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I love kiwifruit!
Although native to China, the kiwifruit is most strongly associated with New Zealand. New Zealanders were the first to grow the fruit commercially, after its cultivation was brought across from China a little over a century ago. Indeed, the name most of us know the fruit by today comes from the nickname given to it in the 1960s by New Zealand farmers when they started to export overseas – before that it was known as Chinese Gooseberry and Melonette!
Today, China and Italy are the first and second largest producers, respectively, with New Zealand in third place, though it’s fair to say that the popularity of the fruit is thanks to the New Zealanders. China and Italy didn’t grow the crop commercially until long after New Zealanders had brought it to the attention of Europeans and Americans.
The kiwifruit I know best is about the size of a hen egg and has furry brown skin and distinctive green flesh with a pale core surrounded by a ring of tiny black seeds. The flavour is not like any other fruit I know, though in my mind it has flavour characteristics a little similar to pineapple, and that same propensity to be a little sharp when not quite ripe! High in Vitamin C, easy to peel and particularly pretty when sliced into discs, I’ve enjoyed kiwifruits for breakfast, snacks throughout the day and in desserts – they look gorgeous on top of a fruit tart or pavlova.
I first came across golden kiwifruit last year, courtesy of producer Zespri who have developed a gorgeous yellow-fleshed cultivar called SunGold. SunGolds have thin, smooth yellow-brown skins (which means they’re suitable to eat unpeeled if you like), and they are also much sweeter than their green cousins.
I’ve been enjoying these gorgeous golden kiwifruits the classic way – by cutting in half and scooping the sweet flesh out with a teaspoon. But they’re also delicious in smoothies. Indeed, if you have a power blender (like my Froothie Optimum, below), you can simply cut off the pedicel – the hard bit where the fruit was attached to the stalk – and throw the kiwifruit in whole, the thin skin will add nutritious fibre and a subtle bitterness to your smoothie. Alternatively, cut off the pedical, peel, and just use the flesh.
Here, I’ve combined Zespri SunGold Kiwifruits with pineapple and a little fresh turmeric for a three-ingredient golden smoothie.
Kiwifruits also work well combined with apple and mint, with bananas and berries or even with coconut milk for a non-dairy shake.
Golden Kiwifruit, Pineapple & Turmeric Smoothie
Ingredients
- 3 kiwifruit peeled (about 250 grams)
- 100 grams fresh pineapple peeled and cored
- 1-2 cm piece of fresh turmeric root
- Optional: water
Notes
Instructions
- Add ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.
- If the smoothie texture is thicker than you like, add a couple of tablespoons of water and blend again. Repeat, as needed to reach your preferred consistency.
- Best enjoyed freshly made.
Click to see more Froothie Optimum blender recipes from Kavey Eats
Kavey Eats was commissioned to develop and publish this recipe for Zespri International Limited. Copyright remains with Kavey Eats.
Please leave a comment - I love hearing from you!45 Comments to "Golden Kiwifruit, Pineapple & Turmeric Smoothie Recipe"
So much I did not know about Kiwis! I thought they were native to NZ too!!!! This drink is just absolutely delicious!
Yeah I did too, love learning more about the origin of favourite foods! Hope you can find some to try.
I don’t see a lot of turmeric root in the store, but I can sometimes get it at the Farmer’s market… but I always have some powdered turmeric. Now I need to find those kiwis.
I don’t see it too often but I most commonly come across it in an oriental supermarket or grocer’s. When I see it, I buy a bag and shove it in the freezer as it is. When I need it, like for this recipe, I take out a piece the size I need, and peel it with a teaspoon, and then use. As the pieces are small they defrost pretty quick but my power blender can blend frozen fruit and veg anyway.
I don’t usually see as much golden kiwi in the stores but lately I have been noticing it much more frequently. This looks like a delicious smoothie
Yes, I think the exporters are making efforts to let consumers know about it, hence getting in touch with bloggers like me!
And you can eat them unpeeled?! Omg! Lol my mind has been blown!
Yeah, I took some into work yesterday and one of my colleagues commented on the thin unfurry peel and then just ate them with the peel on. I looked it up and apparently the peel is edible for the regular ones too but the furry texture and the fact they’re thicker means few people want to eat it!
Kiwi, pineapple and turmeric sounds like a perfect combination. I would love to have it right now!
Thanks, I wanted to add a smaller amount of a second fruit just to give a little more complexity of flavour. The turmeric is for colour, flavour and for the health properties it’s said to have — I can’t comment on how true those claims are but my Indian family consider it a traditional medicinal herb.
I’m always looking for more ways to add turmeric into my diet. Delicious!!
I love using it in smoothies!
Those golden kiwis are absolutely delicious but never thought of combining them in a smoothie. Love, love, love this combination of ingredients.
Too beautiful not to! 😉
Well, I never knew Kiwis originated from China! Love the name ‘melonette’ too! This looks great, very healthy and I’d love to try the flavours together.
Yeah melonette appealed to me too!
Oh yes, I remember calling them Chinese gooseberries now. It’s such a long time ago since I’ve heard it, I’d forgotten. We spent a week pruning kiwis in NZ, so that name has stuck. Love the sound of this golden version.
I don’t remember them as Chinese gooseberries, but I can see why they were known as such!
HI,Golden kiwi are quite rare in my part of the world, if I can get hold of it I’d sure like to try this smoothie for myself, thanks for sharing
You can use green ones, you may want to add a touch of honey or sugar if they are a bit tart, and of course the colour won’t be quite the same, but taste should be.
Wow, I’ve never seen golden kiwi before. Hope I can find some, this smoothie looks delicious!
Good luck on the hunt!
This smoothie looks awesome, loved the addition of turmeric root to it. Shall give a try to it.
Thanks Jay!
I never knew kiwi fruit comes from China originally! I keep looking for the yellow ones but haven’t seen them yet,
I didn’t either, but a lot of fruit we cultivate globally originated in China or South America it seems!
Such a great combination of ingredients for a smoothie! Can’t wait to try it!
Thank you, hope you like.
What a delicious sounding smoothie, I’d love to start my day with this!
Was delicious!
Oh gosh! can you freeze tumeric root? I guess that means you can freeze ginger too? I love that flamingo glass. And, golden kiwis sound delish
I’ve been freezing it and using it and not died so I’m going to say yes, though I confess it never occurred to me not to! ? Thanks for your flamingo glass love
Golden kiwis are my favorite! They are so perfectly sweet!
They are! So good!
I will have to be on the lookout if I see these golden kiwi here . Shake turned out such a gorgeous color
Yes, it did make for a pretty colour! If you can’t find it, by all means use green ones plus a touch of honey or sugar if needed.
Love this. Am a bit allergic to green kiwi, wonder if these would be ok? Am making turmeric smoothie myself at the mo- love the earthy taste it gives!
It’s pretty much the same fruit so sadly I suspect you may still be allergic. It’s like two different varieties of apples… I guess you could try a tiny bite to see, depending how severe your reaction is.
It sounds delicious and so healthy too, especially as it has turmeric in as well. I’ll have to try it in a smoothie soon, although I’m not sure if my old blender would cope with root turmeric!
It’s pretty soft, so if it can handle fruit, it should be fine, but if not you could grate the turmeric first, or use a food processor instead?
This sounds delicious and refreshing! Have to try it with the last days of summer.
I hope you enjoy it!
This sounds incredible – I’ve never seen those golden kiwi fruit before
Reading the comments and I guess not many people have a chance to make this smoothie, so I decide to leave a comment 😁
I made it with 1 golden kiwifruit, a slide of pineapple because i used a single shot magic bullet, orange juice instead of water. I think i put a bit too much turmeric powder, it tasted a bit strong, but anyways thumbs up for a healthy smoothie, i know my mom will be supper happy if she knows i include turmeric in my diet. She keeps telling me to eat turmeric every time we have a chance to talk lol. Thanks for sharing the amazing recipe.
No I think you are right, its not one people have made a lot, or at least that they told me about! Maybe people think they can’t make it without the yellow kiwis but any kiwifruits are good. You can adjust the turmeric depending on how pungent yours is, to find a balance that tastes great for you! Thanks so much for your comment! ❤️