Why smoothie bowls?

One of my favourite breakfasts is a smoothie bowl, but why a smoothie bowl and not just a smoothie? I think it is a bit of a psychological thing. With a smoothie it feels like a “drink“, I don’t really feel like I’ve eaten, but just the action of putting spoon into bowl makes it become a meal for me.

Note – I am not a nutritionist. These are recipes I enjoy and work for me.

Other reasons I love smoothie bowls for breakfast…

• They’re a great way to get a whole host of nutrients in first thing.
• They are quick to prepare or can be prepared the night before ready for the morning
• They look really appetising

Smoothie’s can get a bad press for being calorific and high sugar. My take is that there are no more calories than a regular breakfast, so it is all about viewing it as a meal and not a drink. The sugar is naturally occurring sugar, not high refined stuff, and just think of all the nutrients! And if you’re are enjoying them as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle they are a great addition.

What do I need?

I’ll share some of my favourite recipes below but this is what I tend to have in.

• You’ll need a high speed blender – I use a nutribullet
• If you’re making them the night before or to take to work I love these breakfast bowls for storing them.
• Have frozen fruit in. Chop some bananas up and freeze, and keep frozen berries, mango etc. I use fresh fruit just as much but it will give a different consistency. I will often not add any additional liquid when using fresh fruit, where as I would need to with frozen fruit.
• Toppings – these can make a smoothie bowl. I have a cupboard with granola, coconut chips, seeds, nuts, cacao nibs etc, all to add to the nutrients.
• If you are needing to up your protein intake you can easily add a scoop of protein powder to any recipe.

My favourite smoothie bowl recipes

Açai bowl – I love an açai bowl and açai is meant to be a good source of dietary fibre. For my açai bowl I do the following.

• Take 1 banana, a handful of berries (frozen or fresh, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries all work or a combo of them) and 1 tbsp of açai powder and blitz in a blender.
• Pour into a bowl and add toppings. My fav on an açai bowl is granola, cacao nibs and a few berries.

Tropical green smoothie – Smoothie bowls are a great way to get extra greens in and this tropical bowl inspired by a Deliciously Ella recipe is lovely.

• Take a good handful of spinach, 1 banana, and a handful of mango chunks ( I use frozen ones) and a teaspoon of linseed/flaxseed. Blitz in a blender ( you may need to add some liquid if using frozen fruit – I add a dash of coconut milk).
• Pour into a bowl and top – I like coconut chips, a few nuts (pecans and macadamias pictured above) and a couple of strawberries)

Mixing up the colours here.

• Take a handful of mango and pineapple chunks, 1 banana, pinch of ground ginger, tsp of linseed/flaxseed and a dash of coconut milk and blitz.
• I topped this with pumpkin and sunflower seeds, some mixed nuts, coconut chips and blueberries.

With smoothie bowls really anything goes, so have fun experimenting. And if you have any great ideas do share in the comments.