Berry Almond Milk Smoothie Bowl Recipe

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Safeway. All opinions are 100% mine.

Start your morning off right with a berry-filled plant based smoothie bowl, topped with fresh fruit and nuts! High in protein and fiber, and packed with flavor.

I fully admit that I was very late to the smoothie bowl party. To be honest, I didn't really see the point. I mean, why not just drink a smoothie? But with all of the smoothie bowls on Instagram, I figured I must be missing out!

Sure enough, it took just one smoothie bowl to hook me! Thick and creamy (without the cream) blended fruits and veggies, topped off with all of the fresh fruit, nuts, seeds and unsweetened coconut my heart desired. I mean, so good!

Over the past couple of months, I've transitioned to eating two out of the day's three meals (usually breakfast and lunch) completely plant based (in other words, vegan). And let me tell you…I feel fantastic! But that's a story for another day.

All of that is to say that I was so excited when I found out that my local Safeway store carries O Organics® and Open Nature® plant-based products that are fantastic high-protein alternatives to meat at surprisingly budget-friendly prices. I've tried many of the products and am so impressed by both the quality and flavor.

All of the O Organics plant-based products are USDA-certified organic, while the Open Nature products are minimally processed and free from 110 food additives. Reasonably priced, high quality and healthy - all reasons for me to keep using these products every day.

Tips for making this plant based smoothie bowl:

Tip #1: Blending order

When using greens, such as the spinach in this recipe, start by blending it with some liquid before adding any other ingredients. Blend until the mixture is very smooth so that you're not left with any leafy chunks.

Next up, add the protein powder and almond butter to the spinach mixture. Again, blend until smooth.

Last but not least - the fruit. Start with the banana, then throw in the berries. If you have an ice crushing setting on your blender, I recommend pulsing the mixture a few times on this setting, then pureeing as usual.

If you find that your blender engine is working too hard, be sure to use additional almond milk or water to loosen things up.

Tip #2: Prep toppings ahead

Before taking your berries out of the freezer or starting to blend, get your toppings ready. Chop nuts, slice fruit and pull any other ingredients you need out of the cupboards.

Why? That leads us to the last tip.

Tip #3: Serve immediately!

Smoothie bowls are meant to be thick, and melting while sitting on the counter isn't part of that plan. Prep the toppings, then blend up the smoothie bowl mixture so that your beautiful bowl can be served and enjoyed right away!

How to make smoothie bowls thick:

The difference between a smoothie and a smoothie bowl, besides the way they're served, is in the texture.

Smoothies are liquid enough to be sipped through a straw, whereas smoothie bowls are meant to be thick enough to eat with a spoon.

The easiest way to thicken up the mixture is to use frozen fruit. Frozen berries are great to keep on hand in the freezer, especially in the winter when fresh fruit isn't as plentiful. Safeway's freezers are stocked full of frozen fruit, such as the Open Nature blueberries and strawberries. Frozen banana chunks are also a great way to make a creamy, thick smoothie base.

Also, cut back on the liquid. Use enough liquid so that you don't overtax your blender. High speed blenders are better at handling less liquid and don't require you to scrape down the sides as often.

Are smoothie bowls healthy?

As with anything, it's all in the ingredients. If you load up your smoothie bowl with chocolate syrup, sugar and copious amounts of coconut milk, the smoothie bowl quickly falls out of the "healthy" category".

Aim for whole foods, such as fresh or frozen fruit, leafy greens, raw nuts and seeds and organic nut milks to get the most nutritional bang for your buck.

Can I make a smoothie bowl without bananas?

Absolutely! Whether you're firmly in the anti-banana camp or you just don't have any on hand, there are always other options.

One of the main reasons I use bananas in smoothies is for their natural sweetness. And as I mentioned above, frozen bananas are an easy way to thicken things up.

Some good substitutes are pineapple, mango, avocado (for the creaminess), cooked sweet potato (seriously!) and oats (a great thickener). For sweetness, add a drizzle of maple syrup, honey or a sweetener like erythritol.

Smoothie bowl toppings:

There are seemingly limitless options, so raid your pantry and go crazy!

• Fresh fruit: Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, sliced plums and so on.
• Nuts: I prefer to use raw nuts. My favorites are walnuts, almonds and cashews.
• Seeds: Pepitas (pumpkin seeds), sunflower seeds, flaxseed (meal or seeds), chia and hemp seeds.
• Other: Unsweetened coconut flakes (a favorite, but go easy because of the high saturated fat content), a dollop of nut butter or a pinch of cinnamon, ground ginger or nutmeg.

I shopped at Safeway, but you can also find Open Nature and O Organics products at the Albertsons Companies family of stores, including Albertsons, Safeway, ACME Markets, Jewel-Osco, Vons, Randalls, Shaw's Supermarket, Star Market, Tom Thumb and Vons.

Safeway also offers Grocery Delivery and Drive Up & Go™ for convenient ways to shop!

Berry Almond Milk Smoothie Bowl Recipe

Start your morning off right with a berry-filled plant based smoothie bowl, topped with fresh fruit and nuts! High in protein and fiber, and packed with flavor.

Printable Recipe

Safeway

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Safeway. All opinions are 100% mine. This I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.