Smooth Your Skin Coconut Acai Smoothie

The Coco-Acai Smoothie--packed with coconut milk, avocado, and acai--gives me a perfect excuse to use cute little decorative umbrellas. Photo: Stock.XCHNG.com

Hey guys. Another work week winds down. Where did the time go? Well, I say the weekend is a perfect time for a tropically inspired treat. Especially for my peeps who are in the dead of winter right now, sometimes it’s fun to take our tastebuds and our minds on  a mental vacation from the cold outside.

We’ve talked on here about how, even in the dead of winter, I sometimes enjoy cold treats. Yes, I know some people find that weird. Oh well, too bad. I’m just glad this quirk allows me to enjoy smoothies 12 months out of the year.

Just looking at coconuts makes me feel tropical! Photo: Stock.XCHNG.com

Recently, I had an amazing smoothie from a place in Manhattan, Juice Generation. I often hit this spot after Yoga class. It was a coconut-acai based smoothie. Problem was, they used a soy-coconut milk blend. I didn’t realize this until it was too late. I still chugged it, and it was delicious. I resolved right then and there to reverse-engineer their recipe at home, and to make it without soy milk. Not only would this keep me from drinking soy milk, making the smoothie at home would be easier on my wallet as well.

(I avoid soy whenever possible, for many reasons. For one, it’s generally bloating. Yes, bloating. NO THANKS! Other reasons–Watch Food Inc., and you’ll get what I’m saying.)

As fortune would have it, my local health food store had frozen packets of Sambazon Acai on sale that week. So I bought some, along with some coconut milk that was on sale as well. Love it when the stuff I covet is on sale. It’s like the universe conspiring to help.

Sipping my Skin Smoothing Coconut Acai Smoothie. Pardon the almost no-makeup look. It was post-Yoga.

My very first attempt at reverse-engineering the recipe was, miraculously,  on point. I enjoyed the smoothie and mentally filed the recipe to drink and post another day. Then a few weeks later, my friend Kim Snyder featured a Skin Plumping Smoothie on her blog. It had very similar ingredients AND used avocado. (Funny story–Kim was filming a TV appearance and was asked to come up with a smoothie at the last minute. The Skin Plumping Smoothie is what she came up with. Brilliant!)

Do you guys ever find that you’re often on the same wavelength with family and friends, even if you haven’t spoken or communicated about specific things? For example, Kim and I were both thinking of combining similar ingredients in our respective smoothies. And with my Yoga crew, I often notice that we’re teaching or working on the same asana combinations and transitions, even without having consulted one another or even taken one another’s classes.

Wishing I were here. Oh well, a good smoothie is like a mini-vacay in and of itself! Photo: Stock.XCHNG.com

This sort of cosmic connection shows how together we can be stronger and even more creative. So I took inspiration from Kim, and added avocado to my Coco Acai smoothie the next time I made it. It was even better. By the way, I love how avocado is so versatile–the way it has its own distinct flavor but can also meld seamlessly into other dishes.

Ok, so real quick, why is this skin so nourishing, smoothing, and yes, plumping to the skin? The info that follows is quoted from Kim:

1. Frozen Acai: (Found the in frozen section of health food stores big and small). This stuff is loaded with antioxidants and Omega fatty acids that plump and nourish the skin, as well as fiber.
2. Coconut Water: Coconut water is one of the best hydrators because it has the same electrolyte balance as human blood. Some countries even use it for plasma transfusions. It is also full of potassium, which facilitates cellular cleansing.
3. Fresh Avocado: Raw beauty fat that digests easily, and is full of beauty minerals and fiber.

So let’s put these nutritional powerhouses, plus a few more ingredients, together for a tropical treat that’s healthy, nourishing, and beautifying. Not bad for something you can garnish with a cocktail umbrella!

Smooth Your Skin Coconut Acai Smoothie

Ingredients:

1 Cup coconut water

1 Cup coconut milk (I used unsweetened So Delicious brand; find in the milk section of your health food store or perhaps the regular grocery store)

1 banana

1/2  avocado

1 100 gram packet frozen acai (I used Sambazon brand)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Optional: powdered stevia (to taste)

4-8 Ice cubes

Directions:

1. Combine ice cubes, frozen acai, and half of the liquids and blend. Add in the rest of the (non liquid) ingredients and blend again. Slowly add in the rest of the liquid to achieve the desired thickness of your smoothie and blend again. Taste for sweetness. Add in vanilla extract, more liquid if desired, and Stevia (if using) and give it one final blend to incorporate all ingredients.

2. Garnish with a decorative drink umbrella (optional) and enjoy!

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