Honeydew Melon Smoothie: Easy, Creamy, and Refreshing

This healthy frozen honeydew melon smoothie recipe is refreshing, creamy, and perfect for hot days! The ultimate light and frosty beverage, this smoothie blends frozen honeydew melon with fresh cucumber, yogurt, honey, lime juice, and a pinch of salt for a delightful slushy drink that feels like a milkshake without any ice cream. It’s easy to make, super hydrating, and just the thing to keep cool all summer long.

Why We Love This Summer Drink

• Creamy and frosty texture without ice or ice cream. Using frozen honeydew melon in place of ice and thick Greek yogurt instead of ice cream keeps this smoothie healthy, creamy, slushy, and refreshing and fruit-forward.
• Made with whole, real ingredients and lots of nutrients. There are no hard-to-pronounce preservatives or other additives in this smoothie. Just real, simple, whole ingredients like honeydew melon, cucumber, yogurt, lime, honey, water, and a touch of salt for balance. 
• Healthier alternative to a milkshake without sacrificing flavor or creaminess. We love sneaking in probiotics whenever we can, and this smoothie has a decent amount of plain Greek yogurt. The yogurt gives this smoothie an ultra creamy texture that, when blended with frozen honeydew, closely resembles a milkshake without the added fat or tons of sugar (we add honey to this drink, but not too much). 

Health Benefits of Honeydew Melon (and Why We Should Be Having it All Summer)

We love all summer fruit, but we get especially excited for melons like cantaloupe, honeydew, and watermelon. Honeydew is one of our favorite fruits overall due to its sweet flavor, soft and juicy texture, and refreshing quality. We’d be eating it regardless in the summer, but we’re definitely happy to know that it has some major health benefits too. 

It’s high in several nutrients, like vitamin C, fiber, folate, vitamin K, calcium, potassium, and magnesium. Honeydew’s high water content and vitamin C may help improve skin health, and its high levels of vitamin K and folate may help prevent bone density loss and strengthen your bones overall. It’s also naturally low in fat, cholesterol, and not super high in calories, making it an excellent summer snack. 

Ingredients in This Honeydew Melon Smoothie Recipe

• Honeydew melon – freezing the honeydew ahead of time gives this smoothie a slushy-like texture and refreshing coolness. It also means you don’t have to add extra ice, so it won’t get watered down as it melts.
• Persian cucumber – we’re big fans of cucumbers in savory dishes, but they’re also great in sweet recipes too! We love their subtle earthiness in this smoothie. Be sure to peel them to remove any natural bitterness found in the skin. Peeling them will also keep the smoothie a milky light green like honeydew, instead of a darker green.
• Plain Greek yogurt – any plain Greek yogurt will work. We’ve made this with non-fat, 2%, or whole milk yogurt. The higher the fat content, the creamer the smoothie. (Use coconut yogurt for a non-dairy option.) 
• Lime – a couple squeezes of fresh lime juice adds bright mild acidity and fruitiness.
• Honey – honey amplifies the sweetness in the honeydew melon and makes this beverage taste like a treat. If your cucumbers are on the bitter side, you may need more honey. If your melon is super sweet, you may need less. 
• Salt – a small pinch of salt helps balance the sweetness and add depth to this drink. 
• Water – this helps the smoothie blend up without adding more sugar or calories. Depending on the strength of your blender, you may need more water. Just note that less water will make this drink more slushy while more water will make it thinner and milkier, like a juice.

How to Make This Refreshing Summer Drink

STEP 1: Freeze the honeydew. Cut the honeydew in half and scoop out the seeds in the middle. You only need half a honeydew for this recipe (about 4 cups), so set the other half aside for another meal later. Remove the rind and cut the fruit into cubes. Once it’s cubed, place the melon into a freezer safe container with a lid and freeze it. It should take about 3 hours to freeze, but you could also freeze it overnight. 

Tip for cutting honeydew: place the cut side of the melon down onto a surface and slice all of the rind off with a sharp knife, careful not to cut off too much of the fruit. You can also cut the melon into strips and remove the fruit from the rind that way, then cube it.

STEP 2: Make the smoothie. Add the frozen honeydew and the rest of the ingredients to a high-powered blender. We find that it works best if you add the water to the blender first, followed by the other ingredients. Blend everything until smooth. If it has trouble blending, use a tamper or add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Taste for sweetness and add more honey if desired (if your cucumber is bitter, you might want more). Pour into your favorite glass and enjoy!