This Malunggay Pineapple Smoothie is delicious, refreshing, and filled with lots of nutritional benefits in one cup.
Malunggay pronounced (ma-loo-ng-guy) also known as kalamungay or moringa is a popular leafy vegetable found almost everywhere in the Philippines. It can grow very high and the trunk can be as thick as 2 feet! Mulunggay can be used in soups, bread, drinks, and taste almost like arugula.
Health benefits for Malunggay
- High content of iron, amino acids and vitamin A, B, and C
- Great for treating a bleeding shallow cut, skin fungi, diarrhea, headache, and as a home remedy for gastric ulcers
- Malunngay pods that have seeds in it are known as dewormers. It is also popular as a treatment for diabetes as it decreases blood sugar levels. It is also good for people that have arthritis, gout, cramps, and urinary problems
Health benefits for Chia seeds
- Chia seeds are great as a source of fiber, antioxidants, iron, omega 3 fatty acids, and calcium
- It also provides a good content of plant-based protein per ounce of chia seeds serving
Health benefits for Honey
- Honey is used as food and medicine. It has a high level of antioxidants that can lower the risk of diseases
- It promotes faster healing of wounds and burns
- Honey is also used to suppress cough both in adults and kids
- It is also known as a healthy substitute for sugar
There’s really not many ways to mess up a smoothie! Basically, all you do is throw all your ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. I do have a few tips for you though!
Tips on How to Make Malunggay Pineapple Smoothie:
- Always use frozen banana chunks and pineapples because this will serve as your ice to make the smoothie cold.
- If you love a colder smoothie, you can add ice cubes but not too much or it will make the smoothie watered down.
- You can freeze this smoothie and make it into a malunggay pineapple ice cream
- You can use buko juice if you want to omit soy milk in the recipe
How to Make Malunggay Pineapple Smoothie:
These are the Moringa Pineapple Smoothie ingredients that you will need:
- frozen banana chunks
- fresh pineapple chunks
- soy milk
- chia seeds
- honey
- mulunggay leaves
Add in the frozen banana slices:
Add in the frozen pineapple chunks:
Lastly, add the fresh mulunggay leaves inside the blender:
The green color of the mulunggay leaves really speaks good health and nutrition! I loved looking at it before blending!
Once you have added all the ingredients in a high powered blender until smooth, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
Wasn’t that so quick?!?
This healthy smoothie is really refreshing!
Once everything is blended, pour in a cup and garnish with chia, pineapple cuts, and moringa leaves.
Serve immediately 🙂
Frequently Asked Questions for the Malunggay Pineapple Smoothie Recipe:
Q: Where can I buy fresh malunggay?
A: At any Asian market or if you have any Filipino friends- check with them. They are most likely growing a few trees.
Q: Is malunggay a fruit or a vegetable?
A: Malunggay, in most places is eaten as a vegetable.
Q: If I don’t have fresh malunggay leaves, can I use moringa powder instead?
A: Yes, you can definitely use Malunggay powder. Just add gradually when blending. Do not dump a huge amount immediately.
Q: How much malunggay do you put in this smoothie?
A: I used ⅓ cup of fresh Malunggay leaves for this moringa pineapple recipe.
Q: Can I add cinnamon, turmeric powder and cayenne for extra benefits?
A: Yes for sure! I can imagine it would taste a bit stronger because of the cayenne but if you are used to drinking smoothies with a stronger taste, it is definitely a great addition.
Q: Is malunggay good for weight loss?
A: According to some research, moringa has the properties to decrease fat formation so I think it is beneficial to people who are trying to lose weight.
More delicious smoothie recipes:
- 2 EASY Smoothie Bowls
- BEST 3 Ingredient Mango Smoothie
- BEST Strawberry Banana Smoothie – DAIRY FREE
- Strawberry Banana Smoothie
- Pineapple Mango Smoothie
- Avocado Shake
Malunggay Pineapple Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup frozen banana chunks
- 1 ½ cup fresh pineapple chunks
- 1 ½ cup soy milk
- ½ teaspoon chia seeds
- 1 teaspoon honey
- ⅛ cup malunggay leaves
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients in a high powered blender until smooth, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Once everything is blended, pour in a cup and garnish with chia, pineapple cuts and malunggay leaves.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Mulungay has become one of my favorite vegetables to eat, but growing up- I disliked it a lot. One reason was, it was my job to pick the leaves from the stems… imagine breaking off each small malunggay leaf from each stem.
And as a kid, it was tedious, boring, and if I didn’t do the job well, I had to go through the bowl of leaves and pick out each stem. (Does this ring any memories??)
Now as an adult, I love malunggay! I put it in my pan de sal, soups, vegetable stir frys, and smoothies! Please let me know if you recreate this recipe and let me know if you can taste the malunggay in the smoothie.
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If you’ve tried this or any other of my recipes, don’t forget to rate the recipe and to leave me a comment. I love hearing from you!
Yes I tried smoothie but I added Ginger, mango flaxseed with silk oat milk. The smoothie was very filling and great. Thanks for recipe!