Grain bowls/salad bowls are something I eat weekly, if not daily. Filling up on a mix of fresh vegetables, grains, fermented veggies, herbs….It all just makes me feel so good! I have found a simple and easy way to continuously make these bowls without spending the whole day in the kitchen and without getting bored of eating them. During this Covid era, I have benefited from the convenience of working from home and eating lunch at home every day. I have joined the thousands of people who have gotten used to cooking all their own meals at home. For many, this is both exciting and exhausting because it means spending a lot of time cooking and even more time cleaning. But for me, the goal has always been twofold: 1) maintain a well stocked pantry so that it is easy to make healthy choices and 2) create simple recipes that use the resources on hand so that I can eat healthy and get back to work on time!
When it comes to bowls, the most important thing is a good balance. You want to make sure you are including all the proper micro and macronutrients so you are properly satiated and remain so until your next meal. Grain bowls are traditionally broken down into these elements: complex carbohydrate, protein, fat, and fresh. I mostly use leftovers from dinner to create these bowls so I am not actually cooking for every meal.
Here are some choices in each category:
- complex carbohydrate-brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, starchy vegetable (sweet potato, winter squash)
- protein-tofu, egg, meat, fish, beans
- fat-dressings, avocado, nuts. seeds. tahini
- fresh-leafy greens, herbs or any raw vegetable
So basically you want to incorporate a mix of fresh and raw and always include a carb, protein and fat. I am excited to partner with Little Leaf Farms to bring you this recipe and post! Little Leaf Farm is a greenhouse lettuce grower in Massachusetts that is re-thinking the way lettuce is grown. What is so unique about Little Leaf Farms is their ability to serve local communities. Greens are delivered to stores and/or residences within a day of them being harvested. Ever buy greens and have them go bad after a few days? Not only is it wasteful but transporting greens to far away stores and then having them sit on the shelves and then in your fridge makes for a sizable carbon footprint. Little Leaf Farms is serving local communities in a sustainable way! And they have recently started serving NYC! Yay! You can find them at Bjs, ACME, select independent grocers and Amazon Fresh. So I was able to try the greens for myself and experience the freshness. Little Leaf Farms’s greenhouse is one of the largest and most sustainable green house in the world! Their mission and philosophy has been to question the way things are done and figure out a better way-they use 100% captured rainwater, never use chemicals or pesticides and always deliver to stores within a days drive! That is why when I am at the store and see Little Leaf Farms I don’t ever think twice. I know it is the absolute freshest option! I used Little Leaf greens in this grain bowl. They add a nice crunch to the fresh element.
The key to preventing boredom when it comes to these bowls is to keep great dressings and sauces on hand! Creating this sauce was a lot of fun because for as long as I can remember, carrot ginger dressing was my dressing of choice at restaurant. And I never realized how easy it was to make until now! It’s a beautiful color and full of vibrant flavors! I now have it stocked in my fridge for my next grain bowl, salad or rice topper!
Here is what you need
- carrots
- lemon
- olive oil
- rice wine vinegar
- braggs amino acid (or soy sauce, tamari)
- ginger
- garlic
- toasted sesame oil
- blender
The layers of flavors and tang of this dressing are just perfect. It brings me back to some of my favorite restaurants and that small side salad I always got with my main dish. For this bowl I included leftover roasted tofu and vegetables, sprouted brown rice, Little Leaf farms lettuce, cucumbers, tomato, pickled cabbage and this dressing.
Let me know if you plan on making this in the comments below. I would love to hear how it goes! You can make this dressing in minutes and have it on hand all week!
Recipe
- 1 cup carrots
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 rice wine vinegar
- juice from 2 lemons
- 2 tablespoons braggs amino acid (or soy sauce/tamari)
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger
- 1 clove of garlic
- salt to taste
In a blender combine everything and blend until smooth. Store in a an air tight container in the refrigerator
*if it is not blending smooth try adding a few tablespoons of water
