What’s better than a fully loaded acai bowl? A chocolate smoothie bowl that tastes like dessert! A while back, I tried the limited-edition mud pie smoothie bowl at Project Juice in San Francisco—and I was blown away by how rich, creamy, and chocolaty it was. I’ve been dreaming of this bowl ever since, and because I don’t live near a Project Juice, I decided to create my own version using similar ingredients. After much experimentation, I give you my Healthy Vegan Mud Pie Smoothie Bowl, which, I promise, will make your mornings a lot sweeter. Want an extra kick? Add coffee or espresso powder!
Serves 2
What you need:
- For the smoothie bowl:
- 1 cup frozen young Thai coconut meat (I buy mine at Trader Joe’s!)
- ⅔ cup coconut water
- 2 frozen bananas
- ¼ cup almond butter
- ¼ cup cacao powder
- For the toppings:
- ¼ cup coconut yogurt
- ⅓ cup banana slices
- 1 teaspoon cacao nibs
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1 tablespoon chopped raw almonds, toasted
- For the chocolate sauce:
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cacao powder
What you do:
- Prepare your toppings so that you have them ready to go after preparing the smoothie bowl. For the chocolate sauce, combine the maple syrup and cacao powder until smooth. Set aside.
- Into a high speed blender, add coconut meat, coconut water, bananas, almond butter and cacao powder. Blend until creamy.
- Spoon smoothie mixture into two bowls, and add coconut yogurt, banana slices, cacao nibs, coconut, and almonds. Drizzle bowls with chocolate sauce and serve.
Healthy hints:
- >> Young Thai coconuts are harvested before they are fully mature, and have a softer meat and thinner husks. They make for a sweet, creamy base for this chocolate smoothie bowl.
- >> Prefer to crack open your own young coconut? Here’s how!
- 1. Using a large knife (preferably a cleaver), cut or shave the husk on the top of the coconut so the hard shell is visible.
- 2. Using the sharp bottom edge/corner of the cleaver, make four cuts at the top of the coconut.
- 3. Using your hands, carefully remove the top flap (so as to not spill the coconut water). Pour the coconut water into a glass and then spoon out the young coconut meat.