Peach Mango Pie Probiotic Yoghurt Smoothie Bowl

January 27, 2022January 27, 2022 amcarmen2 Comments

Hello Everyone! Last week I received a message from Gourmet Direct PH asking if they could deliver some yoghurt by Binda Valley to me to use in my recipes, to which I said yes to since I also collaborated with them last year when they sent Nuttelex products over to create recipes for the holiday season. I was actually very surprised by their generosity as I did not expect to receive 2 bottles of Probiotic Drinking Yoghurt (1 kg each), 1 tub (1 kg) of Natural Greek Style Yoghurt, and 1 tub (1 kg) of Vanilla Greek Style Yoghurt, all worth P1,560.00 in total. So expect to see some yoghurt-centered recipes over the next few weeks on Amcarmen’s Kitchen.

Tonight, I will be sharing a recipe using the Probiotic Drinking Yoghurt. While you can enjoy it as a drink on its own, you can also use it in your baking, add it to your cereal for breakfast, or in my case, use it as a base for a delicious smoothie! Binda Valley’s Probiotic Yoghurt is made from 100% Australian ingredients – the freshest milk to give it its deliciously rich and creamy texture. In addition, Probiotic Yoghurt also contains a lot of vitamins and minerals to promote a healthy digestive system.

The idea behind the flavour of this smoothie bowl is inspired by Jollibee’s famous Peach Mango Pie. You’ve got the sweet peach and juicy mango blended together with some cinnamon and nutmeg for that pie flavour, and topped with granola for the crusty pie texture to complete it. Unlike a deep fried pie pocket, this smoothie bowl is rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals.

This Peach Mango Pie Probiotic Yoghurt Smoothie Bowl is the perfect weekend breakfast bowl to jumpstart your day in the morning or to cool off with after an afternoon workout. It’s also a healthier option to satisfy your sweet tooth at night. You can get creative with the toppings as well by adding things like assorted fruits, nuts, seeds, and granola to name a few. Since peaches aren’t native to the Philippines, I decided to use canned peaches that I froze in the freezer overnight before making this smoothie bowl. But if you’re living in a country where fresh peaches are available locally and in season, then it’s best to buy them fresh and freeze them yourself. It’s important to use frozen fruit for this smoothie so that you get a nice and thick consistency.

PREP TIME 5 MINS | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 1

INGREDIENTS

1 cup Binda Valley’s Probiotic Drinking Yoghurt
1 cup mango, frozen
1 cup peaches, frozen
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

For the toppings

Banana slices
Black sesame seeds
Canned peaches, sliced
Desiccated coconut
Fresh mango, cubed
Granola

METHOD

Add all the ingredients for the smoothie into a blender and blend until smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and top with your choice of assorted fruits, nuts, seeds, and granola. Serve immediately and enjoy!

I’m also contributing this recipe to an open collaboration on Instagram (not run by me) called No Flame, No Fire Recipes where we basically have to share recipes that do not require to be cooked. The collaboration started today and runs until Saturday hence why I posted this recipe today, Thursday, instead of my usual Wednesday night schedule.

To get your hands on Binda Valley Fresh Yoghurt and Probiotic Yoghurt Drink or inquiries, you may head to their IG: @gourmetdirectph, FB: Gourmet Direct Philippines, or their website on http://www.gourmetdirect.ph.

@amcarmenskitchen

Peach Mango Pie Probiotic Yoghurt Smoothie Bowl #amcarmenskitchen #healthyfood #bindavalley #tiktokeatsph #foodietokph #foodtiktok #foodtokph

♬ Tea Time – Steve Mushrush & Klaus-Lothar Dietrich & Rolf Kersting

BON APPÉTIT

– Ally xx

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Dark Chocolate, PB & Banana Smoothie Bowl

April 24, 2018 amcarmenLeave a comment

Hello Everyone! First off, apologies as I did say in my last post that I’d get this up within the week where I posted about Amcarmen’s Kitchen turning 4 last week! (Unnecessary) things got in the way which was why I wasn’t able to get this up. So to make up for that, since after this post I still have one more Smoothie Bowl recipe to share with all of you, I’ll ATTEMPT to get that up for you before May rolls in. Bare in mind that I will be flying off once again tomorrow, hence also why this post is going up on a Tuesday instead of my usual Wednesday post schedule, so my attempt may already be void at this point *cheeky grin* but for you guys, I will try my best to.

Moving on, here is tonight’s recipe for a devilishly delicious Dark Chocolate, PB, and Banana Smoothie Bowl! So incase you guys haven’t been following my Instagram pages, I got back from a 5-day business trip to Hong Kong two Sundays ago. I’ve italicised ‘business’ because well, though yes it was for business, it was also sort of a mini-vacation. It was my first time to travel to Hong Kong as well so I made sure that I made the most out of the trip, outside of business hours that is. Though it was a fun trip, both on the business and vacation side to it, I was super exhausted and sleep deprived from the trip when I got back. It’s not that I was out partying every single night until the wee hours of dawn, but rather my roommate/colleague basically kept me up all night. She snores like a helicopter continuously hovering over me and talks in her sleep. I’m a very sensitive sleeper and this for me was just… Pure torture. I probably collectively only slept 8-10 hours during that 5 day trip, and the hard part was, I couldn’t even take naps in between because she snores in her naps too. I’m definitely requesting for separate rooms if I ever have to travel with her again. At least I’ll be travelling by myself to the Philippines tomorrow so I won’t have to worry about a snore fest for the upcoming 5 days (thank God).

Rant over. So Dark Chocolate, PB, and Banana? In a smoothie bowl? For breakfast? Don’t mind if I do! Classic flavour combinations for those who prefer to start their mornings off on a sweet note. Now you may notice that in the ingredients shot below that the jar of peanut butter is missing… So here’s what happened, that day I was making two different smoothie bowls for a Sunday afternoon snack, therefore I took two ingredient shots that day. The jar of peanut butter found it’s way into the other shot (which by the way doesn’t need peanut butter) and I only realised it after I was going through the photographs I took a few days later – silly me! Oh well, so ignore the jar of peanut butter in the next recipe post!

PREP TIME 5 MINS | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 1

INGREDIENTS

For the smoothie mixture

1 cup low-fat milk
1/2 cup yoghurt
60g dark chocolate*
1 large banana
1 tbsp peanut butter
1/2 tbsp cocoa powder

*I used Whittaker’s Marlborough Sea Salt and Caramel Brittle Chocolate for this recipe – super yum with that hint of salt and sweet caramel.

Toppings

Bananas – loaded with essential vitamins and minerals such as potassium, calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron, folate, niacin, riboflavin, and B6
Granola – contains vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients, including, but not limited to, dietary fibres, sodium, potassium, zinc, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, vitamin C & E, niacin, iron, and thiamin

Coco Pops
Dark Chocolate
Desiccated Coconut

METHOD

Add the milk, peanut butter, cocoa powder, dark chocolate, yoghurt, and banana to a blender and blend until smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and top with sliced bananas, coco pops, desiccated coconut, roughly chopped dark chocolate, and granola. Enjoy as quick and easy breakfast or a filling afternoon snack to get rid of that midday schlump!

BON APPÉTIT

– Ally xx

Tropical Mango & Pineapple Smoothie Bowl

April 10, 2018 amcarmenLeave a comment

Hello Everyone! So I’m getting this post up a day early only because I won’t be in the country tomorrow and I won’t be travelling with my laptop to be able to get this up for you guys. I’ll be gone for a few days and will be back in Brunei on Sunday evening. I won’t give out where I’ll be heading to just yet, but you’ll be able to see lots and LOTS of food photos (I hope) over on my Instagram page to figure out where I’ll be over the next few days.

Anyway, I’ve got another smoothie bowl recipe to share with everyone and this is by far my favourite one. Why? One word. Tropical. Being born and raised in the tropics, I’ve grown to love pineapples, passionfruit, and most importantly, mangoes. I remember being asked a question back when I was still in university – if you were stuck on an island, and there was only one type of food that you could have, what would it be and why? Without hesitation I answered mangoes. Why? Just because. Actually, now I can’t remember if I’ve already told this story before on the blog. If I have, apologies, but I guess to those who haven’t heard/read this before – here you go!

PREP TIME 5 MINS | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 1

INGREDIENTS

For the smoothie mixture

1 large mango, diced (save some to top after)
1 large banana
1 cup pineapple, diced
1/2 cup yoghurt
1/4 cup low-fat milk
1 tbsp chia seeds

Toppings

Chia Seeds – contains omega-3 fatty acids, fibre, antioxidants, iron, and calcium
Goji Berries – excellent source of antioxidants and nutrients that help boost the immune system and protect the body from high levels of inflammation
Kiwis – loaded with vitamins and minerals such as Vitamins A, B6, B12, E, and potassium, calcium, iron, and magnesium
Mango – contains vitamin A, B6, C & K, protein, folate, potassium, copper, calcium, and iron to the diet as well as antioxidants such as zeaxanthin and beta-carotene
Passionfruit – rich in antioxidants, flavonoids, vitamin A & C, riboflavin, niacin, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, copper, fiber, and protein

Desiccated Coconut

METHOD

Blend the mango, pineapple, banana, milk, yoghurt, and chia seeds until smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and top with diced mangoes, diced kiwis, passionfruit pulp, chia seeds, goji berries, and desiccated coconut. Enjoy!

Remember, you are not limited to the choice of toppings mentioned above. Use whatever you have lying around so that you don’t have to go and spend extra money on the things that you don’t have. Get creative and customise to your favourite fruits!

BON APPÉTIT

– Ally xx

Pitaya Smoothie Bowl

April 4, 2018 amcarmenLeave a comment

Hello Everyone! I know I usually call for a new theme on the blog every month, but for the month of April I will still be continuing on with psychedelic smoothie bowls. There were just so many different options that I could not just leave out – especially with tonight’s vibrant Pitaya Smoothie Bowl!

So I don’t really have much to say to be honest – no current updates on my life that are out of the ordinary or significant I guess. Nothing exciting. I can be introverted at times. Okay I think probably 90% of the time just because I’d rather go home straight after work and do nothing rather than go out and socialise with people. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I identify myself as an introverted extrovert.

However, when I’m in the mood for an adventure, then I go ALL OUT. It has to be my kind of adventure though. You know, the blue skies, the greenery, the scorching sun piercing through your skin, making you a shade or three darker. That’s my kind of adventure. Sadly there isn’t enough of it in Brunei to keep my one day weekend busy. Anyway, enough of my tangents and on with tonight’s recipe!

PREP TIME 5 MINS | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 1

INGREDIENTS

For the smoothie mixture

1 large red pitaya (dragonfruit)
1 large banana
1 cup chopped pineapple
1/2 cup low-fat milk

Toppings

Bananas – loaded with essential vitamins and minerals such as potassium, calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron, folate, niacin, riboflavin, and B6
Chia Seeds – contains omega-3 fatty acids, fibre, antioxidants, iron, and calcium
Goji Berries – excellent source of antioxidants and nutrients that help boost the immune system and protect the body from high levels of inflammation
Granola – contains vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients, including, but not limited to, dietary fibres, sodium, potassium, zinc, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, vitamin C & E, niacin, iron, and thiamin
Kiwis – loaded with vitamins and minerals such as Vitamins A, B6, B12, E, and potassium, calcium, iron, and magnesium
Pineapple – excellent source of vitamin C and manganese; also a very good source of copper and a good source of vitamin B1, vitamin B6, dietary fibre, folate, and pantothenic acid

METHOD

Add the red pitaya, banana, pineapple, and milk to a blender and blend until smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and top with chopped pineapple, sliced bananas, chia seeds, goji berries, sliced kiwis, and granola. Enjoy!

BON APPÉTIT

– Ally xx

Banana & Blackberry Smoothie Bowl

March 28, 2018March 28, 2018 amcarmenLeave a comment

Hello Everyone! So my allergies have been acting up all day and usually dust triggers my constant sneezing, but I didn’t do anything out of the ordinary today to inhale a load of dust for this to happen. While I’m left clueless, I’m also left with a slight headache, fatigue, and quite possibly (but hopefully not) might end up with the flu when I wake up tomorrow morning, followed by a chain of bugs – a fever, a sore throat, and a terrible cough. On the other hand, sometimes I wake up feeling 120% better as if nothing happened. So I HOPE for the latter.

To be completely honest with everyone – I’ve never had a smoothie bowl until I started this series of mine. I’ve seen it all over social media back when it was the new ‘foodie’ trend and it always looked aesthetically pleasing to the eye, but I was a bit skeptic on the idea of using a spoon to eat my smoothie rather than using a conventional straw to drink it. I tried to wrap my head around the idea to imagine as if I was having a bowl of thick soup, but the thought of having cold soup soon consumed my mind and I didn’t like that thought. I just thought that it was weird for some reason, until I decided to try one out for my breakfast series on Amcarmen’s Kitchen and feel completely in love with them.

They are super EASY to make, as you may have seen in my previous posts, the take about a minimum of 5 minutes to put together. It allows you to get creative with your favourite toppings and this not only adds colour to your mornings or makes it look pretty, but it also adds texture to your smoothie. Furthermore, it’s a great way to slowly use up those chia seeds and pepitas lying on your pantry shelf just waiting to go out of date because you don’t know where else you can use them!

PREP TIME 5 MINS | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 1

INGREDIENTS

For the smoothie mixture

1 cup frozen blackberries
1/2 cup vanilla yoghurt
1/4 cup low-fat milk
1 large banana
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp chia seeds

Toppings

Bananas – loaded with essential vitamins and minerals such as potassium, calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron, folate, niacin, riboflavin, and B6
Blackberries – rich in vitamin A, B, C, E, K, as well as antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin, and minerals such as sodium, copper, manganese, magnesium, potassium, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine, riboflavin, niacin, and folic acid
Chia Seeds – contains omega-3 fatty acids, fibre, antioxidants, iron, and calcium
Goji Berries – excellent source of antioxidants and nutrients that help boost the immune system and protect the body from high levels of inflammation
Pumpkin Seeds – contains magnesium, manganese, copper, protein, and zinc

METHOD

Blend the frozen blackberries, yoghurt, milk, banana, honey, and chia seeds until smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and top with sliced bananas, blackberries, chia seeds, goji berries, and pumpkin seeds. Enjoy!

If you have yet to try out a smoothie bowl, then you should definitely try out this recipe for a Banana and Blackberry Smoothie Bowl. The great thing about this bowl was that I had everything on hand and didn’t need to buy extra ingredients for this bowl – except for the blackberries of course. We always have a bunch of bananas lying around in the kitchen, and well, we’ve had the chia seeds, pepitas, and goji berries lying around for a bit now.

Don’t forget that you are not limited to the choice of toppings mentioned above. Use whatever you have lying around so that you don’t have to go and spend extra money on the things that you don’t have. I’ve basically been doing the same thing since I started my Smoothie Bowl series at the beginning of the month!

BON APPÉTIT

– Ally xx

Golden Turmeric Chai Smoothie Bowl

March 21, 2018 amcarmenLeave a comment

Hello Everyone! It’s been a quiet and boring week to be honest, and I having a serious holiday withdrawal syndrome. I miss the lush greenery of Temburong, crystal clear waters, physical activities, and the sun piercing through your skin – giving you a tan that you’re proud to wear for the next couple of months because it reminds you of the fun times you had. But in all honesty, I just miss going on weekly adventures; a new hike trail every weekend to rejuvenate from the work week. It doesn’t even need to be a holiday, just a 2-day weekend where one of them can be spent going out and exploring, and the other to do chores, cook up a storm for Amcarmen’s Kitchen, and basically recover from the working week. Back in Australia, this was easy to do because there were plenty of trails to explore. Here in Brunei, not so much – and not much of great views too, and the fact that I only have a 1-day weekend.

All that aside, I have a bit of a unique smoothie bowl to share with you guys tonight; and I say unique because I’ve never thought of using these flavours (and spices) in a smoothie before. I mean, besides using spicy chai tea leaves and cinnamon in my Spicy Chai & Banana Cinnamon Smoothie from a while back, that’s pretty much the extent of me using spices in my smoothies.

The link to the original recipe can be found over on My Life Cookbook by Denise. She drew inspiration from ‘Golden Milk’ which, for those of you who don’t know, is basically a combination of turmeric, coconut milk (or oil), and black pepper. This Golden Turmeric Chai Smoothie Bowl is an aromatic, flavour-popping combination of golden milk and chai tea – perfect for an immune system boost if you’re feeling a bit under the weather, but also a quick, easy, and healthy breakfast to go!

PREP TIME 5 MINS | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 1

INGREDIENTS

For the smoothie mixture

1 cup coconut milk
2 large bananas
1-2 tbsp honey
2 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp black pepper, ground
1/2 tsp cardamon, ground
1/2 tsp nutmeg, grated

Toppings

Chia Seeds – contains omega-3 fatty acids, fibre, antioxidants, iron, and calcium
Goji Berries – excellent source of antioxidants and nutrients that help boost the immune system and protect the body from high levels of inflammation
Raspberries – good source of vitamin C, E, K, manganese, dietary fibre, copper pantothenic acid, biotin, magnesium, folate, omega-3 fatty acids, and potassium

Desiccated Coconut

METHOD

Blend the bananas, coconut milk, honey, ginger, and spices altogether until smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and top with the raspberries, chia seeds, goji berries, and desiccated coconut. Enjoy for breakfast or an immune-boosting afternoon snack!

BON APPÉTIT

– Ally xx

Strawberries & Cream Smoothie Bowl

March 7, 2018 amcarmenLeave a comment

Hello Everyone! First of all I would like to wish all my friends and followers of Amcarmen’s Kitchen a very belated New Years as this is the very first post that I am writing since 2018 started. Yes, I am aware that I have been MIA for the past few months, and I do apologise for that. I’ve just had a lot to juggle for the past month – mainly work life took over, mixed with a bucketload of emotional rollercoaster rides, and procrastination that led me to neglect Amcarmen’s Kitchen. But I’ve finally gotten back into my cooking and I’ve never been happier to do what I love doing best, and that is making a mess in the kitchen to come up with amazing eats!

The theme for this year revolves around what I foresee my future boutique café menu to carry – which is Breakfast… ALL DAY – Breakfast for Breakfast, Breakfast for Lunch, and of course the best part, Breakfast for Dinner. I was inspired by a restaurant called Wild Honey if I’m not mistaken, that I went to in Singapore a few years back, where they served an All Day Breakfast menu. My friend and I went there for dinner and I cannot express how much I enjoyed a Smoked Salmon Eggs Benny for dinner. I mean, it wasn’t the first time I had breakfast for dinner; in fact, I’ve had my fair share of them at home during my uni days where I had nothing in the fridge but breakfast ingredients which always usually resulted in a plate of buttered toast, sautéed spinach, sunny side up eggs, fried bacon, and on the rare occasion, that is if there were any leftovers in the fridge from the previous day(s), some sweet potato mash. Yes, this is taking me back to a specific night (possibly 6 years ago OH MY), that I spent at home all alone, going through a Big Bang Theory marathon, and having my breakfast for dinner. Those were the days.

So yes, the theme for Amcarmen’s Kitchen this year will be all about Breakfast or Brunch eats as both are my favourite parts of the day and I honestly think that they should be eaten all day everyday! For the month of March and April, I’ll be tackling some healthy smoothie bowls for a quick-and-easy go-to breakfast or afternoon snack packed with nutrients that will keep you energized all day long. They have the taste and texture of a smoothie, but with health-boosting, super-satisfying toppings such as granola, flaxseed, chia seeds, fresh berries, coconut, or even a little bit of dark chocolate to turn them into a heartier meal. Aside from being delicious, whipping up a smoothie bowl is a great opportunity to get creative. The possibilities are endless!

Tonight, I will be sharing with you a ‘Strawberries & Cream’ inspired Smoothie Bowl. Double the ingredients if you wish to make a smoothie bowl for two.

PREP TIME 5 MINS | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 1

INGREDIENTS

For the smoothie mixture

1 cup frozen strawberries
1/2 cup vanilla yoghurt
1/4 cup low-fat milk
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp chia seeds

Toppings

Blueberries – contains vitamin C & K, fibre, manganese, and other antioxidants
Chia Seeds – contains omega-3 fatty acids, fibre, antioxidants, iron, and calcium
Cornflakes – contains vitamins, folate, minerals, dietary fibre, proteins, and also carbohydrates
Fresh Strawberries – contains vitamin C, folate, potassium, manganese, dietary fibre, magnesium, antioxidants, and polyphenols
Honey-roasted Almonds – contains healthy fats, fibre, protein, magnesium, and vitamin E
Pumpkin Seeds – contains magnesium, manganese, copper, protein, and zinc

METHOD

Blend the strawberries, yoghurt, milk, honey, and chia seeds together until smoothie.
Transfer to a bowl and top with the cornflakes, fresh sliced strawberries, blueberries, almonds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, and a drizzle of honey.

If you don’t have all these toppings on hand, then don’t fret! Just use what you have on hand. Like I said before, whipping up a smoothie bowl is an opportunity to get creative and top them with your favourite fruits, seeds, nuts, and grains!