Ahhhhh siiiiiiiiighheeeeee yooooooou! That was creepy.
Hey-o, I’m back home from Illinois and have stories galore for you!…BUT I’m going to save most of the wordage for a Fireside Chat. Because that is just.how.good the stories are. Plus, it has been far too long since you and I cozied up with a good tale. And folks: this one’s worth breaking out the cocoa and marshmallows and whiskey and trail mix but mostly whiskey over.
And you’ll just have to stay tuned.
You don’t want to miss it.
You’ll cry if you do.
Slash read it later.
But mostly cry.
Ugh I may as well just tell you right now!
That was a cheap trick – you still totally have to wait.
In the meantime, the quick and clean re-cap is: Stephie and her family are absolute gems, and I had a blast and a half.
All that tease-talk madejya fungry, didn’t it? I could use some sustenance, myself. Let’s speak.
You guys. I have a bowl that blows all bountiful bowls out of the bloomin’ lagoon! Let’s slingshot ourselves into it.
Açaí (pronounced ahh-sigh-ee) bowls have been a common menu item at coffee shops and breakfast/brunch restaurants in my area for number of years now. You may already know all about them, but folks, a little repetition strengthens the human condition < – I just made that up. It literally means nothing.
As I was saying. Açaí berries are superfruit that originate from Brazil. They’re full of antioxidants, omega fatty acids, B vitamins, vitamin K, and fiber. If you are unfamiliar with açaí bowls, here’s the skinny: They’re basically a smoothie on steroids.
A super thick açaí smoothie (usually made with frozen açaí puree, frozen berries, and yogurt) is served in a bowl with a combination of fruit, nuts, granola, and/or honey, agave, or maple syrup. These bowls make for a healthful breakfast and are nutritionally well-balanced if you add nuts or nut butter as a protein source.
My approach to this açaí bowl was a bit unconventional, because finding açaí puree can be quite the treasure hunt. Whole Foods and select natural food stores carry açaí berry puree, but this doesn’t leave much room for improv…so I improv-ed using the açaí powder that Navitas sent me a few months back. Boom! Açaí puree problem solved.
The powder is simply ground up dehydrated açaí berries. I’ve been blending it with Greek yogurt, frozen banana, and frozen blueberries to make the bowls. I like the powder because it stays fresh in your pantry for months on end, it yields far more bowls than the frozen açaí puree, making it more cost effective. Money.in.the.bankroll.
Oh hey, look at this stack of bowls I photog-ed:
I just love it when light ninjas razzle dazzle my photogs. < – I just made that up. It literally means nothing.
Amazeball açaí bowl serving suggestions: add your favorite homemade granola, and/or a selection of whatever fruit and nuts you have on hand! Apples have been bombtastic lately, so I’ve been adding them along with walnuts, pistachios, unsweetened shredded coconut, and a sprinkle o’ cinnamon to my bloomin’ bowl. The fresh berry and sliced banana approach is always a favorite, too.
Lookit these color ninjas:
Açaí bowls. Let’s FaceTime them as much as possible.
P.S. I’m guest posting over at Making Thyme for Health today! Pop over there, say hi to Sarah, check out my first installment of What I Ate Wednesday and learn what a typically day in my life looks like!
Easy Açaí Bowls
Ingredients
For the Açaí Smoothie:
- 1 ripe banana frozen
- 2 cups frozen blueberries or mixed berries
- 1-1/2 cups plain full-fat Greek yogurt
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 2 tablespoon agave nectar or pure maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons to 4 açaí powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For Serving:
- Plain Greek Yogurt
- Unsweetened shredded coconut
- slices Apple
- Walnuts
- Pistachios
- Sprinkle of cinnamon
Instructions
- Add all ingredients for the "açaí smoothie" to a blender and blend until completely smooth. The consistency should be very thick.
- Divide the thick smoothie between two bowls and add desired amount of fruit, nuts, granola, shredded coconut, etc. to the bowls. Drizzle with honey, agave, or pure maple syrup and enjoy like a champ!
Whee!! I’ll be famous. Or infamous. Whatever. That’s some pretty purple in that bowl. I’m guessing Peoria’s local Kroger might not have this puree, but I’ll keep my eyes peeled. We loved having you and I can’t wait for the Fireside Chat. 😉
Life just isn’t the same without Chicago O’Hare, Freedom Ink, and the Swope house. Don’t be surprised if I show up on your door step one day with all my belongings, haha! Thank you for such a lovely time and give them beagles a squeeze for me…well, gentle squeeze for Steinbeck – I hope the poor little guy is doing better! xo
He is doing a little better. He’d do a lot better if he would stop leaping around when he got to feeling a little better. He’s like having a toddler. Plus, he’s a man when it comes to pain. And you are welcome to show up anytime. The room is always available. Or, you can move into Stephie’s ex-lair, since she’s busy elsewhere. 😉
I have never had acai, although I’ve seen the dried berries! I really didn’t know what to do with them. I love the color of this smoothie bowl, it looks too pretty to eat!
Acai berries are definitely lots of fun…they’re nice and tart, but also have a creamy flavor to them. Let me know if you give the bowls a go! xo
Ooooh I need to get me some of that ahhhsigheeeee powder! This smoothie looks like the perfect way to start the day!
Heck yeah! Getcha some ahhsigheee, girl!
this came at an appropriate time – i was going to whole foods yesterday to pick up some acai powder/puree. i have never tried it but now im convinced.
You’ll love the powder! Let me know when you give the bowls a go!
I’ve got to get my hands on this acai powder, and make my own acai smoothies and bowls, and stop buying $8 smoothies! This pretty bowl is my kind of lunch!
Wowzers! Excuse my nerd comment. This is the most beautiful bowl of goodness I have ever seen. Those colors, gorg!
Perfect breakfast or snack! Looks delicious Julia!
Wow!! This looks so lovely!! What a great recipe!! Seriously!! so healthy and beautiful! I love it!…and I love the blog! SO nice 🙂
Loveeeeee the bowls!
Love ahhsigheee!! Beautiful, artful and yummy presentation! I eat the dried berries from the Asian Grocery Store in salads and add them to trail mix. Now I’m going to find the powder! Thanks for an awesome recipe! Can’t wait to try this one!
Slingshot me. My face is ready for this bowl of goodness.
We first learned about açai bowls in Brazil, and have been making them at home for a couple of years now. We solved the problem of finding the pulp by ordering directly from Sambazon. I make my bowls with mango, frozen strawberries, vanilla protein powder and a little ice, and top them with homemade granola. I have a jar of the powder for traveling, but unless you found a huge jar somewhere, the 3-4 tablespoons of the powder that you use would make a big dent in the contents of the only jar size I found. I’m glad that more people are finding out about and trying açai. It is wonderful stuff.
Bowls! Chats! Ah-sigh-eeeeeeee you, too! (I laughed my butt off at that. Actually I wish I had because I’m not running it off lately because FOOT TAT. Anyway.)
Smoothies and granola in one breakfast?? This is a THING??? I must have it. Can you make other kinds of smoothie bowls? Must they always be acai bowls? Why am I asking, I’m just gonna DO! You just revolutionized my breakfast game.
So pretty!!! Looks deeeeelicious! Reminds me of the smoothie bowl I had every morning when in Hawaii last winter. *sigh* Happy memories. I’ll have to look for some acai powder to make this soon 🙂
I recently discovered acai bowls and LOVE them. Thankfully I found acai puree at a local organic store. I haven’t tried blending it with Greek yogurt yet – great idea!
These photos…the beauty…GAHHH!!! Come to Alchemy so we can nosh on allll the acai bowls PUHLEASE.
whole foods and I have a date with destiny to (a) pick up some acai powder and/or puree and (b) go crazy with fruity toppings for this. It’s gonna be all kinds of awesome!
Gorgeous pictures! Thanks for the post, I cannot wait to make this myself.
Love Domi x
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Thanks Domi! Enjoy!
Looks so yummy, and the pictures are great too 🙂
Can’t wait to recreate it
agave syrup is really,really bad for you. might as well be eating poison