A great alternative to a smoothie drink, this coconut smoothie bowl is made with coconut milk, banana, yoghurt, oats and topped up with coconut flakes, berries and chia seeds.

Why make this recipe?

Easy to make breakfast recipe, perfect for summer or any time of the year
Nutritional & healthy recipe
Easy to digest
Make it different every day with adding various toppings

What exactly is smothie bowl?

That’s a great question and one that I nearly had to look up myself, when I was testing my first recipe. It’s basically a slightly thicker version of a breakfast smoothie, which is served in a bowl and decorated with various toppings, including fruit, seeds and edible flowers.

Most recipes are made with fresh fruit or vegetables, dairy or non-dairy milk and ice cubes, which are blended together, then scooped into a bowl and garnished with toppings.

I like to add more protein (like cream cheese, peanut butter or tahini) and healthy fibre (like oats) or carbohydrates (like millet, oats or rice flakes) to thicken my smoothies even more and to give me more energy.

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My top tips on making this recipe successfully the first time round

Start with less liquid (including ice-cubes) than the recipe states and only add it in, if the mixture is too thick (remember this recipe ment to be smooth and thick)

You don’t need to use ice-cubes if you don’t want to. In fact I often warm up my smoothie bowl in a microwave and eat it warm in the winter. Ice-cubes water down the recipe, so bear that in mind when adding them in.

Any specialist equipment needed?

You will need a hand blender or food processor to make your breakfast smoothie bowl.

Notes on Ingredients & possible substitutions

Yoghurt

You can use plain white or Greek yoghurt or plant based yoghurt for this coconut smoothie bowl recipe. I’ve also previously used cream cheese (both regular and dairy free) for this recipe and it makes a really good thick consistency.

Banana

I prefer to use medium ripened bananas for this recipe (not completely ripened bananas ), as I need the thick consistency.

I keep few bananas roughtly chopped up in a container in my freezer, so that I can always grab a handful of banana pieces and add them to my smoothies or breakfast oatmeals.

Milk

I’ve used coconut milk in this recipe, because of the flavour and the thick consistency, but you can use any kind of milk you have.

Turn this recipe into a dairy-free version by using water or plant-based milk. I find that coconut milk, oat milk, almond or even soya milk works well with this recipe. You could even make this recipe with water, although the taste would be slightly different.

If you make breakfast smoothie bowls regularly, it’s best to pour some coconut milk into ice cube trays and keep them frozen in your freezer, ready for use.

Oats

I usually use basic rolled type of oats and sometimes I use gluten-free oats. You can also use instant hot oat sachets, but your smoothie bowl is going to be a lot thinner because of that. Use more oats if you need to thicken the smoothie bowl.

Toppings

coconut flakes or sheded coconut
blueberries or other berries or fruit
chia seeds or any other seeds (to decorate)

Extra flavourings

1 teaspoon honey agave syrup or date surup to drizzle over the toppings

How to make Coconut smoothie bowl recipe

Preparation (if you have the time)

If you have the time or if you can remember to do this 12-24 hrs before you like to make this breakfast smoothie bowl.

Pour the coconut milk into ice cube trays and leave to freeze. You can freeze more coconut milk to have them ready for the next breakfast smoothie bowl. Try to remember how many ice cubes is in 1/2 cup to know what to ad to your recipe. It doesn’t have to be precise, but it helps.

Freeze bananas by peeling them and roughtly chopping them and adding them into a freezer bag. Again, these are very useful for other smoothies and breakfast bowls recipes, so freeze more than you need.

To make your breakfast smoothie bowl

Add the coconut milk ice cubes, yoghurt, frozen banana, oats, vanilla essence and a few grains of salt into a food processor or a blender. Blend everything until it’s thick and smooth.

Taste the coconut smoothie and adjust the taste by adding any sweetener (e.g. honey) or more vanilla or almond essence. Add ice-cubes if you find that the mixture is too thick.

Pour or spoon the coconut smoothie into breakfast bowl.

Top the smoothie with coconut flakes, chia seeds, blueberries or any other toppings of your choice.

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Tailor this recipe to your diet

Vegan – use plant based yoghurt (everything else is already vegan friendly)
Gluten – Free – use gluten free oats or cooked rice flakes (or rice) or leave them out altogether
Dairy – Free – use plant based yoghurt (soya yoghurt or coconut yogurt)
Low – Sugar – lower the amount of sugar by replacing some of the ingredients high in sugar and use alternative ways to make your smoothie less sweet

Serving size

This recipe is for 1 large serving of breakfast smoothie bowl, which replaces a breakfast. Alternatively, you can make it into 2 smaller portions for smaller appetites or use it as a pudding or an afternoon healthy snack.

Can this recipe be made in advance?

Make this recipe in double or triple quantity, divide between plastic freezer friendly bowls, add lids (or use a strong cling film) and freeze.

When you are ready to have your breakfast smoothie bowl, take it out the night before and defrost in the fridge. In the morning top it up with your choice of topping and enjoy your breakfast!

There is no need to use frozen coconut milk and frozen bananas when you are making this recipe to intentionally freeze later.

How to store this recipe if you have any leftovers

If you have any leftovers, your breakfast smoothie bowl will be fine in the fridge for 12-24 hrs.

If you know that you won’t be able to finish your smoothie within that time, you can also freeze smoothie on the same day and keep it in the freezer for 1-3 months.

Extra tip if you don’t like cold breakfast

If you don’t like cold food, you don’t have to freeze the bananas or the milk to make this coconut smoothie bowl recipe. Add together all the dry ingredients and only add milk if really needed.

You might find that by not freezing the bananas and milk, the smoothie bowl mixture is slightly more watery and doesn’t really need that extra milk.

If you find that the coconut smoothie bowl mixture is too thin, add chia seeds (not soaked), mix and leave to rest for 10-20 minutes if you have the time. The chia seeds will soak up some of that moisture and expand – thickening the smoothie bowl in the process.