I LOVE grain bowls. Throwing greens, grains, veggies and protein into a bowl and topping with a tasty dressing- there’s not much better than that in my world. I always feel like I am eating healthier when I have these bowls because they are packed with veggies, and if you’re like me, you feel like you never eat enough vegetables! This dish can be totally customized to use whatever veggies you have around, and usually I do make this with beets when we get further into the colder months, because the squash I use in this video is less likely to be around (disclaimer: I filmed this a couple months ago). Some of my other favorite veggies to add to this in mid- to later-fall include roasted parsnips, roasted potatoes, and you can even add things like lentils, sauerkraut, kimchee and other toppings to make it your own.
Here is the video showing how to make it:
Fall Vegan Buddha Bowl
Serves 3-4
Prep Time: 8-10 mins
Cook Time: 30 mins
Ingredients:
1 medium to large sweet potato
1 zucchini
1 yellow squash
4-5 cremini mushrooms
2 very small or 1/2 regular small eggplant
2 vegan sausages (I used Beyond Meat Sweet Italian Vegan Sausages)
1 handful of lacinato kale per bowl (about 2 oz)
2 cups quinoa (any type is fine)
2 cups water
1.5-2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
~1 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp tahini per bowl
1/4 tsp tamari per bowl
1/2 lemon per bowl
Instructions:
Start by chopping all of the vegetables and placing them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Add the sausages to the tray and coat all veggies with the olive oil and sea salt. Toss with your hands to coat and make sure they are all evenly spaced. Place the tray in the oven at 425 degrees Farenheit for about 30 minutes, until cooked through. For more even browning, toss the veggies halfway through.
While the veggies cook, prepare the quinoa. Take 2 cups of quinoa (any type is fine; here I used white but I honestly love red or tri-color quinoa the most) and place into a fine mesh sieve and wash thoroughly, until the water runs clear. Once the quinoa is washed, add it to an Instant Pot, place the lid on and make sure it is in the sealed position, and set to 1 min on manual high pressure. When it is done cooking, allow it to slow release for 5 mins, and then you can do a quick release for the rest. You can certainly also make quinoa in a regular pot, but you will need to add more water and it will take about 20 mins for the quinoa to cook all the way through.
Once everything is cooked, it’s time to start assembling. Place a large handful of kale (I used lacinato/dinosaur/Tuscan kale because I prefer the taste and love the dark color) at the bottom of the bowl, and add 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa. Top with some of each of the veggies. Cut the vegan sausage into discs and add several discs to the bowl (about 1/2-2/3 a vegan sausage, depending on your appetite).
Instead of making the dressing on the side, I prefer to make it easy and just add the ingredients to the bowl directly by drizzling them over the food. Add the tahini, tamari, and fresh lemon juice, and enjoy! You can choose to add salt and pepper to taste as well here; just note that the tamari does add some saltiness, so you’ll want to taste the dish before adding any additional salt!
Again, feel free to make this dish your own. Buddha bowls are so versatile and are a great way to get in your veggies!
Enjoy,
Jen
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