Oh, the world of smoothie bowls! I’ve found there are a lot of misconceptions about smoothie bowls. Some things I have heard or have been asked include:
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- Are they healthy?
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- Don’t they contain a lot of sugar?
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- How can you make a meal out of that?
If you’re new to smoothie bowls, creating a balanced, filling, and healthy one can be challenging. So, I’d like to offer my top 3 suggestions to consider if you are thinking about incorporating them more into your diet, as well as a simple, customizable recipe to get you started!
Smoothie Bowl Tips
1. Try to avoid added sugars.
Added sugars can quickly turn what you were hoping was a healthy meal into a dessert! Make sure to read the labeling on products you’d like to incorporate into your smoothie.
Instead of using store-bought juice as a base, opt for a plant-based milk with no added sugar. Other products that tend to have added sugars in them include granola, dried fruits, and agave syrups.
2. Keep it balanced by including healthy fats and protein.
Some people avoid smoothie bowls because they believe they are all carbs, which is understandable especially if they’ve only made smoothie bowls with just fruit.
However, you can round out your bowl by adding healthy fats and protein such as nuts or nut butters, seeds, protein powder, or even half of an avocado.
3. Don’t be afraid to add vegetables!
With smoothie bowls, you can easily pack in ample amounts of your daily required micronutrients, especially when you add in vegetables. Some of my favorite ones to add in are spinach, kale, beets, and carrots.
Recipe
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- 1 scoop of protein powder (vanilla or unflavored)
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- 1 cup of frozen fruit
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- 1 cup of plant-based milk
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- 1 tablespoon of chia seeds
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- 1/2 banana
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- 1/2 to 1 cup of leafy greens
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- Optional toppings: handful of nuts, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, low-sugar granola, fresh berries, sliced bananas, nut butter drizzle
Blend together, add water as needed for texture / desired consistency, and enjoy!