Healthy Dessert for Breakfast: The Smoothie Bowl

So, being the dessert addict that I am, I really have no idea how I neglected to try smoothie bowls until yesterday morning. Let me just say, if you're like me and new to the smoothie bowl thing, this is a trend that you are 100% missing out on if you've never tried it. Like, once you have a smoothie you'll never go back. Oh, and the varieties are limitless. You can pretty much mix together anything and you're guaranteed success... but emphasis on the "pretty much".

Back story: yesterday for breakfast I found the fun graphic below on Pinterest and decided to whip up a smoothie bowl (I skipped the greens though). I knew I didn't have a ton of ingredients to work with because my mom hadn't been to the grocery store in a few days (lol), but I ended up making a concoction that definitely could have passed as chocolate pudding, or if I had frozen it, chocolate ice cream or gelato without a doubt.

The best part?! Not only does this particular smoothie bowl taste like dessert for breakfast, but it's also so good for you. I logged the nutrition facts and my particular smoothie bowl had roughly 17 grams of fiber (that's huge... a daily intake of fiber, which most people rarely fulfill, is 20-30 grams) almost 10 grams of protein, and rounded out a little under 300 calories. The only sugar, too, comes from the fruit!

My bowl:

2 tbsp greek yogurt (my personal favorite is plain fat-free Fage-brand greek yogurt because it's super thick, high in protein, and low in sugar)

1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk

1 tbsp chia seed

1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1 small frozen banana

1/2 avocado

*The chia is definitely optional, and a little note about the cocoa powder: 1 tbsp made this recipe really chocolatey. It was obviously wonderful for a chocoholic like me, but if you think you don't want it crazy-chocolatey, I'd suggest opting for a little less than a full tablespoon.

The actual process is so easy! Toss everything in the blender, and blend until everything is smoothly mixed together! I added a little bit more milk just so it wasn't too, too thick, but that's also optional based on how you prefer your bowl. You can also add fun toppings, but my options via my bare kitchen were a little skimpy, so I didn't bother! However, I definitely want to try some of the pretty smoothie bowls below, and they all look so Instagram-worthy with their arrangements.