Acai, it seems has become the new superfood, gaining popularity in
recent years. It is loaded with antioxidants, amino acids and omega
fats to fight free radicals and promote longevity.
With a
delicate, slightly sweet, almost chocolatey taste, it's tailor made for
smoothies. In fact acai smoothies are one of the easiest ways of
consuming this exotic fruit.
But what is acai? Acai is a
small blue-purple berry found in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil. It
grows on palm trees ranging from fifty to eighty feet tall. The tree
produces large bunches of edible berries, that when ripe, are dark
blue-purple and about the size of a large blueberry. The fruit consists
of a thin layer of edible pulp surrounding a large seed. But because
those berries are low in sugar and acid they are extremely perishable.
Once the fruit ripens, it must be picked, processed, then flash-frozen
or freeze-dried within 24 hours of being picked. Otherwise the fruit
oxidizes, turns brown and loses all its nutrients. So, unless you
happen to live in Brazil, finding the fresh variety is almost
impossible.
But there are other options: freeze-dried powder, acai juice and frozen acai pulp.
Acai has a delicate flavor that is easily overwhelmed by other ingredients. So it’s best paired with bananas, other berries, dates, nut milks and coconut. With its slightly chocolatey flavor, it also goes well with cacao.
Even though they are called berries, the fruit of the acai tree is a drupe (from the same family as plums), but its nutritional profile more resembles berries. Like other purple colored fruits, acai has a high concentration of anthocyanins. Anthocyanins, a potent antioxidant, give fruits and vegetables their deep blue-purple color.
Acai berries are also naturally high in essential fatty acids, (omega-3, omega-6) as well as omega-9 and monounsaturated oleic acid, with a similar profile to olive oil. They also contain amino acids, high levels of Vitamin C, as well as Vitamins A, B1, B2, B3 and E.
Many other wild claims have been made about this little fruit, such that it has magical weight loss properties, but I have found little evidence to support this. Treat this as you would any other healthy fruit. Consume it for its healthy antioxidant properties.
Ingredients
2 frozen bananas
2 cups coconut milk
3 Medjool dates
2 tablespoons almond butter
1 tablespoon acai powder
How to Make
Blend together the frozen bananas, coconut milk, Medjool dates, almond butter and acai powder until smooth.
Pour into two serving glasses, then sit back and enjoy.
Ingredients
2 cups frozen raspberries
½ cup vanilla yogurt
2 tablespoons almond butter
1 tablespoon acai powder
2 tablespoons cacao powder
2 – 3 Medjool dates
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
2 cups coconut milk
How to Make
Add the frozen raspberries, vanilla yogurt, acai powder, cacao powder, Medjool dates, vanilla bean paste and coconut milk to your blender. Whizz on high until everything becomes smooth and creamy.
This makes two very generous serves.
Ingredients
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 ½ frozen bananas
3 Medjool dates
1 ½ cups coconut milk
2 tablespoons acai powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
How to Make
Blend together the pumpkin puree, frozen banana, Medjool dates, coconut milk, acai powder, ground cinnamon and nutmeg until smooth.
Serves two.
Ingredients
1 roasted beet
1 pouch frozen acai berry puree
1 orange, peeled and segmented
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup frozen raspberries
½ cup vanilla yogurt
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
How to Make
To your blender add the roasted beet, berry puree, orange, coconut milk, frozen raspberries, vanilla yogurt, honey and vanilla extract and blend until thick and smooth.
This will make two large glasses.
Ingredients
1 pouch frozen acai berry puree
1 banana
1 cup frozen blueberries
½ cup vanilla yogurt
1 ½ cups coconut milk
2 teaspoons honey
How to Make
Blitz together the acai berry puree, banana, blueberries, yogurt, coconut milk and honey until everything is wonderfully creamy and smooth.
Pour into two generous size glasses and enjoy.
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