Real Fruit Smoothies are the latest McCafe offering in McDonald's edible repertoire. They are available in two flavors: Strawberry Banana and Wild Berry.
Both feature a fruit blend of mostly fruit puree, water, and sugar (much like the Frappes feature a coffee base), lowfat yogurt, and ice. McDonald's new Smoothies are available in small (12 ounces), medium (16 ounces), and large (22 ounces) sizes and, are priced the same as Frappes, at $2.29, $2.79, and $3.29 respectively.
While available for a while now in quite a few countries abroad, Smoothies at McDonald's are a recent development with a great deal of testing in various markets and are just now available nationwide in time for the summer. It might be scorching on the East Coast, but here in southern California, summer has been uncommonly mild so far. Still, it's still warm enough to enjoy a ice-cold smoothie while reading a book and that's just what I did.
I've actually tried a free sample of the Wild Berry Smoothie (a mix of blackberries, blueberries, and strawberries) previously at a fair; it tasted fine, but a blend of just berries isn't that interesting to me. A bit of lime or orange would have appealed better to me.
This time around, I tried the Strawberry Banana Smoothie. I have to say I'm not a huge fan of bananas in smoothies usually, but McDonald's came up with a good, balanced blend that worked for me. Besides good flavor, the Strawberry Banana Smoothie I got was just the right consistency; not too thick, not too watery.
All-in-all, the blend of strawberry and banana gave the smoothie just enough personality to keep me interested and I recommend giving it a try for yourself. Plus, until August 15th, there's a $1 off printable coupon on McDonald's website.
McDonald's Restaurant Locations
Nutritional Info - Small Strawberry Banana Smoothie (12 fl oz)
Calories - 210 (Calories from Fat - 5)
Fat - .5g (Saturated Fat - 0g)
Sodium - 35mg
Carbs - 49g (Sugar - 44g)
Protein - 2g
Nutritional Info - Small Wild Berry Smoothie (12 fl oz)
Calories - 210 (Calories from Fat - 5)
Fat - .5g (Saturated Fat - 0g)
Sodium - 30mg
Carbs - 48g (Sugar - 44g)
Protein - 2g
Smoothies are now available at tons of nationwide coffee shops and fast-food joints. Good news for healthy eaters, right? Eh, maybe if you want an energy-sucking sugar crash to follow that 20 oz tropical fruit blend.
Truth is, most fast-food smoothies are seriously bad for you. Don't get us wrong, they taste delicious, but they're high in calories and often loaded with added sweeteners and super-sweet juice concentrates instead of actual fruit. Some even top 100 grams of sugar per serving—that's like an entire pint of ice cream! (Why not make your own healthy smoothie recipe with one of these options?)
But don't despair: For every sugar bomb, we found a healthier swap with no or minimal added sweeteners. (Get your sugar cravings under control and lose weight while still enjoying the sweets you love with Sugar Smart Express.)
Here, what to pick and what to pass on at eight popular chains:
Orange Julius
Worst: Tripleberry Smoothie
Berries are lower in sugar than most fruits, so it's a little confusing that Orange Julius' Tripleberry is so
sweet. The 16-oz medium has 390 calories and 86 grams of sugar—more sweet stuff than you'd get from four Snickers bars.
Best: Light Strawberry Banana Smoothie
This classic flavor has 200 calories and 42 grams of sugar in the same 16-oz cup—by far the best Julius offering.
Panera Bread
Worst: Low-Fat Wild Berry Smoothie
Don't put much stock in "healthy" claims like "low-fat." This smoothie is the worst of Panera's bunch, with 68
grams of sugar and 340 calories in a 16-oz medium cup. Part of the problem? It's made with sweetened vanilla yogurt.
Best: Superfruit Power Smoothie with Ginseng
You're way better off with this blend: It maxes out at 210 calories and 34 grams of sugar, thanks to plain Greek yogurt and a bit of the natural no-calorie sweetener stevia. Plus, it has more than double the protein of the Wild Berry flavor, so you stay fuller longer.
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Tropical Smoothie Café
Worst: Kiwi Quencher Smoothie
This chain only serves
one size (24 oz), so forget about portion control. If you choose this seemingly healthy flavor, you'll ingest 254 calories and 100 grams of sugar—roughly the sweetness equivalent of an entire pint of ice cream.
Best: Detox Island Green Smoothie
This smoothie (made with spinach, kale, mango, pineapple, banana, and fresh ginger) clocks in at a far more reasonable 182 calories and 32 grams of sugar. That's a sugar savings of 68%!
Smoothie
King
Worst: Orange Ka-BAM
BAM, indeed: Even in the smallest size (20 oz), this smoothie has 469 calories and 108 grams of sugar. That's as much sweetness as you'll get from almost three cans of Coca Cola. In fact, the chain actually adds pure sugar into this smoothie: "Turbinado,"
one of sugar's sneaky names, appears right on the ingredients list.
Best: Original High Protein Banana
A 20-oz cup of this smoothie has
just 23 grams of sugar and 314 calories. We also like the simple ingredients list: banana,
whey protein powder,
and almonds.
Jamba Juice
Worst: Greens 'n Ginger Smoothie
Don't be fooled by word "greens:" The first ingredient in this smoothie is lemonade. That's probably why a 16-oz cup has a whopping 66 grams of sugar and 330 calories.
Best: Orange Carrot Karma Smoothie
This blend still has a high sugar count at 48 grams, but it's much lower in calories (just 180) and it's made without added sweeteners. The only
ingredients: carrot juice, mangos, banana, and ice.
MORE:Top 10 Cholesterol-Fighting Foods
Starbucks
Worst: Evolution Fresh Mango Carrot Smoothie
Here's another example of the veggies-aren't-always-better principle: Each 16-oz cup of this smoothie has 42 grams of sugar and 230 calories.
Best: Chocolate Smoothie
This flavor is still high in sugar (34 grams per 16
oz), but it does have one advantage over the others: It's rich in protein and fiber, both of which slow the release of sugar into your bloodstream, helping prevent blood sugar spikes and crashes. The extra boost comes from a whey protein/fiber powder, but that's about as much information as we can get, since Starbucks doesn't share detailed ingredients lists on its website.
Planet Smoothie
Worst: Captain Kid
This "smoothie" is
better classified as a dessert: The two ingredients are strawberries and orange sherbet. It's no surprise that a 22-oz cup packs 350 calories and 75 grams of sugar—that's more sugar than seven Krispy Kreme original donuts.
Best: PlanetPro Lite Banana & PB
With a total of 27 grams of sugar, this is one of the least sweet smoothies we've found. It does have a high calorie count of 540, but Planet Smoothie wisely markets this variety as a meal replacement.
Order it for that purpose and you'll be in the clear.
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McDonald's
Worst: McCafé Mango Pineapple Smoothie
McDonald's has yet to create a healthy smoothie. All three of the chain's smoothie flavors are basically identical in their nutrition stats, but Mango Pineapple edges out the rest with 56 grams of sugar and 260 calories in a 16-oz medium cup.
Best: McCafé iced coffee with light cream and French vanilla syrup
We can't in good conscience recommend a smoothie here. Your best liquid bet if you need a subtly sweet hit on the go is an iced coffee. It packs 19 grams of
sugar and 120 calories for the same 16-oz portion, or you can forgo the liquid sweetener and stir in one sugar packet for just 4 grams of added sugar.
The article "The 8 Worst Fast-Food Smoothies—And What To Order Instead" originally ran on Prevention.com.