Confession: I am currently obsessed with acai bowls. Give me all the yummy toppings, too! They cost a pretty penny, though, am I right? So I like to try my hand at bowls right from my kitchen … some of them with acai, some of them not. And as a mom, I know looking for ways to make adult food more kid-friendly is always a plus. I teamed up with my talented sister, Michelle, from A Latte Food, to create a couple delicious smoothie bowls, one for us grown-up gals and one for the kiddos.
We decided to try out acai, and grabbed the frozen packs from the market. It’s already pureed so easy peasy! We blended with bananas, strawberries and coconut milk (the amount of liquid needed is actually on the acai package). You can blend acai with any fruit you want! Berries are the clear choice, but pineapple, pitaya (dragonfruit), kiwi, bananas and mangos are also excellent choices. You can also blend in yogurt, dates, nuts, chia seeds and powders (such as macha or protein). And this is the perfect place to sneak in those greens! Kale and spinach could easily hide away under these strong fruity flavors.
Now, if acai is not your thing (or your kids’ thing), a smoothie bowl can certainly be made without it. Just add in the things you like to make a regular smoothie, but go lighter on the liquid to keep the bowl thick. If your bowl is not thick enough, your toppings will sink and it will be much harder for you to eat it with a spoon (probably pretty obvious, but just covering my bases here!).
Now for the toppings. Seriously, for a gorgeously decorated and delicious bowl, check out Michelle’s from her post here. Divine, right? I topped my own bowl a bit more … haphazard. Okay, so here’s my confession about it. It really was not turning out the way I envisioned in my head, and I told Michelle that I should just say that Chloe decorated it herself! Which does lead me to recommend letting your kiddos decorate their own bowls because that would be fun! And you’re probably not going to turn it into a photo shoot like I did. But next time? Chloe is definitely going to get to decorate her own! So back to my kid-friendly bowl. I chose toppings that Chloe likes. If your toddler loves berries like mine, toss ’em on. Sliced bananas? Excellent. I also chose colorful fruity O’s because kids love their fun cereal, right? Michelle also suggested yogurt dipped raisins which I thought was genius! A few more suggestions: toasted coconut, coconut flakes, cacao nibs (or chocolate chips!), chia seeds and sliced almonds. Again, go with what your kids like! It’s also fun to drizzle honey, agave nectar or peanut butter over the top.
Smoothie bowls are a lot of fun to make and top, and doesn’t take too much time. The best part? All of the healthy goodness that you can pack into them! And it’s just the perfect summer snack or light lunch.
Do you like any funky toppings on your bowls? Let me know in the comments!
xoxo, Heidi
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