Acai Bowl Recipe

The ultimate superfood, smoothie bowls are all the rage right now and this easy Acai Bowl Recipe is the real original gangster when it comes to bowls. Made with real acai berry puree, bananas, pineapple and yogurt then topped with your favorite toppings, this will definitely be a go-to snack or breakfast from here on out.

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Acai Bowl

A single smoothie never quite did it for me. It’s like chinese food in that you’re hungry an hour later. Some other form of food is required to go along with a smoothie so why not pile everything into one smoothie bowl to help keep hunger at bay but still providing you with something tasty and nutritious. 

Enter the smoothie jar, which was a creation of mine years ago to help conquer the whole “I’m hungry an hour later but can’t go home to get more food” problem. I piled some snack type things like granola, yogurt and fruit in the bottom of a mason jar then poured my smoothie on top. It’s genius when you have to go to work….sip the smoothie on the way and eat the rest at your desk later. I’m so smart.

Then, the smoothie bowl trend began. And basically, they turned my smoothie jar upside down. I get no credit here and, yes, it’s prettier making it much more instagrammable. But, essentially it’s the same thing.

What is an Acai Bowl?

Yet, I’m a big fan of the Acai Bowl, a smoothie bowl made with acai berries and topped with my favorite toppings. It’s easy to find just about anywhere right now but they’re quite pricey. An acai smoothie bowl habit can be quite pricey rivaling the old Starbuck’s habit of past.

The acai berry is known for it’s superfood powers and is said to provide anti-aging benefits, as well as, weight loss properties. It’s commonly blended into a smoothie or used in a juice. It’s claimed to be even richer in antioxidants than cranberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, or blueberries.

It tastes a little tart like a cross between a pomegranate seed and a raspberry so I like to pair the acai puree with banana to mellow out the tartness. The correct way to pronounce acai is ah-sah-EE.

If you’re not a fan of açaí, you should definitely give this Dragon Fruit smoothie bowl a try!

Ingredients for an Acai Bowl

• Acai – Pure Acai puree can be found in most well stocked grocery stores. It’s usually available as acai packets that you can then add to your smoothie bowl base.
• Banana – Bananas add natural sweetness to the recipe without having to add additional sweetener like sugar or honey.
• Fruit – You can use your favorite frozen fruit like berries, pineapple, kiwi or more. Easily customizable, smoothie bowls are easy to keep everyone satisfied. We love to use frozen strawberries because they compliment the Acai so well.
• Yogurt – We use protein packed greek yogurt for this recipe but your favorite will work, as well. Regular yogurt won’t provide the richness greek yogurt does so your smoothie bowl may be a little looser.
• Acai Bowl Toppings – See recipe card below for topping suggestions and favorites.

How To Make An Acai Bowl

Making a Homemade Acai Bowl is as easy as making a smoothie. It’s started with a smoothie base that contains frozen berries, pineapple, acai puree, banana, yogurt and almond milk or other dairy product.

Everything is blended together in a high powered blender until smooth. This is the blender I own and use. You’ll want your acai smoothie base to be on the thick side so your toppings don’t sink to the bottom of the bowl.

1. Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
2. Pour the smoothie into a bowl and top with your favorite smoothie bowl toppings.
3. Serve immediately.

Tips for Perfect Acai Bowls

• Your frozen Acai Bowl is best if enjoyed as soon as you make it. If you want to make it in advance, pour the smoothie base into individual containers and freeze without the toppings. To eat later, allow the smoothie bowl to thaw for 10-15 minutes and give it a stir before adding your toppings.
• Customize your own acai bowl by trying other fruits like mango, apple, papaya and kiwi. Sometimes I like to add a beet to amp up the nutrition factor. Beets provide tremendous energy and oodles of antioxidants!
• If you can’t have dairy or are looking to make a vegan smoothie bowl, simply substitute your favorite dairy-free yogurt.
• Keep the sugar low by skipping the honey. I find if I add a super ripe frozen banana there’s no need to add honey or other sweeteners.

Toppings for Acai Smoothie Bowls

You can really top your smoothie bowl with just about anything you want. Here are a few of my favorite toppings:

• Chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, vanilla chips
• Coconut Flakes
• Homemade Granola
• Fresh berries
• Sliced Banana
• Flax Seed or Chia Seeds
• Peanut Butter
• Honey
• Pineapple
• Nuts like macadamia, almonds, walnuts or pine nuts

You’re only limited by your own imagination here……remember, eat the rainbow so look for a variety of colors and shapes to make your Acai Bowl interesting.

And that’s it! How easy is that and now you can save tons of money by not visiting the local smoothie bowl joint down the street several times a week.

Storage

To store leftover Acai Bowls, transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 48 hours.

You can freeze your Acai Bowl, as well. Just remove it from the freezer 30 minutes prior to serving for best results.

Are Acai Bowls healthy?

Acai berries are a natural superfood, but because fruit can be high in sugar (albeit naturally occurring sugar) you can definitely pull back on the added sugar or skip the banana. Also, I use a low fat yogurt for the acai bowl but you can substitute with fat free if you want to lower the fat content.

Overall, the acai bowl is a healthy way to start the day if you don’t over indulge. Everything in moderation. Right?

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More Smoothie Recipes

• Berry Beet Smoothie Recipe
• Easy Pineapple Kiwi Spinach Smoothie
• The BEST Strawberry Cheesecake Smoothie
• Simple Strawberry Banana Smoothie