The Best Banana-Free Acai Bowl

The Best Banana-Free Acai Bowl

by | Aug 11, 2018 | Health, Home, Recipes

After my candida prevention protocol, following my wisdom teeth surgery, I wasn’t eating fruit.  I may have consumed a few dates here and there but I largely stayed away from fruit.  I finally feel like my body is in a better place where it can tolerate fruit so I’m siked to enjoy some of my old favorite foods!

HELLO ACAI SMOOTHIE BOWLSSSS 💃💃💃

My elimination diet showed me that ripe bananas aren’t all that great for me.  Barely yellow bananas are more tolerable but the nice, sweet, RIPE bananas I enjoyed before throw off my blood sugar.  Therefore, I’m choosing to keep my banana intake to a minimum.  So how else can you get a smoothie bowl to taste sweet and creamy sans bananas?  I’m about to show you! 😉

Frozen fruit & veg – As you may remember from my Sweet & Fluffy Smoothie Bowl post, FROZEN ingredients are always the way to go to make a smoothie thicker.  I also make sure to include a powerhouse fruit like MANGO to help compensate for the flavors banana would otherwise provide.

Yogurt – A game-changing ingredient that provides some creaminess and body.  Use whatever kind you like but this Forager Project one is the best dairy-free kind I’ve tried!

Superfoods – I like to throw in some flax mixed with water—a “flax egg”—for creaminess and fiber.  The addition of protein powder also helps to provide staying power and more substance than the typical acai shop bowl.   I like a neutral-tasting protein powder such as hemp because it allows the acai and fruit flavors to take center stage.

If you’re into lower sugar or alternative ways to make your favorite sweet treats, then you’ll love this bowl!  Tell me what your go-to smoothie order or combination is in the comments down below 🙂

Ingredients:

½ of a 5.3 oz container of yogurt (or ¼ cup), I used Forager Project Cashewgurt

A handful of frozen spinach (about ½ cup)

1 flax egg (or 1 tbsp flax but soaking it helps make it bind better)

½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries*

¼ cup frozen mango chunks

1 packet of frozen acai puree, I used Sambazon Pure Unsweetened Acai

2 tbsp hemp seed protein powder, I used Nutiva hemp protein

Toppings: local bee pollen, homemade granola, more blueberries, and peanut-cashew butter

Directions:

  1. If you haven’t yet made a flax egg, add the tablespoon of ground flax plus three tablespoons of water to the blender and wait 5 minutes for it to thicken.
  2. Then, add all of the other ingredients to a blender or food processor (my lazy go-to) and blend until thoroughly combined.
  3. Serve in a bowl with whatever fresh toppings your heart desires! I like berries but you can totally skip fruit toppings and opt for low-sugar granola, nut butter, bee pollen, and coconut. (Okay, usually I add coconut but I forgot this time!) 

Note: *If using fresh blueberries, your smoothie bowl will be a little more liquidy than frozen but it is still delicious! 

Be sure to tag me in your photos on Instagram if you make this smoothie bowl! @melaniemakesithappen #melmakesithappen 😀

I hope you enjoy this Banana-Free Acai Bowl as much as I do! xoxo

Blueberry Coconut Smoothie Bowl

Blueberry Coconut Smoothie Bowl

by | Apr 25, 2017 | Health, Home, Recipes

On cold days, on rainy days, on sunny days, or cloudy days, I will always be in the mood for a smoothie.  In fact, the jury is still out on whether I consume more smoothies in winter months or summertime.

Blueberry Coconut Smoothie Bowl

On a slightly related side note:

there was a lot of mud from the previous night’s rain when I made this smoothie bowl.  I didn’t let that stop me from marching outside in my boots to snap a picture. 🙂 The lighting is much better outdoors!  Plus, my neighbors would probably wonder where I’m at if they didn’t see me go outside to take a picture of my breakfast.  You know, ‘cause that’s the usual these days.

Anyway, this photo is from a while back but I’ve had this for breakfast a number of times since.  I rarely make the same smoothie twice but there is something particularly crave-worthy about blueberries that makes me want to have them in a smoothie several days in a row.  This simple smoothie is the best way to make that happen.

Blueberry Coconut Smoothie
Recipe Type: Breakfast, Smoothie
Author: Melanie
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1 smoothie
Creamy coconut milk combines with frozen banana and blueberries to make a delicious rich and tropical smoothie.
Ingredients
  • 1 medium to large banana, frozen
  • ¾ cup of blueberries, frozen
  • ¼ cup of canned coconut milk
  • 1 serving of protein powder (optional)
  • Toppings: granola, blueberries, ground flax, coconut flakes
Instructions
  1. If using protein powder, add that to the blender first, followed by the coconut milk and frozen fruit.
  2. The smoothie might be tough to blend but it’s perfectly thick with a small amount of liquid. Add a tablespoon of additional milk to the blender if the mixture is not budging.
  3. Scoop the smoothie contents into a bowl and add the recommended toppings, or, simply some coconut flakes to jazz up the tropical factor.
Notes
Prep time does not include freezing the fruit. A very necessary step for the ultimate creamy smoothie!