Blackberry Activated Charcoal Smoothie Bowl (Vegan+GF)
I’m back from Hawaii but I’m still craving all the fruit.
So charcoal in a smoothie, health benefit or aesthetic benefit? Let’s be real, it’s both. Ever since I started taking food photos I’ve definitely loved jumping on any visually captivating health trends. It’s not just for looks though. Charcoal has a lot of reasons to be consumed aside from it’s striking color. I remember my mom using it when my youngest sister was born because it’s great for helping relieve gas in infants.
Another benefit, it’s great at filtering toxins. Have you ever used one of those nifty water-filtering pitchers, yeah well those have charcoal in them. It has a similar effect internally when you eat it so it’s great for your kidney function and some even say it’s a great hangover cure because of that. As a bonus it can help whiten your teeth. See, so while I did first discover it because it looks cool, I did do some research.
Speaking of that, there is a difference between the charcoal you use to barbecue in the summer and “activated” charcoal. So don’t go grinding some extra coals to put in your smoothie as they contain toxins. In order to make activated charcoal it goes through a process of heating that removes the toxins so that it’s safe to consume.
Blackberry Activated Charcoal Smoothie Bowl (Vegan+GF)
Ingredients
- 1 cup frozen blackberries or mixed berries can be substituted
- 2 frozen bananas
- 1/4-1/3 cup plant-based milk i.e. almond
- 1 tablespoon activated charcoal
- 1 cup fresh spinach
- Toppings:
- 1 teaspoon hemp hearts optional
- 1/4 cup "raw-nola" optional see note
- 1/2 fresh banana sliced
- 1/4 cup blueberries
Instructions
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Combine the frozen fruit, spinach, charcoal, and milk in a blender or food processor and pulse until smooth and thick. Add more milk if needed and continue blending until smooth. Top it with desired toppings and enjoy.
Recipe Notes
For the "raw-nola" I used this recipe Cookie Dough Rawnola (Vegan+GF)
