Find out what healthy food you can get at Panera Bread. Read my full review of the Green Passion Power Smoothie recipe by Panera Bread and whether it is worth your coins and calories.
I had a day off and didn’t feel like cooking breakfast so after dropping the kids off at school I decided to catch some breakfast at Panera Bread. I know they tend to have fairly healthy breakfast choices such as their steel cut oatmeal with blueberries and granola (sounds yum right) and such so I stopped on in.
Why I Bought Green Smoothie
My initial reaction was to purchase the 4-cheese egg souffle with cafe mocha BUT knowing how many calories that combination had, I decided to go in the green smoothie direction.
See, Panera Bread has this uncanny ability to showcase its new menu items on a standing billboard directly in front of its doors which usually makes me stop, stare and read.
I saw this delicious looking green smoothie proudly displayed on the sign so when I stepped to the counter I ordered that.
Cost: approx. $5.00 for the Green Passion Power Smoothie
Green Passion Power Smoothie Ingredients:
Peach and mango purees and white grape and passionfruit juice concentrates blended with fresh spinach and ice.
Nutritional value:
- 200 Calories
- 0g Total Fat
- 30mg Sodium
- 51g Total Carb
- 2g Fiber
- 2g Protein
Seeing what’s in the smoothie, I can relate because I went an entire year using the Peach, Mango and Orange juice as the base for my green smoothies but then I learned how to make a healthy green smoothie.
I had tried to take a peek at all the young lady behind the counter was putting in there but all I could make of it was baby spinach leaves and some ice in what looked like a Blendtec blender.
I know – got all distracted. LOL.
Panera Bread Smoothie Review:
You know me, I first took a picture of the green smoothie when I got in the car.
It was a gorgeous day outside and this smoothie was going to hit the spot since I planned to do some additional running around. I took the first sip from the humongously wide straw and the flavor was a welcomed taste to my mouth.
You couldn’t taste the spinach but you could definitely taste the slight twang from the passion fruit juice and the other juice they put in there (which I later found out was white grape juice).
I drove all the way home taking my little sips that didn’t disappoint.
It felt good not to have to clean up my own blender from making my own green smoothies. 🙂 It’s amazing the little things that can make your day.
As previous shown before, the smoothie is 200 calories. That isn’t too bad for a 16 oz smoothie, especially if you try and use it as a meal replacement or snack.
The flavors were popping and after drinking it, I felt satisfied.
BUT….and this is a big but….a WHOPPING 47 grams of the carbs come from sugar. That is more than many soft drinks!
Sugar is the number one cause of chronic disease and can be as addicting as cocaine according to the movie “Fed Up“.
Source: Panera Bread Website
Source: Panera Bread website
It is something we American consume too much of and is in too many foods. Now I do understand the sugar may primarily be naturally occurring in the juice but that’s the other problem – fruit naturally has sugar but it also contains fiber to counterbalance the effects.
If you remove the fiber from the juice….you have a higher concentrate of sugar.
And just like the sharks on the show “Shark Tank” I’m out.
Panera Bread Green Smoothie Pros:
- Convenient
- Contains spinach
- Contains fruit
- Tastes good
- Fairly affordable at $5 (with tax)
Panera Bread Green Smoothie Cons:
- Too much sugar – do I really need to say anything else?
Rating:
I would rate this a 5 out of 10 stars. While the taste was out of this world, it comes with a major cost and let down, a bunch of SUGAR so much so that I can’t even recommend this to my mom or aunt who are diabetics.
I make green smoothies often and use nut milk or water as a base and they still taste just as good so I do not think it needs to have so much sugar.
I really hope Panera Bread rethinks their recipe for this and other smoothies they offer on their menu.
I did tweet out what I was drinking and Panera Bread tweeted back. Cool right?
@DSTPRL What’d you think of our new Passion Power Smoothie, Diatta? We hope you liked it!
— Panera Bread (@panerabread) May 8, 2015
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What have you eaten at Panera Bread lately?
Have you tried any of their green smoothies?
What do you think?
48 Replies to "Panera Bread Green Passion Power Smoothie Review"
Carla May 11, 2015 (6:40 am)
oh man. we hate that adddded sugar stuff.
Pass for me 😉
Wendy May 11, 2015 (7:39 am)
I just knew it was too good to be true. I had a feeling it would be full of sugar. How else would they sell it to the general public?
Deborah
Twitter: deborahbrooks14
May 11, 2015 (8:46 am)
So sugar is what deters me from having more smoothies. It’s hard to find one that has low sugar. Looks good though
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
May 11, 2015 (9:42 am)
Deborah I asked them to make one that is water or nut mylk based to decrease the sugar content.
Brittney January 11, 2018 (9:23 am)
Did they do that for you? I LOVE their green smoothie but I was worried about the same thing. I didn’t think to ask if they would use water instead!
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
January 12, 2018 (8:10 pm)
You use water and their syrup is full of sugar which increases the caloric count.
o
Julie Syl Kalungi
Twitter: syl_julekalungi
May 11, 2015 (1:35 pm)
47gms of sugar…I have a feeling some is added…! Thats too much sugar in a day, in any one drink…worse than pops! I was enjoying it along with you till I saw the sugar content arrg!
Lindsay
Twitter: LTsurf
May 11, 2015 (1:42 pm)
Thanks for your honest review. That’s way too much sugar. It sounded good until I saw that. Eeek!
Sami Fait
Twitter: mindfulsami
May 11, 2015 (5:04 pm)
Haven’t tried it, unfortunately there’s no panera bread in my city! I’m typically an all organic type of girl but sometimes I’ll let off and try some stuff. That is somewhat of a high sugar count… Does it taste like an overkill?
I’m hypoglycemic so sugar actually helps me although with staying fit I try to consume super low amounts, again I’ll give in every now and then 🙂
Joli Tripp
Twitter: jolitripp
May 11, 2015 (10:49 pm)
Fortunately it was just a special treat for you and not an everyday thing. On the good news side, Panera Bread is listening to us and has agreed to remove 150 food additives from their products by the end of 2016. They have realized they need to change as they watch companies like McDonalds lose business over unhealthy food!
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
May 11, 2015 (11:05 pm)
Joli I have them some suggestions.
Annmarie
Twitter: fitfoodiemama
May 12, 2015 (8:48 am)
I am the same way as you, I don’t drink juice that contains too much sugar! Not my cup of tea….or smoothie I should say 😛
Julie
Twitter: juliewunder
May 12, 2015 (9:13 am)
What a bummer! I knew it tasted tooooo good. Thanks for the honest information!
Sam
Twitter: PancakeWarrior_
May 12, 2015 (11:17 pm)
Oh I really do hate that even the healthy options are often ruined by too much sugar! Don’t people know that fruit is usually sweet enough! 🙁 I was hoping this would have a better nutritional value but at least it’s got some real greens in it!
Janelle
Twitter: Janelle_RWNR
May 13, 2015 (7:37 am)
I really enjoy Panera Bread and wish I could go there often (none in my neighborhood!). Great review on the smoothie, while it looks tasty I may have to stay away from all that sugar!
Farrah
Twitter: fairyburger
May 13, 2015 (8:16 am)
I love Panera, but I haven’t been there in ages (trying to save money!)! Kinda sad that there’s so much sugar in this green smoothie! I adore green smoothies, but am not a fan of super-super sweet things!
Serena
Twitter: TheSHGBlog
May 13, 2015 (11:54 am)
Thanks for the review. I LOVE smoothies and I am always interested in good places to buy them if I don’t make my own. Sugar content doesn’t bother me unless it’s coming from a not so good source. I don’t stress out too much about that stuff. If it was ALL from fruit then I’m fine with it. Better than it coming from a candy bar. #wowlinkup
Louida
Twitter: missloumae
May 14, 2015 (10:27 am)
That is just too bad this drink has so much sugar in it. People are better off making their own smoothies at home. I just started making my own smoothies again this week.
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
May 14, 2015 (10:36 am)
I’m so happy to hear hat Louida. What’s your favorite recipe?
Louida
Twitter: missloumae
May 18, 2015 (9:47 am)
I’ve been winging it lately and throwing a bunch of fruits and vegetables together.
Lex
Twitter: flecksoflex
May 14, 2015 (3:05 pm)
That sugar situation is kind of crazy! Are you sure that they added sugar? I did a quick Google search, and it looks like mango has about 46g of sugar (of course, that’s for the entire mango, which… I’d be surprised if they used an entire mango for one smoothie at Panera and not charge you double). If they did, shame on them! Thank you for your honest review! #wowlinkup
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
May 14, 2015 (3:40 pm)
I’m not saying they necessarily added sugar but the base is grape juice – full of sugar and it is packed with a lot of fruit with high sugar content. I think they could use a water, coconut water or non-dairy milk base which would cut the sugar and still have a great tasting smoothie.
Lori Hil
Twitter: lorihil
May 16, 2015 (8:37 am)
Looks delicious, but WOW that is a lot of sugar! Thanks for the share, we are sweet enough 😉
Stacie
Twitter: staciesayzso
May 16, 2015 (10:16 am)
I saw that you posted this on Instagram and was a bit intrigued. I love to eat at Panera, but I usually get a bagel, soup, or salad. 200 calories doesn’t sound bad at all!
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
May 16, 2015 (11:04 am)
Yeah it was tasty but just a little too much sugar for me.
James September 4, 2015 (8:53 am)
Wow! People fear sugar way too much on here. Where are all the fat and unhealthy fruitarians? Oh wait, there are none! Stop believing all the crazy propaganda brought on by low carbers. Watch the documentary sugar vs fat. Its not just the sugar or just the fat that causes wait gain and issues but the combination of both together. You never hear anyone say oh there’s too much oil in that product when indeed its a processed product made up of 100 percent fat. There are no adverse health effects to consuming a lot of fruit except a full stomach. Everything else is just putting blame on sugar when in fact it’s other poor diet choices at work.
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
September 4, 2015 (9:22 am)
James – with all due respect, sugar feeds cancer and chronic disease. It’s more than just weight gain. Don’t believe the hype.
GiGi Eats
Twitter: dubagee
November 3, 2015 (9:20 am)
Panera isn’t very close to me… However, when it’s around, and there is nothing else… I will stop, they have some good chicken salads!
o
Tiffany November 3, 2015 (9:40 am)
Gah, what’s the point of putting so much sugar in there? It can taste delish just on its own, Panera/St. Louis Bread Company! Thanks for the review — I’ll have to try out a smoothie from there, since I never have.:)
o
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
November 3, 2015 (10:24 am)
It’s all of the fruit concentrate.
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Jen
Twitter: prettylilgrub
January 5, 2016 (3:23 pm)
When I order a smoothie when I’m out I just ask them to substitute water for the juice. That way I’m only getting sugar from the whole fruit.
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
January 5, 2016 (3:34 pm)
That’s a great idea!!!
Carla January 6, 2016 (6:18 am)
We recently went there as well and the 10-year-old asked for the same smoothie.
I explained to her she could completely completely pic that is her choice but it’s pretty much used up every single gram of sugar for the rest of the day if not more 🙂
I am all about letting her choose but helping her be an informed consumer. She did not choose that 🙂
o
Liz
Twitter: CE_Couple
January 6, 2016 (11:44 am)
Panera is one of my favorite places to stop if I need something super quick on the road, but I’m always mindful about what I chose there. It ‘s such a bummer because most people aren’t informed enough about products like these, and fall for the trap that they’re healthy. No one needs anything with 47g of sugar in it!! INSANE! When I make my green smoothies at home I try to keep them under 10 g of sugar.. I just use a little bit of orange juice, but I also don’t like things sweet!
o
Jenn - a traveling Wife
Twitter: atravelingwife
January 6, 2016 (10:09 pm)
Sugar is so very dangerous. It’s a personal struggle for me, but that’s a lot of sugar to put in a smoothie. People don’t always check the nutrition – they just see it labeled as ‘green smoothie’ and assume it’s healthy.
Melody Biddle
Twitter: mamalevi
January 30, 2016 (12:43 pm)
The carbs are a result of fructose, basically fruit sugar which is natural and unprocessed. In moderation they are not harmful. More to be avoided are processed carbohydrates such as white sugar, confectioners sugar, white flour and white rice.
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
January 30, 2016 (1:31 pm)
Melody – the purées have added sugar.
Dustin March 7, 2016 (5:29 pm)
I looked at all the ingredients and I noticed they used juice concentrates a lot. So I replicated it but using (mostly) fresh fruit and vegetables and calculated the nutritional info for comparison:
Calories: 192
Fat: 1.2g
Carbs: 51g
Fiber: 6g
Sugar: 42g
Protein: 4
Only thing is I used that’s not fresh is canned pineapple in juice.
Amber May 6, 2016 (10:04 am)
Hey so I was a previous worker at panera bread and the 47 grams of sugar comes from the mango puré and the peach puré they put in it, which (besides spinach and ice) is the only ingredients used in the smoothie. the sugar is coming from the whole fruit, which you would get if you were to each a peach or mango on its own! :^) as far as I know, there is little to none extra added sugars
Diatta
Twitter: DSTPRL
May 6, 2016 (11:22 am)
True but that will spike someone’s blood sugar levels regardless. They don’t need to add all of that extra purée IMHO. Thanks for stopping by.
Fortune E June 6, 2016 (1:24 pm)
That’s a nice treat for you, but it would have been better if there is a low sugar content…
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Joan June 21, 2017 (7:51 am)
I split this smoothie with two others on a recent trip to Panera, as I wanted them to try it. All of us enjoyed our small portions.
I am so glad you pointed out the carbs and sugar. This is not a wise, one-person beverage!
Bobby December 5, 2017 (6:47 pm)
Thanks for your review! I really dislike how sweet smoothies are at stores. I always make sure that the fruit and vegetables are fresh and being prepared in front of me! 🙂
o
kaelyn February 13, 2018 (10:31 pm)
we use a peach mango puree and add spinach and ice. that is all.
Denise Collins July 30, 2018 (3:59 am)
Love green passion fruit smoothies from Panera’s
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