Açaí Bowl with golden kiwi, strawberry, granola

Açaí packs!

Ok, to go from frozen açaí purée to açaí bowl, you defrost the purée in the packet under running water, then whizz it up with some fruit, liquid and sweeteners in a blender. After much experimentation, I've come up with my perfect ratio - one packet purée, half a banana, two to three pitted dates, and a couple of tablespoons of almond milk. (Or regular milk!) You can use honey for sweetness too, but I prefer the taste and texture of dates. Sometimes I add a tablespoon of peanut butter or cacao to the purée, depending on my mood.

Açaí Bowl ingredients

One more thing to note - the amount of liquid you need will depend on your blender (my new NutriBullet needs more liquid than my old KitchenAid blender did), and the, um, moistness of your ingredients. As an example, if I use a fresh banana in the mixture, I usually don't need much extra liquid, but if I use a frozen banana, then I need a little extra liquid to bring everything together.

Here's what the mixture looks like when I make it. The açaí bowls I see around town seem to be lighter in colour (a higher ratio of other ingredients to açaí, probably), but I like having the açaí be the star ingredient of my breakfast bowl, and my recipe below makes the perfect-sized breakfast for me. Any more extra ingredients and I'd be stuffed! I love the intense deep purple colour too.

Naked Açaí Bowl

Now, in terms of flavour... I find açaí quite earthy and a little tart. It's quite tannic too, with that slightly sticky feeling on your tongue that you get from tea or red wine. I think of açaí like a super-concentrated version of blueberry skins. I think some brands differ - I find the Amazonia brand to be earthier (blends well with cacao, peanut butter), and the Açaí Roots brand to be more berry-like (better with fruits and other berries).

From here, all you need to do is top it with sliced fruit, granola, whatever you like!

Açaí bowl with golden kiwi, strawberry, banana, peanut butter, granola

Açaí bowl with granola, banana, strawberry

Açaí bowl with kiwi, banana, strawberry

Açaí bowl with banana, granola, kiwi, strawberry

Açaí bowl with granola, strawberry, banana

Açaí bowl with strawberries, kiwi + granola on the side

Açaí bowl with banana, kiwi, strawberry

Açaí bowl with granola, kiwi, strawberry, banana

Açaí bowl with golden kiwi, strawberry, banana, granola

Açaí Bowl
An original recipe by Sarah Cooks

Ingredients
1 x 100g packet of frozen açaí purée
1/2 banana (frozen or fresh)
2-3 pitted dates
2-4 tablespoons almond milk (or milk of your choice)
Optional: Handful spinach, honey to taste, peanut butter, cacao powder
For the topping: Fruit of your choice, granola

Method
Defrost the açaí purée under the tap and break it up a little. Cut open the packet and put the açaí in a blender. Add the banana, dates and almond milk, plus any of your optional ingredients. Blend until smooth, adding extra almond milk if necessary to make a smooth mixture. Taste and add extra honey for sweetness if you like.
Scrape the mixture into a shallow bowl, and top with fruits and granola of your choice.
Serves 1