Wholesome Lunch Bowl

I made this lunch bowl after being inspired from Deliciously Ella's Snapchat. Ella posts the most delicious, plant-powered lunch bowls that look amazing and have a rainbow of vegetables so I wanted to give making one a go. The cooking time took around half an hour and the lunch kept me going for hours afterwards, not to mention being really delicious and jam-packed with nutrients.

Ingredients (serves 1)

One medium sized sweet potato

1/3 cup green beans

1/3 courgette

1/2 cup brown rice

1 shallot 

Large handful of kale

1 clove of garlic

Turmeric

Cumin

Peppers

1 tbsp tahini

1 tsbp tamari

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Chili flakes

Coconut oil (to fry with)

1/3 cup of sauerkraut. Tip - sauerkraut is a fermented food that has a whole host of health benefits such as promoting effective digestion. You can buy it from any supermarket/ health food store but ensure you check the ingredients for any preservatives or added nasties. It is a great source of probiotics for vegans as we can't eat eat probiotic yoghurt. Click here to learn more. 

Method

1. Cook the brown rice. This can take around 30-40 minutes.

2. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius. Whilst it is heating up, cut the sweet potato into wedges and place them on an oven tray lined with foil and coconut oil. Sprinkle turmeric, cumin and peppers onto the wedges.

3. Put the sweet potato in the oven for 30 mins, checking the wedges halfway through.

4. Whilst the rice and sweet potato is cooking, dice the shallots and chop the courgette into 2cm chunks, then fry them in 1 tsp of coconut oil. Put to the side once cooked.

5. Pan fry the kale in 1 tsp of coconut oil and ensure you stop frying it before it turns brown. You want the leaves to wilt and turn a dark green colour.

6. Once the rice is soft, drain it and mix in the tahini,  tamari, a drizzle of olive oil and 1 tsp of chili flakes (or more if you like spice!).

7. Take the sweet potato wedges out once cooked and place everything in a bowl. You can either throw everything in together so it is all mixed up or arrange it as per above.
8. Crush the garlic and sprinkle on top.

9. Enjoy!

- Anna