Rainbow Bowls

This is not as much a recipe as it is an insight into how I prep my veggies for the week. Recently we’ve had a few stinking hot days in Sydney and while I rarely eat cold meals, we’ve had to out of necessity to not turn on any kitchen appliances and overheat our little apartment.

Plus, it is THE BEST feeling just building your meal from the fridge without any fuss.

I have detailed below how I cook the vegetables. I can tolerate very little raw food. My digestive system just can’t handle it and it’s something I’m working on but if you are ok with raw you can certainly leave the zucchini, kale and broccoli uncooked.

Also, the most important bit, make sure you take a pretty picture for Instagram and tag us in your photo before you mix it all together and tuck in. I want to see your rainbow creations.

Jen xx

Rainbow Bowls

4-5 large bowls

GF, DF, vegan (without meat), RSF 

Prep time + tidy up: 30 mins

Cook time: 30mins

Ingredients:

2 cups quinoa

1 large beetroot

2 carrots

1/2 butternut pumpkin

1 large eggplant

1 head of broccoli

1/2 bunch Tuscan or regular kale

2 green zucchini

1/2 tsp. crushed garlic

salt and pepper

Method:

Pumpkin and eggplant

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees.

Slice the butternut pumpkin and eggplant into 1cm thick pieces.

Cover both with oil and lay flat on a lined baking tray.

Brush the eggplant with garlic and season everything with a little salt.

Pop into the oven and roast until soft, approx. 25mins, checking the eggplant half way and adding more oil if needed.

Quinoa

Place quinoa in a sieve and rinse really well. This is important to prevent it from being bitter.

Put the rinsed quinoa in a pot and add 4 cups of water. Bring to boil and reduce to simmer for approx. 10 mins or until the water has reduced just below the level of the quinoa.

Turn off the heat, pop the lid on and leave to finish cooking.

Kale and zucchini

Using a potato peeler, create ribbons from your zucchini. Do not use the center-seeded part. You can reserve that in the fridge or freezer for using in bolognaise, stir-fry or even a smoothie.

Whichever kale you use, you need to remove the stems. Run a small knife along the side of the stem to remove the leaves. Wash the leaves well and tear them up as you desire. Remove a little of the water with paper towel.

Heat a large fry pan and the kale and zucchini with oil and a little butter and fry until tender, approx. 10mins.

Broccoli

Wash well and cut into small florets. You can either steam the broccoli or drizzle with oil and pop it in the oven with the pumpkin for the last 15mins.

Carrot and Beetroot

Grate the carrots and beetroot using a food processor with the grater attachment or a handheld grater. A food processor is way less messy and absolutely worth pulling out of the cupboard to use.

Build your bowl

Once you have prepped everything it’s time to build your bowl. I like to start with a couple tablespoons of quinoa and then add everything else from there. Usually this is the kind of food I always have prepped in my fridge so you can of course make extra and I promise you will get faster as it all once you’ve done it a couple times.

Variations and additions

Add extra protein – roast chicken, tuna, beef strips, tofu, Sweet Potato Green Pea and Mint Baked Falafel

Sprinkle on top – sunflower seeds, pepitas, almonds, roast cashew, sesame seeds, chia seeds

Sauce – Vegan “cheese” sauce, Liver loving sauce, straight tahini, Two Minute Mayo, Sriracha.

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