I have such a soft spot for Acai. It’s a bowl full of sweetness that you can feel healthy eating. I mean, how can you feel bad about eating fruit – am I right? So when I saw that Trader Joe’s had a new organic acai bowl, it went right into my cart.
I live in sunny Los Angeles. It’s in the 60s or warmer most days of the year. It’s never NOT a good time for acai. One of my favorite weekend guilty pleasures is running over to Backyard Bowls in West Hollywood. They make the most decadent acai bowls.
But now we’re under Stay At Home orders. And of course you can get take-out (I’m all for supporting our local restaurants.) But I’m not sure how I would get the acai back to my place before it melts. So when I think of life after quarantine, I really have been looking forward to a good acai bowl.
Trader Joe’s Organic Acai Bowls
So I’m doing my weekly Tjs shopping. That is, after standing in line for an hour with a face mask and making sure to social distance. And now I’m finally in the store and doing a mad dash to finish all my shopping before someone coughs on me. And that’s when I see it.
Trader Joe’s has an acai bowl! And not just any bowl. It’s organic and gluten-free! It must have been made for me. TJs so rarely identifies gluten-free products anymore. As someone who has to avoid gluten, I so appreciate this. Plus, all organic? Someone pinch me!
So home with me it went. I showed it to my husband who wasn’t nearly as impressed. OK, he likes acai, but he isn’t a passionate fan like me.
Oh, well – his loss. I didn’t want to share anyway.
Time To Eat!
I saved it in the freezer for a few days. To me, an acai bowl isn’t an everyday food. It’s something you have as a special treat. So I was waiting for a weekend morning when I knew I could just relax.
And then I did it. I opened the packaging and was ready to seize the moment.
But D’OH!!! I didn’t read the directions. It needs to be defrosted in the fridge overnight.
I imagine I’m not the only one who has made that mistake. I feel like there should be a large warning somewhere for us first-timers.
OK, my bad. Back in the fridge it went. I figured that instead of having it for breakfast, maybe it could be a nighttime dessert. It was already open so I didn’t want to stick it back in the freezer.
Time To Eat (Take 2!)
So fast forward from 10 am to 9 pm. I went to the fridge to check on it. Honestly, I felt like maybe it could use a tiny bit more time defrosting. But I figured it might melt by the next morning. So, it was now or never.
Here’s what was inside the bowl
- Acai
- Strawberries
- Blueberries
- Bananas
- Granola and Coconut Packet (to sprinkle on top)
I thought it all tasted pretty good. I mean, it would have been better with a little more defrosting. But it tasted really fresh. And the fruit was full of sweetness.
Is Trader Joe’s Acai Bowl Healthy?
Here’s what really impresses me about TJ’s organic acai bowl. It has only 2 grams of added sugar. And that is surely in the granola. So if you want to avoid the added sugar, you could just skip the granola. But come on – it is only 2 grams. And with all that fruit, the whole bowl has only 18 grams of sugar.
Since the fruit is also a source of fiber, I don’t worry too much about the fruit sugar. So this makes it a pretty healthy breakfast or snack. It’s made mostly from whole food ingredients. And since much acai has added sugar, I was impressed that theirs did not.
Here’s the downside. If you’re used to your acai bowls being really sweet, you might not like this one. It takes time to enjoy the natural sweetness of foods when your palate is used to added sugar. But with time, you’ll appreciate a more subtle sweetness.
I’ll definitely get Trader Joe’s organic acai bowl again. It really fulfilled my acai cravings. And at $3.99 (I think), it didn’t break the bank. And that’s a win/win in my book.
