Acai bowls, I love you, but make room for another smoothie bowl on the block. The Chocolate Bowl. The Chocolate Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie Bowl to be exact. This creamy-layered, decadent-looking dish is actually quite the healthy-delicious vegan treat..

pre-PB..

Out of this swirled.

Where's my spoon?

The Chocolate bowl. OK, so lets be clear here. There is nothing terribly mind-blowing about this recipe. I know that. It is really just a super thick, creamy and frosty smoothie poured into a bowl and topped with a swirl of sweetened peanut or almond butter. But even still, this recipe is one to try. I make it allllllll the time so I figured I would share it with you guys. And if you get bored easily like I do, just whip out your thinking cap because there are endless topping options once your creativity takes flight.

Shredded coconut
Chopped nuts
Cacao nibs
Seeds
Fresh fruit
Spices and superfoods
Crumbled cookies
Rice puffs
Pumpkin seeds
Crushed vegan cookies
Granola
And on and on. Just imagine the vegan topping bar at your fave frozen yogurt shop. Sprinkle your cravings on top for color, texture and even added nutrition.

Whip this up in the afternoon for a treat-style energy boost or indulge and have it for breakfast or even serve it as an after-dinner dessert treat. It has plenty of sweetness so you will easily mistake this bowl for a bowl of ice cream. But one glance at the ingredients and you will remember how healthy this bowl actually is!

To lighten things up simply use a bit less of the calorie dense nut butter.

Chocolate bowl here you come..

Chocolate Chocolate Smoothie Bowl with Peanut Butter

By Kathy PatalskyPublished 06/01/2014
This chocolate chocolate smoothie bowl is accented with creamy nut butter and made using bananas.

Ingredients

2 frozen bananas
1 tablespoon cacao powder
1 ¼ cups non-dairy milk
½ cup frozen watermelon (or sub with ice)
1-3 teaspoon of your fave nut butter or handful of nuts like walnuts
pinch of sea salt
sweet: 1 teaspoon agave syrup or 2 Medjool Dates, pitted and soaked in warm water
optional: vegan chocolate or vanilla protein powder
optional: scoop of vegan ice cream - chocolate or vanilla
optional: hanful of cacao nibs, chocolate chips or a piece of chocolate (vegan)

Instructions

If using dates, soak them in warm water for 1-2 minutes. Then remove the pit and toss in blender.
Add all the ingredients to your high speed blender. Tip: Start off with only half of the liquid amount, and add as needed to blend. Using the least amount of liquid possible will give you thicker, ice cream-like results.
Blend from low to high until smooth and creamy.
Optional: add in the chocolate add-in and lightly blend for a few seconds, just until little bits show up.
Pour smoothie in a big bowl or tall glass. Optional: Add a swirl of nut butter over top.

Yield: 1 bowlPrep Time: 00 hrs. 03 mins. Cook time: 00 hrs. 04 mins. Total time: 7 mins. Tags: smoothie,chocolate,vegan,breakfast,beverage,shake,non-dairy,banana

And hooray! because it is just about the start of smoothie season. Buy my book 365 Vegan Smoothies for all your smoothie cravings, tips, ingredient info and more!