Three words, two ingredients. Beets and feta. They go together so, so well. And in my opinion, they are the stars of this giant bowl of goodness. This beautiful (and colorful!) bowl has a lot of flavors going on, and specific elements that make it extra special with just an extra touch. For example, I use quick pickled red onions instead of raw. I dress the kale before I use it as a base, and I cook the quinoa in chicken broth instead of water. These are easy steps, but they make a huge difference.
January can be a weird month for people. You’re trying out new diets, keeping things clean, working out more, drinking less. Towards the end of the month, things can get a little less inspiring. I’m not a believer in hard and fast diet rules. I am, however, a believer in eating whole foods and giving yourself grace. Pizza is delicious. I will never give up pizza. But if I had a date-night in with a bottle of red and a box of my favorite take-out on Saturday night, maybe I wanna be more conscious of what I eat on Sunday. This is where the Rainbow Buddha Bowl comes into play. It’s healthy, full of the good stuff, and just so happens to also be really tasty.
It starts with beets. I like to cook these the day before so they have some time in the fridge to cool down. Buy them raw, with the stems and leaves still attached. This helps to ensure that you’re getting the freshest product you can. There’s no reason to buy already cooked beets. Go the fresh route; they’re incredibly easy to cook. You just cut off the stems, scrub ‘em down, and cook them in water for about half an hour. Beets are already so flavorful that you don’t need to do much else.
The other components of the bowl include Easy Pressure Cooked Chicken, quinoa, cucumber, tomatoes, dressed kale, feta, and quick pickled onions. Buckle up, friends. This is a good one.
Rainbow Buddha Bowl
1.5 lbs of cooked chicken breast (Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken -You can also use rotisserie chicken, or no chicken at all!)
1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken broth or water
3 cups kale, chopped into small pieces (or use this Kale Salad recipe!)
2.5 tbsp olive oil, separated
1 lemon, halved
½ red onion
1 tbsp sugar
½ cup apple cider vinegar
½ cup water
2 medium beets
½ large cucumber, chopped
1 roma tomato, chopped
½ cup feta cheese
Salt and pepper
1 avocado
Cook the beets. Scrub them clean, and place them in a small pot, just covered with water. Bring to a boil, and then simmer on medium for about 20 minutes, depending on the size of your beets. Once you can easily pierce them with a fork, immediately take them off the heat, and place them in an ice bath so they stop cooking. Set them aside.
Cut the ½ red onion into very thin slices. Pour the apple cider vinegar, white sugar, and ½ cup water in a container with a lid, and mix to combine. The sugar does not have to be completely dissolved. Put the red onions in the container, and make sure they’re covered by the liquid. If they’re not, add water to just cover them. Put the lid on, and place in the refrigerator until you’re ready to assemble your bowl.
Start the quinoa. In a fine mesh sieve, rinse 1 cup on quinoa until the water runs clear. Place them in a small pot with 2 cups of chicken broth (or water) and bring to a boil. Once it starts boiling, turn the heat down to low, and simmer with a lid on for 20 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed.
Combine chopped kale, 1 tbsp olive oil, the juice from ½ lemon, and a sprinkle of salt. Mix to combine, and set aside. (Kale Salad)
Mix the avocado, remaining 1.5 tbsp of olive oil, juice from the remaining ½ lemon, and a sprinkle of salt into a creamy sauce.
Now that the beets have cooled, chop them up into 1” pieces.
Build your bowl! I start with kale, quinoa, and chicken on the bottom. Then I add about ¼ each of the beets, tomatoes, and cucumbers. Sprinkle about ⅛ cup of feta on top, and pour how ever much avocado sauce makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside.
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