Decadent and nourishing, this Chocolate Berries & Greens Smoothie Bowl is full of delicious and energizing, nutrient-packed ingredients! It’s naturally gluten-free, and dairy and refined sugar-free, too!
Smoothie lover.
It all started in college. My first summer job was at a frozen custard shop in mid-west Florida. I was the resident smoothie-maker as well as custard server and (ew) hot dog maker. (Why hot dogs at a custard shop? No idea.) I pretty much lived off mango smoothies that summer.
My love for all things smoothie hasn’t diminished since then.
Why in a bowl?
You’ve probably noticed smoothies in bowls popping up around the health food section of the web these past couple years. And despite my thinking it was just a faze, there actually is a good reason for eating your smoothie with a spoon!
Did you know that your brain can tell the difference between eating (chewing) and drinking (not chewing)? Yep. And whether you chew or don’t chew your food affects how your body digests it, too!
Chewing your smoothie helps your brain tell your digestive system that you’re eating a meal instead of processing all the nutrients in your smoothie as if the were a drink. (Not that that’s always bad.)
If you’re looking for more smoothie bowls, check out my Apple Pie Smoothie Bowl, Beets & Berries Smoothie Bowl, or my Chocolate Sweet Potato Smoothie Bowl.
All the chocolate breakfasts.
If chewing your breakfast tells your brain you’re having a meal, eating chocolate for that meal tells your brain… to make you happy? I dunno. But I love eating chocolate for breakfast anyway. 😉 And here are some of my favorites…
- Dark Chocolate Triple Berry Muffins
- Coconut Flour Banana Pancakes with Chocolate Nut Butter Syrup
- Personal Pan Dark Chocolate Paleo Breakfast Brownie
- Chocolate Banana Crepes
- Chocolate Almond Butter Pumpkin Smoothie
The players.
Despite my love for chocolate, I’ve been on somewhat of a berry kick lately. Maybe it’s because it’s finally spring. Or maybe it’s because I found these huge bags of frozen berries at Costco. Yeah… that’s probably what it is. I made myself up a delicious batch of mixed berry chia seed jam, and then basically have been eating the rest in smoothies.
There’s more to this smoothie bowl than berries and chocolate, though. I also packed in a lot of green goodness into this bowl. Kale, spinach, zucchini, mint… These all add in even more nutrition!
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Chocolate Berries & Greens Smoothie Bowl
Free from grain, gluten, eggs, dairy, and refined sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 handful kale
- 1 handful baby spinach
- 2 ripe bananas
- 1/2 zucchini, sliced
- 1 c. almond or coconut milk (I used my homemade coconut milk – so easy!)
- 1 T. fresh mint leaves (optional)
- 2 T. honey (or whatever sweetener you like)
- 2 T. cocoa powder
- 1/4 t. vanilla extract (try making your own!)
- 1 c. frozen berries (I used a mix of raspberries, mulberries, and blueberries)
Garnishes
- 1 T. shredded coconut (I usually get mine from Azure Standard)
- 1/2 T. chia seeds
- 1 T. dried elderberries
Instructions
Place all ingredients in blender (I use my Blendtec) with the greens on the bottom and the frozen berries on top of everything.
Puree until smooth.
Pour into bowl and top with garnishes.
So many nutrient packed goodies, love it! And the color was so vibrant, thanks for the recipe!
You’re so welcome, I hope you get to enjoy it, Tessa!
What a special way to change up breakfast! Or lunch! Or snack! Such wholesome ingredients and it looks so rich and decadent!
Thank you, Renee! It is a very delicious treat. 😉
I love my smoothies and love adding some greens in them so this was just perfect for me! So delicious – it always feels a bit more like a treat I find having a smoothie from a bowl 🙂
Haha. Yes, I like to think of it more along the lines of ice cream. 😉
Such a gorgeous smoothie bowl! I love chocolate and berries together, and this just looks like the perfect breakfast.
Thank you! 🙂
I love all the extra veggies in here. It’s healthy but also super tasty!
Thanks, Kelly!
I love kale smoothies with fruit like frozen bananas but I never would’ve thought to also add chocolate. It’s adding more flavor AND more nutrients – such a great idea!
Yes, adding chocolate adds more nutrients. That’s exactly why I did it…. haha. 😀
So gorgeous and decadent. I have to try this for dessert one night soon!
I hope you enjoy it, Susannah!
This looks so good, and I love all of the veggies in there.
Thank you, Anne!
I can taste all the yummy flavor from here. So good!
It’s so yummy!
SO many REAL ingredients — nutrient dense and no doubt SO delicious.
Will be trying this bowl for sure!! thanks!
I hope you enjoy it, Carol! 🙂
So fully of good nutrients! It looks so good!
Thanks, Heather!
This is a bit off topic, but this recipe calls for spinach, and I SOOO need this info regarding spinach! Can you recommend a green or greens that are comparable with spinach nutrient- and texture-wise (especially when raw, as in this recipe), but do not contain its horrendous (to me) amount of oxalate?
I am a kidney stone sufferer. I usually sub wilted kale for spinach, but this recipe already calls for kale. Subbing its spinach for kale would, I imagine, make the resulting smoothie bowl too bitter and probably too green, as well. It has been so many years since I last ate spinach, I don’t even recall what it tastes like! Would fresh thyme, tarragon or basil, for instance, sub well for the spinach here?
To be honest, I would probably just leave the spinach out in your case. 😉