1/4 cup of liquid (coconut milk, almond milk) to get it going, and then use a tamper stick to really press the fruit down. It will take longer to process but it will get there!
Other Smoothie Bowl Recipes:
- Acai Smoothie Bowl
- Dragon Fruit Sorbet
- Tropical Green Smoothie Bowl
- Pumpkin Spice Latte Smoothie Bowl
- Vegan Green Smoothie Bowl
- Creamy Chocolate Smoothie Bowl
I’d love to connect with you on social media! Find me on Facebook or Instagram where I post daily healthy eating and lifestyle inspiration.
Dragon Fruit Smoothie Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 banana chopped and frozen
- 1 cup mango chopped and frozen
- 1 cup dragon fruit (pitaya) chopped and frozen
- 1/4 cup coconut milk canned, full fat
Toppings (optional)
- coconut
- fresh fruit
- nuts or nut butters
- granola
- chocolate chips
Instructions
- Add the frozen fruit to a food processor. Allow to sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes to gently thaw before beginning to process.
- Add coconut milk, and then process until very smooth and the mixture begins to fluff up.
- Use a spoon to push down any chunks of fruit that aren’t processing.
- This works the best in my food processor if I fill the bowl about half full. Any less or too full, and some of the fruit doesn’t get blended well.
- Top with fruit, nuts, coconut, or nut butter, or just enjoy like soft serve ice cream!
Video
Notes
- If you can’t find dragon fruit, or don’t want to pay the high price for the smoothie packs, this can be made with bananas and mango. Add fresh raspberries for a burst of color.
- Make sure fruit is solidly frozen. The texture won’t be thick and creamy if the fruit isn’t fully frozen.
These bowls do look like ice cream! How fun! I’m all about anything with such intense color!
Yes! The color is amazing. Honestly, dragon fruit doesn’t taste like a whole lot- it’s the color and it’s beautiful skin that make it so appealing!
This looks like a fun and healthy treat! Clearly the little ones enjoyed it too!
Couldn’t keep the little ones away 🙂 This will be a regular from now on– it’s just so fun!
This looks wonderful! I’ve been wanting to try this out.
Dragon fruit sure is fun 🙂
Dragon fruit shows up occasionally in my grocery store. I am going to keep an eye out for it because this colorful bowl has me drooling. YUM.
So colorful and fun– when I was watching my son and his friends eat it the other day, I couldn’t help but think about the “Superman” ice cream at Baskin Robbins– just bright colorfully died swirled vanilla, that kids go nuts over. This is every bit as beautiful and so much healthier!
These smoothie bowls look delicious! I think my kids would LOVE these!
I am sure they would 🙂 So much like ice cream!
That sounds and looks like a gorgeous fruit smoothie bowl. I can imagine this for breakfast and maybe I would add some chia seeds and flax seeds to it a well. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Yes, adding the seeds would be a great way to add protein!
Wow look at that color!! I wish I had access to pink dragonfruit… we only have white dragonfruit at my local whole foods :/
You can buy pink dragon fruit frozen at Whole Foods– although I never have. The prices on their website (linked in my post) are crazy high! I wouldn’t pay for it. I buy them in Malaysia for like $1 each.
I tried it and it was AMAZING! Thanks for sharing the recipe! =)
I’m glad to hear that Ilham <3 Love you.
What makes it pink? Do you blend up the skin as well? I’ve never used dragon fruit and didn’t know if the skin is meant to be eaten… looks delicious!
Hi Christy– no, actually I bought red and white dragon fruit– you can buy it with either white flesh, or deep red/magenta flesh. I just used the white dragon fruit to garnish the bowls. The both taste very similar, the red is just really beautiful in smoothies! The dragon fruit you buy in the smoothie packs (at Whole Foods type stores) is the red type, but I’ve heard that most stores who carry fresh dragon fruit in the States carry the white kind. Right now, I am in Malaysia, where we have access to both.
I just love smoothie bowls, so many things you can do with them. Yours looks amazing!
Thanks Tim!
Oh wow these look absolutely incredible. I love dragonfruit so will definitely have to try this – it looks so delicious and Xander seems to enjoy it a lot!
Xander is amazing — definitely loves anything that resembles ice cream!
He loves anything that resembles ice cream!
Oh my goodness, this looks so darn delicious, MIchelle. I see dragon fruit in the grocery store but I’ve never even tried it because I wasn’t sure what to do with it! This is exactly the kind of breakfast I could eat every day.
Your little one melts my heart! That smile 🙂
He melts my heart every single day.
You totally deserve the award for the most beautiful smoothie bowl ever! I love eating beautiful food, but I’ve never thought about adding dragon fruit to smoothies to make it a beautiful pink. I’m so trying this!
Oh, thank you Nicola! Dragon fruit is one of those things…but this was the perfect use for it. I always have dragon fruit in my freezer now because my son and his friends love the hot pink smoothies.
Such a gorgeous color! What a wonderful treat to start out the day right! 🙂
Nice and bright 🙂
This is absolutely the most good looking smoothie bowl. Just looking at the pictures makes me drool. Gotta go to my local market later to buy dragonfruits. Yes!
Thanks Calleigh! It’s such a fun bowl 🙂
Absolutely BEAUTIFUL!! I can’t wait to make this. I have yet to make a smoothie bowl with dragonfruit, but I know that my kids will love it for Vday!
Looks yummy smoothie!for sure kids would like it and i like it too!!and for sure it’s super healthy!!
Insanely delicious! I tried these and they turned out exactly like they look in the photograph — rich, creamy, fruity — just like ice cream, only better.
I’ve made these and I just love the thick texture — no watery smoothie bowls for me!
This looks beautiful and yummy. Can’t wait to try it.
I always wanted to make an Instagram smoothie bowl, yours looks heavenly! Thank you for such a vibrant presentation of the recipe, definitely trying this! But can I add cracker crumbs instead of the granola? Would love to hear back from you! xoxo
Hello Ushmana! I love that you call this an “Instagram Smoothie Bowl” — definitely a picture perfect one! The one I’ve pictured doesn’t have granola on it at all — I most often just use nuts and coconut because I don’t make granola very often. If you have a cracker you love, crumble away! It’s all about what you love, isn’t it?
This smoothie bowl looks heavenly! I am making a lot of smoothies these days, so I am going to give it a try!
I made the bowl after a trip to NYC and trying one there. My local market did not have the red ones so I cut up some cherries and also froze them. The color was amazing. I also added a little plain Greek yogurt and coconut water. I was yummy!
I’m glad you liked it! The coconut water sounds really refreshing in it! I love that you added cherries — I am sure it gave it the same vibrant color!
I can just eat this every single day! These Pitaya Bowls are healthy, tasty and so-so-so colorful!
Isn’t the color amazing? When I first started making these I had my son’s friends and their mom’s over to our house and we had a topping bar and everyone got a bowl of “dragon fruit ice cream.” So fun.
it’s color is too amazing and that’s why i love it
I totally get that Jessica! It is a beautiful color – and a color that deep means it’s full of nutrients!
I’m going to try this tomorrow, as I have pitaya in my freezer. One question, I’m not a fan of mango, can I simply leave that out or should I add something different. Perhaps I should increase the amount of pitaya or banana? This is such a beautiful bowl, I must try it. Thank you so much for sharing.
The recipe is really flexible! I would just add a little extra banana to keep it creamy and light. Enjoy 🙂 Love that vibrant pitaya color!
These definitely looks yummy and delicious.
But when i tried, I didn’t get the look as yours, though the tast was awesome.
thanks for sharing
I am obsessed with dragon fruit. I love the color and texture it has got to offer! I’m in love with this smoothie bowl.
I hear you there! Definitely a magical fruit. I ate them all the time when I lived in SE Asia.
Hi! Would the consistency be similar if I used my Ninja blender? I only have a little 1.5 cups food processor. Thanks!
I know I can make it in my Vitamix, just using the tamper stick to keep pushing the frozen fruit into the blades. I am not sure if a Ninja would work because I do not have one. You might need to add more liquid to get it going — but worth a shot!
Hi Michelle, My husband LOVES smoothies and I made this for him. He loved the flavor and the bright pink looked great. I think he has now moved to your smoothie bowls for breakfast.
This is so good to hear! If you two haven’t tried the Pumpkin Spice Latte Smoothie Bowl — it’s my favorite in the fall. Especially this year since we are having an 80 degree October in Oregon!
Hi Michelle, it’s great to stumble upon your Dragon Fruit Smoothie Bowl recipe! I must say that your post has left me drooling and craving for this vibrant and delicious-looking smoothie bowl. The colorful ingredients and toppings that you have used to make these bowls are mouthwatering, and I cannot wait to try making them myself.
I love how you have experimented with the dragon fruit and come up with something so unique and flavorful. The use of dragon fruit in smoothie bowls is a fantastic idea, and I appreciate you sharing it with us. I especially appreciate that the recipe is vegan and paleo-friendly, making it an excellent option for everyone.
I also appreciate your tips on where to find dragon fruit, as I have been looking for it myself for some time now, and I will be sure to check out the Asian or Latin import stores. Thank you for sharing such a delicious recipe, and I look forward to trying it out and adding it to my list of favorite smoothie bowls. Keep up the great work!