Learn how to make an Acai Bowl, a smoothie bowl topped with fresh fruit and granola. It’s an easy healthy breakfast recipe that is full of fresh flavors.
Maybe you’ve had a smoothie served in a glass, but have you ever tried a smoothie served in a bowl? These acai fruit bowls are a great way to enjoy a smoothie with toppings for a filling breakfast.
What is an Acai Bowl?
Acai is a type of berry from Brazil that is considered a superfood because of its nutrients and antioxidants. The acai berry tastes a bit like blackberries, and because of this, it pairs well with other kinds of fruit. What’s great about it is that you can make endless acai bowl flavor combinations.
The frozen acai puree is used as a base, and you can add other frozen fruit to it to make a smoothie or smoothie bowls. What’s fun about a bowl is that you can top it with fresh fruit and other toppings, so it’s more filling than a regular smoothie.
This is my favorite acai bowl recipe, but there are many ways to adjust it depending on what you like. I’m sharing a few more ideas later in the post in case you try some other variations, too.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Frozen acai packets
- Sliced bananas
- Frozen blueberries
- Apple juice
- Honey-flavored granola
- Fresh blackberries
- Fresh blueberries
- Fresh strawberries sliced in half
- Honey
How to Make Acai Bowls
Before making the bowls, let the acai packets sit out at room temperature for about 10 minutes. They don’t need to thaw completely, just soft enough so you can blend them.
While the packets thaw, place four serving bowls in the freezer. This will help keep your smoothie cold while you’re eating it.
Place the acai, half of the bananas, frozen berries, and apple juice in a blender. Pulse a few times to combine, and then run the blender at low speed until the mixture is smooth.
It should still be thick – don’t blend so long that mixture thaws completely and turns runny. I prefer my acai bowl a little thicker, so it’s easy to eat with a spoon.
Take the bowls out of the freezer and divide the smoothie mixture among them. Top each bowl with sliced bananas, blackberries, strawberries, and granola. Drizzle the honey over the top and serve.
Recipe Tips
The first time I made an acai bowl, I didn’t chill the bowl first. It makes a big difference because if you use a room-temperature bowl, your smoothie will start to melt, and you’ll end up with a soup before you’re done.
I mostly have these for breakfast, but you can make it for a dessert, too. When you blend the acai with the other ingredients, place the mixture in the freezer for about 20 minutes. It will firm up and have a texture like sorbet. Add your toppings, and it makes a light dessert.
Acai Smoothie Bowl Variations
There are countless ways to change these up, but just remember the more you add, the more acai bowl calories you’ll get. But here are a few ideas you might like to try:
- Frozen Fruit: Any frozen fruit you like will work with the acai, so try different ones to change the flavor of the base smoothie.
- Juice: Change the apple juice with other fruit juices.
- Mix-Ins: Things like yogurt or nut butter like almond butter, peanut butter, or cashew butter can be mixed into the base to make it more filling. You can also add flaxseed or chia seeds. Adding a little vanilla extract or almond extra can add a nice flavor, too.
- Fresh Fruit: The same goes for fresh fruit toppings. Raspberries, sliced kiwis, diced pineapple, mango, apples, melon… there are a lot of options.
- Granola: Use your favorite kind of granola – it doesn’t have to be honey-flavored.
- Nuts: Or swap the granola with chopped nuts like almonds, walnuts, or pecans. Toasted nuts would work well.
- Other toppings: I’ve seen versions with coconut flakes and chia seed garnishes. Some people every add some mini chocolate chips!
Are Acai Bowls Healthy?
They can be very healthy, but that depends on the different ingredients you add and the toppings you use. As you can see from the other ideas, it can be easy to go a little crazy and end up with a not-so-healthy smoothie bowl.
It all depends on your diet needs, but you can easily make dairy-free acai bowls and ones with no added sugar based on the ingredients you use. I hope you pick up a frozen acai packet the next time you’re at the store and give this acai bowl recipe a try. It’s a definite step-up from a basic smoothie and a great way to start the day. Enjoy!
More Easy Breakfast Ideas You’ll Enjoy
Acai Bowl Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 3.5 ounce packages frozen Acai packs, Let sit out 10 minutes to thaw just a little before use
- 2 ripe bananas sliced in 1” slices, separated
- 1 cup frozen blueberries
- 1 cup honey flavored granola
- ¾ cup apple juice
- ½ cup fresh blackberries washed
- ½ cup fresh blueberries washed
- ½ cup fresh strawberries washed and halved
- 2 tablespoons honey
Instructions
- Place your 4 serving bowls in freezer while preparing the Acai
- In a large blender add Acai, ½ of the sliced bananas, frozen blueberries and juice. Pulse blender at first to combine. Then run at low speed checking often to make sure it isn’t too thin. You want the consistency of a smoothy (I err on the side of keeping it thicker).
- Get bowls from freezer and divide the Acai mixture into the bowls. Top with the remaining banana slices, blackberries, blueberries, strawberries and granola. Drizzle with honey and serve right away.
Recipe Notes
- You can use any of your favorite fruits for toppings. Get creative!
- If you want to change texture, you can stick the Acai mixture in the freezer for 20 minutes or so to firm up and then top it. It becomes like the texture of sorbet.
Recipe Nutrition
These Acai Bowls are a great way to enjoy a smoothie with added toppings for flavor and texture for breakfast.