Are you on Instagram? I have to say, it’s my favourite form of social media. What’s better than a constant stream of your favourite people’s photographs? You get a peek inside someone’s life, little snippets of their day. The interaction is fun too. Scrolling through the feed is one of my favourite ways to pass time when I need a little distraction. I mostly like to share recipes that I’m testing, meals, or some behind the scenes blog, book, and photography stuff. There are also some people, scenery, and travel shots, and of course, crazy Sketchie who is by far the fan favourite. Like when I shared a shot of him playing sabotaging our Monopoly game. Just when you least expect it Sketchie pops out of no where and kung fu kitties the dice across the room!
Did I mention that I came downstairs one morning and our entire unfinished Monopoly game was flipped upside down on the floor?
Only a cat…only a cat.
I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t always bother plating my food nicely when I’m not photographing it; sometimes the only thing I care about is how quickly I can sit down to eat. I throw the food on the plate and that is that. Luckily, vegetables tend to look beautiful anyway (unless we’re talking about mushroom pesto…). But it is fun to put more effort into it now and then, especially when I want to impress the people I’m feeding or to get myself out of a food rut. Give me a colourful plate of food and I’m a happy girl.
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
The Big Vegan Bowl
Yield
2 large bowls
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Can’t you just imagine this bowl being served at a vegan restaurant? Well, why not make it in the comfort of your own home? It looks like it would take a long time to prepare, but it only set me back about 25 minutes of prep time. I simply roasted the sweet potato and chickpeas, cooked some quinoa on the stove top, and chopped a few veggies. It’s pretty laid back and you can tend to other things while it’s cooking. Due to the hummus and avocado, there’s no real need for a dressing unless of course you want to throw some on. My Lemon-Tahini dressing would be great on this, but it's great plain too. Next time you are in a lunch or dinner rut, give this a shot! It’s simple vegan food at its finest. Bowl idea inspired by Deliciously Ella.
Ingredients
- 1 large sweet potato, chopped into 3/4-inch cubes
- 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (about 1.5 cups)
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- 1 large carrot, peeled & julienned
- purple cabbage or vegetable of choice, shredded
- couple handfuls of greens for the base (optional)
- lots of hummus
- sliced avocado
- hulled hemp seeds.
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400°F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Spread out the chopped sweet potato on one sheet. Drizzle with 1/2 tablespoon of oil or so and toss the potatoes until coated. Sprinkle with fine grain sea salt.
- For the roasted chickpeas: Drain and rinse the chickpeas and then place on a large tea towel and pat until completely dry. Discard any skins that fall off. Transfer the chickpeas to the baking sheet and drizzle with 1/2 teaspoon oil. Rub them around with your hands until lightly coated. Generously sprinkle with fine grain sea salt and your favourite spices. I like to use garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Toss gently to combine.
- Place both the sweet potato and chickpeas into the preheated oven. Roast for 15 minutes at 400F and then remove both. Flip the sweet potatoes and gently roll around the chickpeas. Place back in the oven for another 15 minutes or so, watching closely during the last 5 minutes. When the chickpeas are golden and the sweet potatoes are lightly browned on the bottom and fork tender, they are ready to come out.
- Meanwhile, cook the quinoa while the roasting is going on. In a fine mesh sieve, rinse the quinoa and then place in a medium pot. Add in 1.5 cups of water and stir. Bring the mixture to a low boil and then reduce the heat to low/medium and cover with lid. Simmer, covered, for about 14-17 minutes (you can check after 13 minutes), until all of the water is absorbed and the quinoa is fluffy. Remove from heat and leave the lid on to steam for another 5-10 minutes or longer if needed. Fluff with fork.
- Assemble the bowl: Add a couple handfuls of greens into a large shallow bowl. I had some leftover Best Kale Salad so I used that for my base. When the roasted veggies and chickpeas are done, allow the chickpeas to cool for 5 minutes and then add them on the salad followed by the sliced avocado, hummus, shredded veggies, and hemp seeds. See picture for how I plated it.
- Serve immediately and enjoy! You can use dressing if you'd like, but I don't usually bother. If you have leftover sweet potato and roasted chickpeas, you can place them in the fridge. Reheat in the oven at 400F for about 5-10 minutes.
Looking for a monster salad bowl? Try The Big Chopped Salad.
This was so amazing!
Beyond perfect!
I made this recipe thinking it would be a perfect detox recipe. Oh my god. It was the most beautiful thing I think I’ve ever eaten. All the veggies blend perfectly. No dressing needed with the hummus and avocado. I’m not vegan (yet!) and I absolutely, one hundred percent loved this meal. It is so filling, I could barely eat a quarter of it. Amazing recipe. Amazing website. Just amazing.
Did I mention amazing enough?
I LOVE bowls…especially when you can prep everything ahead and through it all together in a pinch…which is usually how I roll. Can’t wait to try this combo- I’ve got some lemon kale hummus from the farmers market that will be perfect!
This was outstanding and I felt satisfied! Thank you!
Okay. This is amazing. A few days (weeks) ago I bought your book and decided to check out your blog. This was the first recipe I made (from either) and it was AMAZING! Even my husband, who thinks he can’t survive without meat, absolutely loved it. Thanks so much!
Holey Moley! I just made this for dinner – and not only did I eat with my eyes first, my belly enjoyed it EVEN more! Thank you for posting such great recipes!!
Mmm, the big vegan bowl looks delicious! Wonder if you’d be interested in posting it on Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #SaladWars. Florette are giving away some fab foodie prizes at the moment and I’m pretty sure your salad is worth a prize! More details on florettesalad.co.uk/salad-wars
I have been staring at this recipe since I first saw it. I am currently enjoying it as I finally made it. It is so wonderful. Instead of cabbage I put in capsicum and for the greens I put spinach. I love this site but this is the first recipe Ive tried. Thanks so much.
I make variations of this bowl all of the time and it’s the perfect lunch. Its packed with veggies and protein and the addition of the hummus adds a great texture so you don’t feel like you’re missing a dressing. Thanks for the great recipe!
Totally worth it! Loved this recipe, loved the presentation of the bowl – just looking at it was making me drool. Perfect combination of everything. I just didn’t add hummus because I didn’t have any on hand. Roasted chickpeas were perfect, and you totally reconciled me with sweet potatoes. Thanks!
So, I had this for lunch today and it was amazing! I used sun-dried tomato hummus and a little Italian salad dressing! I was sad it was gone. I was also extremely full after eating it.
This might be the most genius big bowl of vegan ingredients I could ever think of, and it motivated me to make my own hummus. I know it’s crazy, but, this bowl may have changed my life. It’s definitely one of my favorite things I’ve ever made. Thank you so much!
Doesn’t it taste bland eating all vegetables after a while?
I’ve been slowly making more and more of your recipes and trying them out with my girls too. One thing I wanted to ask is where you get your bowls from? I’ve been looking for something similar everywhere I can think of so that I can plate everything and yet still keep things separate. Sometimes my picky eaters get bent out of shape if too many things are mixed up.
Any thoughts on making this with dried chickpeas rather than canned?
This is SOOO delicious!! I could eat this every day!! I’ve made this a couple of times now and I find this so hearty and appealing. I haven’t tried the lemon tahini dressing but the hummus and avocado give it enough moisture for me. I’m sure the dressing is delicious but I’m too lazy to make it! I just roasted chick peas with cauliflower earlier this week and it was also amazing! You could easily sub cauliflower for the sweet potato in this recipe if you wanted something a bit different. Thanks for all your great recipes! I just put the 5-minute oatmeal power bowl together while the quinoa was cooking so I’ll be trying that in the morning!
woww delicious,. thanks for sharing recipe.. good good very good
hmmm delicious.
This was an amazing dish! I wouldn’t mind having this everyday