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Kickstart Kale and Grains Power Bowl with Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges

Once you begin your journey into Power Bowls or Salad Bowls you will be making them all the time. This is a great starter recipe to kickstart you into a new, healthier way of eating.
Course: Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine: American
Keyword: vegan

Ingredients

  • Power Bowl:
  • 2 cups cooked quinoa or brown rice cold or warm, as desired
  • 3 cups chopped kale leaves raw or steamed, or baby spinach leaves
  • 2 cups cubed and cooked sweet potato
  • 1 15 oz can black beans rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup chopped bell pepper
  • 3/4 cup mango chunks fresh or frozen
  • 2 TBS hemp seeds
  • 2 TBS freshly squeezed lime juice or red wine vinegar
  • 1/2 TBS chopped shallots or 1 tbsp. of the white portion of a green onion
  • 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup plus 2-3 tsp water optional
  • 1-2 TBS coconut nectar or pure maple syrup
  • Sweet Potato Wedges:
  • 4 medium sweet potatoes cut in extra thick wedges
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ¼ tsp white or black pepper
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • ¼ tsp sea salt optional

Instructions

  • Sweet Potato Wedges:
  • Preheat the oven to 450 F.
  • In a small bowl, mix the cinnamon, salt, cumin, black pepper, and garlic powder. Add the sweet potato wedges and stir well until all are seasoned evenly. Place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet on a single layer.
  • Bake for 25 minutes or until cooked, flipping potatoes once halfway during baking.
  • Power Bowl:
  • If you do not have any cooked quinoa on hand, prepare 1 cup (170 grams) of dry quinoa according to package directions to yield roughly 2 cups (370 grams) cooked. You may also substitute rice for the quinoa. This can be done several days in advance and served cold or reheated if preferred.
  • Prep the remaining bowl ingredients. Chop kale so that you have about 3 cups (63 grams) chopped. You may substitute spinach for the kale. Cube and roast or steam sweet potatoes. You should have about 2 cups (400 grams) of cooked sweet potato cubes. Drain and rinse black beans, if using canned. Dice the bell pepper; you should end up with about 1 cup of chopped bell pepper.
  • In four bowls, arrange approximately equal amounts of the quinoa or rice, kale or spinach, sweet potato, black beans, and bell pepper.
  • In a blender, combine about 3/4 cup mango flesh (124 grams) (fresh or frozen and thawed), hemp seeds, juice of 1 lime or vinegar, the white portion of a green onion, mustard, salt, pepper, 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) of water, and 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) of the syrup (or coconut nectar, if preferred). Puree until very smooth.
  • Taste, and add 2 to 3 tablespoons (30 to 45 milliliters) water to thin (if desired) and another tablespoon of syrup or nectar to sweeten it.
  • If you'd like to pair this dressing with some spicy foods or add an extra punch of flavor, try adding 1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 milliliters) of chopped cilantro or basil while pureeing.
  • Add 2 tablespoons of dressing onto each bowl and save remaining dressing for other uses throughout the week.

Notes

If using raw kale, it’s useful to break it down by massaging it. After tearing the leaves from the stalk, sprinkle them with salt and use your hands to rub and massage them for a minute or 2. Alternatively, you can steam the leaves for just a minute to soften. If using baby spinach in place of kale, you may not necessarily need to chop it as it is already bite-size. If you have extra kale or spinach, feel free to add it to other recipes like smoothies or steam it to use in pasta dishes and soups. 
Rinsing canned chickpeas helps to reduce some of the sodium added in the canning process. Another way to reduce sodium when using canned chickpeas is to purchase low-sodium varieties.
Slice the leftover green portion of the onion to use as an optional bowl garnish.