How To Thicken A Smoothie Bowl
Accidentally make your smoothie base too thin? No fear! Here were sharing our top 3 tips on how to thicken a smoothie bowl.
What Is A Smoothie
Smoothies are a blended fruit drink. The most basic smoothie recipe calls for frozen fruit and a liquid component, often juice or a dairy product like yogurt blended until smooth. It makes a great quick and nutritious on the go meal or snack.
Smoothies are infinitely customizable with a variety of different fruits and liquids. Some recipes call for frozen fruit since the addition of ice to the smoothie will eventually water it down.
Are Smoothie Bowls Healthy
You might be wondering if smoothie bowls are healthier than traditional smoothies. The answer isnt entirely straightforward. Heres what you need to remember.
Smoothies are rich in antioxidants
When prepared correctly, both smoothies and smoothie bowls can be a healthful breakfast or snack.
The fruit and vegetables contained in the blend offer many useful nutrients that will keep your immunity up.
The fiber content is lacking
The human body needs fiber for many reasons. It improves your digestion, heart health, and blood sugar levels.
Fruit and veggies are a great source of fiber, but blending these ingredients together makes the fiber lose shape and become less filing.
Smoothie bowls: It all depends on the recipe
When preparing a smoothie bowl, you can use high-fiber toppings. However, that doesnt mean that all smoothie bowls are healthy.
Too many people fall into the trap of assuming that a smoothie bowl is always good for them. This means that they forget to be careful about portion sizes and overeat.
If you choose the wrong toppings, a daily smoothie bowl habit can cause weight gain. Commercially available smoothie bowls that you find in stores are especially troublesome, as they are severely lacking in vegetables and are high in calories and sugar.
Its easy to learn how to make a smoothie bowl that will protect your health. It all comes down to the ingredients.
Also Check: Healthy Blueberry Smoothie With Almond Milk
Orange Mango Smoothie Bowl
This is my favorite of the 3 options! Frozen citrus is amazing is smoothies. It adds the perfect sweet-tart component, and blends into the creamy banana.
- Frozen bananas
- Frozen Mango
- Coconut Milk
Step 1: Add the frozen bananas, frozen mango, and frozen oranges, along with coconut milk into a food processor bowl. This can also be done in a high speed blender with a tamper stick, but I find it quicker in a food processor.
Step 2: Process until all the fruit is broken down into a soft serve ice cream consistency.
Step 3: Top with your favorite smoothie bowl toppings.
Why Is My Smoothie Bowl Watery
Before I will answer the question how to make your smoothie bowl less watery?, we need to understand why it is happening. Unlike regular smoothies that you usually will drink with a straw, you will eat the smoothie bowl with a spoon, and probably you will add some topping that you want to avoid from sinking.
Smoothie bowl can be watery because of these reasons:
- Too much liquid
- You dont have enough emulsifiers fruits
- You dont use fats in your smoothie
- Too much melted ice
- You dont use frozen ingredients
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Chocolate Banana Smoothie Bowl
Sometimes basic is best, and this banana smoothie bowl wont disappoint! This simple smoothie bowl uses only 4 ingredients:
- Frozen bananas
- Chocolate SunButter
- Coconut Milk
Step 1: Add the frozen fruit, chocolate SunButter, cocoa, and coconut milk into a food processor bowl. This can also be done in a high speed blender with a tamper stick, but I find it quicker in a food processor.
Step 2: Process until all the fruit is broken down into a soft serve ice cream consistency.
Step 3: Top with your favorite smoothie bowl toppings.
What Can I Top My Smoothie Bowl With
The topping options for this smoothie bowl recipe are seriously endless. Here are some of my suggestions!
- Granola. Make your own healthy homemade granola or peanut butter granola, or buy your favorite store-bought variety!
- Nut Butter. I love adding a swirl of nut butter on top for extra fat, protein and flavor! Make your own vanilla almond butter, honey peanut butter or use your favorite store-bought variety!
- Fresh fruit. Top your smoothie bowl with your favorite fresh fruit: berries, bananas, etc.
- Nuts. Add cashews, sliced almonds, or make some homemade cinnamon sugar pecans and sprinkle some on top!
- Seeds. Sunflower seeds, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds , are all great additions to any smoothie bowl!
- Flaked coconut. Use an unsweetened variety!
Recommended Reading: How To Make Homemade Smoothies With Fresh Fruit
Variations To This Recipe
The key to any recipe is being able to change the tastes to fit your needs or even just because you dont have an ingredient on hand. When changing this smoothie bowl recipe consider:
- Different Fruit. While this is a great fruit combination, you can change the fruit to whatever fruit you like or have on hand.
- Different toppings. These are my favorite toppings, but you can change up and add whatever toppings you enjoy most.
- Vanilla Milk. When creating this smoothie bowl recipe, try changing the milk to vanilla-flavored milk. It will add more flavor to your smoothie bowl.
How To Make The Most Instagrammable Smoothie Bowl
Its no surprise that smoothie bowls are all the rage on . I mean, they were basically designed for the perfect overhead shot. But if youve ever actually tried to make one, you probably know that its not as easy as it looks. Ive tried my hand at smoothie bowl making a number of times, but all of my attempts have looked kindasad. The base is always too thin, or too brown, which makes the hodgepodge of superfood toppings impossible to arrange. Lets just say, the stuff Ive made has never really been Instagram-worthy.
Lily Kunin has developed hundreds of smoothie bowls for her healthy eating blog, Clean Food Dirty City. So, obviously, she knows exactly what it takes to make them gorgeous. I asked Kunin for some guidance, and it turns out Ive been doing a bunch of things wrong this whole time. I also asked Abbey Sharp, R.D., owner and blogger at Abbey’s Kitchen, for her suggestions on making a smoothie that isnt a total sugar bomb, since I know its easy to get carried awayespecially when breakfast is also art, and toppings are so darn photogenic.
Here’s everything I learned about making the perfect smoothie bowl, plus some of the recipes Kunin swears by from her new cookbook, Good Clean Food.
Kunin says the secret to making a vibrant smoothie bowl is using ingredients that are approximately the same color. If you combine different colors, its probably going to turn brown. Think back to your elementary school art class days: red + blue + green = bleck.
Recommended Reading: How To Make A Green Machine Smoothie
Try To Use As Much Soluble Fiber
Citrus fruits such as oranges, apples, pears, and avocados are a rich source of soluble fiber. If your purpose for consuming smoothies is to lose weight, adding a rich source of soluble fiber will help you to do it, and its also good for your heart. Nuts legumes, vegetables, and whole grains are also excellent sources of soluble fiber
Faqs About Smoothie Bowls
Are smoothie bowls healthy?
They absolutely can be. Each bowl is packed with fresh ingredients that provide healthy fats, fiber and protein. You can also skip the added sugar and rely on the fruit to sweeten your smoothie bowl naturally. Remember that moderation is key, so try not to go overboard on the toppings and be mindful of portion sizes!
How can I make my smoothie bowl thicker?
To make your smoothie bowl thicker, make sure to use frozen fruit to start. Including nut butter or unsweetened yogurt can help make a denser smoothie, too.
What else can you put in a smoothie bowl?
There are endless combinations. Add some extra protein to your smoothie bowl by including a handful of spinach and a scoop of protein powder with your mix.
For more flavors and textures, try some of these toppings:
- Sliced banana
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Assemble The Acai Breakfast Bowl
Then, transfer the blended acai smoothie to a serving bowl, using a spoon/spatula to smooth it down.
Next, its time to add your toppings of choice. I included a mixture of flavors, textures, and nutrients for this version with healthy fats, fiber, and protein. My toppings included a small handful of homemade granola, a sprinkling of shredded coconut, a couple of sliced strawberries, 1/3 a banana, and a spoonful of almond butter.
Enjoy the frozen acai smoothie bowl immediately before it melts too much.
My Go To Strawberry Smoothie Bowl
These smoothie bowls are packed with strawberry flavor and nutritious ingredients. Theyre an easy way to fit fruit, dairy and protein into your diet and taste more like a dessert than a healthy breakfast!
You can easily customize your bowl to be paleo, vegan, keto, or whatever your dietary needs are. I like to use oats to thicken mine up, but there are many different options to try to meet different dietary restrictions. I promise to give you all my best tips and tricks!
Also Check: Fruit Smoothie Recipes Without Yogurt
Avoid Watery Smoothie Bowls
There are two important steps you need to take to ensure you dont end up with a watery smoothie bowl:
- Try to use as many fruits and ingredients this could include frozen fruit or vegetables.
- As youre blending the ingredients, continue to push them down towards the blade.
Depending on your blender, it may come with a custom-fit device to allow you to save you down towards the blade. I have a Ninja blender that comes with a device that is purpose-built to allow you to safely do this without ever coming into contact with the blades.
The device was designed specifically for this purpose to allow you to comfortably process ingredients. If you dont have this device, dont worry just pause your machine after a few seconds of blending, and mix the ingredients with a spoon, and continue to blend until you reach the perfect texture.
In my experience, I always aim to make the smoothies with less liquid as its easier to add liquid than it is to remove it, and losing natural vitamins and minerals.
Ive also learned from experience that you should avoid adding any frozen ingredients in the middle of the blending process. Thats all youre going to do is end chewing on chunks of frozen fruit or ice. The best advice is to start with a little bit of liquid and continue with lots of different frozen ingredients.
Healthy Ingredients To Add To Your Smoothies
You can augment the just about any smoothie recipe with a few key ingredients. If you want to learn how to make a smoothie without yogurt, you can use any combination of the add-in suggestions we will talk about here.
Tofu may sound like an odd ingredient to put into a smoothie. But it has protein to help keep you full as well as vitamins and minerals. If you are not a fan of tofu, donât worry, the fruit in the smoothie hides tofu’s bland flavor. When using tofu in a smooth, choose silken tofu for the best results. Silken tofu has high water content, making it very soft and easy to blend.
Protein powder is a staple addition to many commercial smoothies. You can find it flavored or unflavored, depending on your needs. Adding protein powder to your smoothie not only boosts the protein but also acts as a thickening agent.
Flax seeds and chia seeds are both nutritional powerhouses in tiny little shells. Both of these seeds contain Omega-3 fatty acids and other nutrients. A tablespoon of either seed can be used to boost the nutrition. Chia seeds have a relatively neutral flavor and used whole. Flax seed has a slightly nutty taste to it and does its best smoothie work when ground.
Also Check: The Smoothie Diet 21 Day Rapid Weight Loss Program
Raw Oatmeal Is A Neat Trick
If you accidentally add too much water to your smoothie, popping in a handful of raw oats without you some additional fiber and protein and quickly add some thickness to a watery smoothie.
Sometimes, I add oats to my smoothie during the blending process and as a topping just because I like it :). Chia seeds can also help make a thicker smoothie and give you some additional healthy fats and more nutrients.
Coconut Yogurt Chia Seed Smoothie Bowl
So I hope youre excited to learn that smoothie bowls like the absurdly popular acai bowl recipes are super easy to make right at home. No need to hit up the closest hipster hangout or over-priced raw bar. This Coconut Yogurt Chia Seed Smoothie Bowl is the perfect way to kickstart your mornings, made in the comfort of your own cozy kitchen in just 5 minutes!
By using coconut yogurt in this recipe, Ive kept it dairy free, but still packed with flavor and creamy texture. Ive added chia seeds, one of my favorite sneaky superfoods, for extra nutrients, as well. Ive used blueberries to add some color and a heap of antioxidants, but you can use your favorite berries. Lets make this photo-worthy breakfast!
Start by adding the first 6 ingredients to a blender or food processor and blending until nice and smooth. Those benefit-rich blueberries give this coconut yogurt smoothie bowl that lovely hue.
Place the blended mix in an airtight container and let it chill in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes. Then add the smoothie mix to a bowl and go wild with the toppings! I love adding sliced berries, coconut flakes, hemp seeds or even almonds for a dose of healthy fats. Dont forget to take a photo of your awesome coconut yogurt chia seed smoothie bowl before serving and enjoying!
Total Time
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How To Make A Smoothie Without A Blender
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Most people reach for their blenders when they want to make a smoothie, but you don’t have to! As long as you choose soft, ripe fruit, you can mash it by hand and stir in your favorite smoothie ingredients, such as yogurt or peanut butter. Get the classic smoothie texture by shaking the mixture with ice until the smoothie is cold and foamy. Use this simple method for your favorite smoothie recipes or create your own custom beverage!
How To Make Yogurt Smoothie Bowl
no yogurt smoothie bowl Search Smoothie MixesHow to Make Yogurt Smoothie Bowl | 2 Delicious Ways
2 delicious, beautiful and simple smoothie bowl recipes. First recipe is blueberry smoothie, the second is raspberry smoothie. Both are yogurt based smoothies. Best breakfast for the summer!
Printable Version:
Topping: 3-4 tsp chia seeds, sliced almonds and fresh or frozen blueberries
For the raspberry smoothie:1 tbsp almond milk Topping: 3-4 tsp chia seeds, pistachios, desiccated coconut/coconut flakes and fresh or frozen raspberries.
Method:1. In a food processor or blender place Greek yogurt, frozen berries, mint/basil leaves, date syrup, almond milk and blend until very smooth.2. Transfer to a bowl and decorate.3. Enjoy!
Read Also: Surf City Squeeze Smoothie Mix
Easy Yogurt Bowls For Breakfast Or Snack
I wanted to share one of my favorite easy treats with you today: These Easy Yogurt Bowls are fantastic for breakfast, snacks and even desserts.
What makes this such a perfect little snack is the combination of yogurt plus fruit and nut add-ins combined make a delicious protein and fiber-packed snack! Thanks to Yoplait for partnering up with me on this post!
Yoplait® Yogurt makes a perfect base for yogurt bowls. The single-serve Greek 100 Vanilla is my very favorite. Its the perfect size for snacking and the vanilla flavor is so versatile its great with almost any add-in you can think of.
I also like to use the Yoplait plain yogurt in smoothies and cooking, so I frequently buy the bulk size container of plain yogurt and then just add in my own vanilla and sweetener to make my own vanilla.
When I want a sweet treat without having to pull out the blender, I love my yogurt bowls. They are so easy to throw together and the add-in combinations are endless!
Berry Banana Smoothie Bowl
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
A Banana Berry Smoothie Bowl is all the rage in breakfast options these days. This recipe is a sweet & smooth combination of yogurt, berries, milk and banana topped with a nutritious crunch of granola.
Totally tasty and totally portable, this banana berry granola bowl has got it all. Reduce the milk in a mango smoothie or a healthy green smoothie, or try making this yummy acai bowl for endless smoothie bowl options!
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