Acai bowls are similar to smoothies, but they are thicker and are served in a bowl. You can top them with all sorts of delicious toppings like fresh fruit, granola, and nuts. It’s one of our favorite ways to get a healthy start to the day.
Sometimes Mr. K. and I fall into unhealthy eating spirals and need to reset our diets. One thing we both love is a smoothie bowl, so that’s our go-to when we feel like we need to eat a little healthier.
Acai bowls are thick smoothie bowls and have been all the rage for the past few years. They seem to be offered at every juice, coffee, and cafe in San Diego. But it’s actually really easy to make your own homemade acai bowls, and it’s a lot less expensive.
Ingredients
- Acai
- Bananas
- Milk
- Frozen fruit
Acai: I like to use two packets of acai puree, which you can find in the freezer section. It’s enough to make two generous acai bowls. It’s a good idea to run the acai packets under warm water for a few seconds before opening them. This makes it easier to break the frozen puree into pieces before you process it in the blender.
Acai berries are grown in Brazil. They have a reddish-purple color, which I love because it makes the acai bowls so pretty. Acai berries are sweet and taste like a blend of blackberries, blueberries, and mulberries.
I buy frozen acai puree at Whole Foods. There are two brands I like to buy: Amazon Planet and Sambazon. I also recently started buying the Sambazon brand from Costco.
Bananas: I like to use one half of a medium-sized banana for two bowls, but if you prefer a thicker and sweeter acai bowl, I recommend using a whole banana for each serving.
Milk: I love coconut milk, but you can also substitute soy milk, almond milk, or other dairy-free milk. You can also use regular milk.
Frozen Fruit: I like to add half a cup of frozen fruit, and I often switch up the fruit depending on my mood. For this version, I added frozen blueberries, but I also love to use frozen mango. Frozen strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and pineapple would be delicious, too.
Because fruit has natural sweetness, I don’t usually add sugar to the blended fruit. Instead, I might use a little honey as a garnish if I want a little sweetness for my bowl.
This acai bowl recipe is the one I use most often, but it’s really easy to customize it based on your own tastes. You can easily change the fruit mix-ins and toppings and never have it the same way twice.
Recipe Steps
All you do is place the ingredients in a high-powered blender and puree them. Pour the mixture into bowls, and then you’re ready to add some toppings.
Unlike smoothies, acai bowls often have toppings and there are so many ways to customize them with different flavors and textures. Here are some of our favorite toppings:
- Fresh fruit like strawberries, grapes, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. Or try sliced bananas, kiwi, or even avocado.
- Granola
- Chopped nuts
- Shredded coconut flakes
- Sliced almonds or other nuts
- Chia seeds
- Flaxseed
- Honey
Just be careful not to go overboard with the toppings if you are trying to eat lighter – they can really add up.
More Breakfast Recipes with Fruit
Acai Bowls
Ingredients
- 2 packets of unsweetened frozen acai puree
- 1/2 medium banana see note
- 2 tbsp coconut milk see note
- 1/2 cup frozen fruit see note
Optional Toppings
- fresh fruit of your choice
- granola
- shredded coconut
- sliced almonds
Instructions
- In a high powered blender, blend acai, banana, milk and frozen fruit (if using). Make sure to run frozen acai packets under warm water for about 5-10 seconds and break into smaller pieces before adding to the blender. Blend until consistency is slightly thicker than a smoothie.
- Pour into bowls and top with granola, fresh fruit, shredded coconut, sliced almonds, or whatever else you desire.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
I never thought to add anything to the frozen açaí base- this is brilliant! Thank you! Will be making this recipe soon.
We hope you enjoy it!
I fell in love with Acai bowl 2 years and since the pandemic I have been making them myself at home which is much cheaper than buying them outside…would highly recommend
Definitely cheaper to make at home!
I know this is an older thread, but I was wondering if you have a preference of acai brands: Do you like the Sambazon or the Amazon Planet frozen acai better? I can’t get Amazon Planet locally, so I would have to order it, but I like the fact that they use no fillers at all in their unsweetened acai. Sambazon always tastes too tart for me (the citric acid, I think).
I like them both. Though I usually get Sambazon as I can get it in bulk at Costco. In terms of sweetness, they seem to be about the same for me.
Your bowls look so delicious!!!! They’re making me want to leave work ASAP and make myself one….
aw thanks! Yours were so delicious that I went out and bought a bunch of acai and ingredients. haha!
TC is obsessed with acai bowls. I ought some frozen acai packs at Costco for her so she could make her own. I don’t remember the brand though.
how interesting. I actually did look at the Costco near me but they didnt have any
I love a good acai bowl for breakfast or lunch on the weekends. Since I love them so much, I have to make them at home otherwise I’d go broke! Have you tried making pitaya bowls? I always want to buy the frozen packs at the store but I’m not sure how it would taste at home. The recipe calls for banana and I’m afraid the banana will overpower the dragon fruit flavor
I have made pitaya bowls =) I actually love them even more because of the pretty pink and the natural sweetness of pitaya. I did it with 1/2 a banana, and I don’t think it overwhelmed. One full banana might be too much though.
hmm the acai prices don’t seem too bad if you can make two bowls with two packets. i have frozen blueberries at home that need to be used so i think i’ll surprise the husband/relatives with this for labor day! 🙂
Yeah, it really depends on how much fruit you add to your packets. if you don’t add anything, then 2 packets is about one big bowl, but if you add other fruits (which helps the flavor and adds a natural sweetness), you can make two bowls. especially if you already have fresh and frozen fruit, which I always do, it’s pretty cheap to just buy the packets rather than going out to buy the bowls at a cafe.
I have not tried acai bowls, so thanks for the recipe. BTW, there’s lots of other (yummy) reasons to go to Hawaii: Poke, plate lunches, maladadas, …
haha, i know! I’ve been trying to convince Mr. K with poke and other food but he’s not interested.
I’ve been seeing these bowls everywhere. We have local cafe that serves acai bowls (shocker) haha! I haven’t tried one, your recipe looks delicious!
you should definitely try one! it’s similar to eating a smoothie with a spoon, but a little bit thicker, and lots of yummy granola in it =)