Smoothie Bowls!!!

I'll admit that I'm late to the smoothie bowl game. Until recently, I just didn't get smoothie bowls. Why would you want to eat smoothies with a spoon when you can drink them with a straw? The straw seems much more efficient. It doesn't really make sense that I thought this way since I'm a girl who loves to take her time with a meal, savoring every bite (or sip). It seems like I'd be a smoothie bowl natural.

But nope. For some reason, I just couldn't get down with the idea. Maybe I'm just not good with change — a creature of habit. Anyway, I'm happy to report that, thanks to a new cookbook by Alison Lewis, I'm now firmly in the smoothie bowl camp. I tried my first smoothie bowls this week using Lewis' 200 Best Smoothie Bowl Recipes cookbook.

The book is mostly vegan, but some recipes call for Greek yogurt or honey. Those are easy substitutions though. There are fruity smoothies, nutty smoothies, green smoothies, kid-friendly smoothies, coffee and tea smoothie bowls, and even dessert bowls (one is topped with Oreos!).

I tend to have my smoothies after runs, so as much as I wanted to try the Candy Bar Smoothie Bowl in the dessert chapter (made with ice cream, peanut butter, and yep — candy bars), I knew I'd better stick to the healthier fruity or green smoothies.

First, I tried the Wake Up Orange Bowl. It actually wasn't orange in color at all, but it's made with fresh-squeezed orange juice, banana, mixed frozen berries, and protein powder (I used Vega Sport Vanilla). That's topped with a homemade Classic Granola from the book (oats, bee-free honee, walnuts, and raisins). Truly divine. The crunchy sweet granola provided such a fun textural contrast to the creamy smoothie, and the fresh raspberries are so pretty.

I also tried the Carrot Cake Smoothie Bowl. I had less luck with this one in the Vitamix. Smoothie bowls are made with very little liquid so they're thicker than an average smoothie, but my Vitamix wanted me to add more liquid to process the whole frozen banana. It might have worked better if I'd cut the banana into slices first. Anyway, this one wasn't as thick, but it was still delish. Almond milk, cinnamon, banana, pineapple, carrots, and Vega One Vanilla Chai protein (this recipe didn't call for protein powder, but I added some anyway). It's topped with more of that homemade granola, cinnamon, and diced dried pineapple.

This morning, I made the Peach & Oat Bowl, and I think it may be my favorite of the three. The base is made from frozen banana and peaches, spinach, rolled oats, chia seeds, and Vega Sport Vanilla protein. It's topped with fresh peaches, chia and hemp seeds, and rolled oats. Isn't it pretty? Smoothie bowls are just so lovely. 

If I had more time, I'd totally style the toppings into a mandala! But seriously — when it's time to eat, I just wanna eat. Ain't nobody got time for that.

Anyway, LOVE this book. I already have some more recipes bookmarked to make next week. I'm trying the A.M. Goji Bowl (goji berries/orange juice/yogurt base and topped with granola, blueberries, and strawberries) next, and I'd love to try some of the dessert smoothies just for fun (not for breakfast though).