Perfect Acai Smoothie

This acai smoothie has all the fun of an acai bowl in a portable form! It has the best tropical flavor and a rainbow of healthy toppings.

Do you like a good bowl of acai? Then we have the next best thing…or maybe even better. meet this Acai smoothie! It’s all great about the smoothie bowl, but it’s easy to carry. No need to worry about it melting in the bowl while trying to arrange the toppings with your best artistic flair. Just pour into a glass and suck with a straw! This Brazilian Bowl is one of my favorite treats and I was happy to find a fun new way to enjoy it. Here’s what you need to know!

What is acai exactly?

Acai is a berry that grows on palm trees in Brazil. (How do you pronounce acai? Say “ah-sah-EE.”) This beautiful purple berry has become the health food of the hour around the world. Acai berries have an incredibly healthy profile, packed with antioxidants and nutrients. But remember, they’re just as nutritious as readily available fruits like blueberries.

Acai bowls are the most popular way to eat this berry. This savory dish has its roots in Brazil: it consists of a thick, smoothie-like puree made from acai berries and other fruits, topped with colorful fresh fruit, coconut and other toppings. The best after one of these bowls? An acai smoothie.

Where to buy Acai

Here’s the thing: Acai berries are native to Brazil, but you can only get them fresh in Brazil. Why are fresh acai berries not allowed in the US? Well, acai berries go rancid within a few days of being picked. Therefore, it is necessary to preserve the berries before export! There are two ways to eat acai, and both are becoming easier to find here in America:

• Frozen Acai Pulp: Due to the popularity of acai bowls, frozen acai pulp packs are widely available online or at your local grocery store. Look in the frozen fruit aisle. Sambazon is a well-known brand that sells acai and uses sustainable harvesting practices.
• Acai Powder: It’s easy to find acai in powder form. However, we’ve found that making smoothies and acai bowls with the powder isn’t as tasty, so we suggest finding the pulp.

Ingredients for an acai smoothie

This acai smoothie is super easy to make once you find your acai pulp! Here’s what you need:

• Acai pulp: See above! You can find it in the frozen section near the fruit at your local grocery store or online.
• lime juice: Adds just the right zing to the taste
• Frozen pineapple: Emphasizes acai berries with tropical flavor and sweetness.
• Frozen or fresh mango: Adds a Similar Flavor: It’s important to add naturally sweet fruit since berries are naturally tart.
• Banana: Adds a final touch of sweetness and a creamy texture.

Mix it all up with some water and you have a wonderfully sweet and tangy acai smoothie: with no added sugar! Added sugar and juices can be common in an acai bowl: this one is all natural.

The best toppings for an acai smoothie

The fun part of an acai smoothie is the toppings! Since toppings are an integral part of an acai bowl, you absolutely cannot do without them here. It’s a feast for the eyes and the rainbow effect of the toppings really works. Here are our favorite ways to top off this smoothie:

• Almond butter: It is absolutely necessary! The texture of the almond butter in the smoothie almost reminds me of hot fudge in a sundae. Yes, it’s that good! Plus, it adds plant-based protein that makes the smoothie more filling.
• Fresh strawberries and blueberries: Bring out bright colors with these tangy sweet berries.
• Mango: Add a few mango chunks for color and sweetness: you can even thaw some frozen chunks under lukewarm water.
• coconut flakes: Coconut flakes add a nice crunch and tropical flavor.

Tips for blending this smoothie

Acai pulp can be very firm, making this acai smoothie difficult to blend. Here are some tips for the mixing process:

• Use a good blender. This acai smoothie will work in any blender, but a quality blender will make the process that much easier. Better yet, use a high-speed blender.
• Thaw the wrappers under lukewarm water until you can break them into small pieces. Then remove the packaging. Breaking them into pieces is useful for shuffling.
• First pour the liquid on the bottom of the blender. This helps the blades spin freely and not get stuck on frozen fruit.
• Add more water if needed. Stop scraping and adding a little more water if needed until the smoothie has the right texture. We added almost another ¼ cup of liquid since we were using frozen, not fresh, mango.

And that’s it! We hope you love this acai smoothie as much as we do! Let us know if you do in the comments below.

This acai smoothie is…

Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.