Chocolate PB Energy Bowl
Happy Wellness Wednesday! To celebrate I am sharing a decadent but healthy smoothie bowl and announcing the winner of the Sweet Earth Contest! I was late to the smoothie bowl game but have to pat myself on the back for nailing it right away. I woke up one morning feeling somewhere between chocolate protein oats and a smoothie and decided spooning my smoothie would be a good compromise. Plus, Garden of Life was nice enough to send me a big tub of their chocolate raw protein powder after I created the chocolate protein pancakes so, why not dig in?
The blend of banana with the cacao and maca makes it taste like a sweet treat without added sugar. The protein, chia and hemp seeds bulk it up to make you satisfied and full. The blend of nutrients also kick starts my day with lots of energy which, with today being the first day back in the classroom teaching college minds, I need a lot of!
Side note in case you’re interested, the Beloit college mindset list for the class of 2020 is interesting, funny and scary – pretend you’re a professor and see #15, 26, 32.
Back to this delicious chocolate peanut butter dream…
What makes the smoothie bowl different than a smoothie is the texture and for me, temperature. My digestive tract and body don’t love cold food in the morning. I even drink piping hot coffee over iced coffee all summer long. So, by using just a tad bit of frozen banana, this keeps my taste buds and belly happy. The texture is a little thicker and more creamy due to the lack of ice and lower amount of liquid. In this recipe I am recommending ¼ cup to a ½ cup of milk as some blenders will pulse all this no problem with the former and others may need the latter to get the blender going. I am loving Silk’s unsweetened cashew milk right now cause it is super creamy. I haven’t had a glass of cow’s milk since I was 12 or 13, and have never had the desire to drink soy or almond milk from a glass but, something about this one’s texture has got me!
So why am I calling this an “energy” bowl? Other than the macronutrients balance, the cacao and maca are contributing. What is I t about this maca powder that I use in my smoothies and oatmeal? Maca root has “superfood” status right now (“” because that word has no legal definition) due to some research showing it supports hormonal health in both males and females. It also is found to be anti-inflammatory, similar to ginger and turmeric root. There are some claims that it boosts energy too but, I just like it because it adds a sweet flavor without providing sugar! The cacao contains potent antioxidants that can slightly dilate blood vessels to increase blood flow. This is also great for your heart!
If you’re ready for dessert for breakfast that is actually super healthy and satisfying, and won’t make your blood sugar crazy all day, whip this up in under 5 minutes.
Ingredients:
1/2 small frozen banana
½ small fresh banana
1 scoop garden of life raw chocolate protein powder
1 teaspoon maca root powder
1 tablespoon cacao powder
1 tablespoon natural peanut butter
¼-1/2 C unsweetened milk (depending on your blender)
1 teaspoon hemp seeds
1 teaspoon chia seeds
1 teaspoon cacao nibs
1/2 tablespoon shredded or shaved unsweetened coconut
Directions:
Blend all ingredients other than the seeds and cacao nibs together until you get a nice smooth consistency. Start with only a ¼ C of the milk.
It should be thick and creamy – if your blender has a hard time getting going, add 2 tbsp milk at a time until you get the consistency you need.
Pour into a bowl and sprinkle the chia, hemp and cacao on top.
Enjoy!
*You don’t need to make it look pretty, especially since I just end up stirring it all together anyway to eat, but, we eat with our eyes first so I highly recommend taking a few seconds to make some food art 🙂
Now for our Sweet Earth Winner:
Congrats to Jordan Dunne! You’ve won 3 free Sweet Earth Foods meals and a swag bag. Email me at kelly.jonesrd@gmail.com to claim your prize 🙂
What’s your favorite smoothie bowl recipe or ingredients? I can’t wait to try more before summer is officially over and I am back to my oatmeal game!