I love a Buddha bowl. What is it, I hear you ask. Well that’s the point I love so much! By my definition, it’s simply a bowl bundled with goodness. All kind of goodness. I suppose it’s whatever you make it and the options are endless.

I love healthy food. I love colourful food and I love food full of flavour and texture. Most of my days include some kind of salad for lunch, but sometimes, instead of pre mixing everything together and calling it a simple salad, I place the ingredients separately into a bowl and call it a Buddha bowl.

Am I a genius?

No.

But the following is what I gave the crew for lunch yesterday (hence the addition of cheese – which, I obviously left off of mine being dairy free).

Aside from the 24+ hours it took to make the beans (soaking time and then cooking them from dry) it was a fuss-free meal that got a big thumbs up from even the biggest of meat lovers.

If you don’t have all the ingredients, be creative because like I said, a Buddha bowl is a bit of a free for all, but I have to say, this all came together very nicely.

You will need:

(Serves 4)

• 2 Medium Sweet Potatoes
• 1T Sweet Paprika
• 1t Turmeric
• 1T Oregano
• 200g Cooked Black Beans (or 1 Tin, drained)
• 1T Cumin
• 1t Chili Powder
• 4 Heirloom Tomatoes
• Juice of 1/2 Lime
• Olive Oil
• Parlsey
• 500g Quinoa, Cooked
• 4 Large Handfuls Rocket
• 1 Spring Onion, Sliced
• 1 Avocado
• Olive Oil
• 1T Feta per bowl (optional)

What you need to do:

• Chop the sweet potato into small pieces, toss with olive oil and season with salt & pepper plus the turmeric, oregano & Paprika. Roast at 160 for about 40 minutes.
• Make a tomato salsa by dicing the tomato into small pieces, squeeze in the lime juice, finely chopped parlsey, olive oil and a good pinch of salt. Stir every 5 minutes whilst the potatoes are cooking.
• Set the black beans in a pan over a low heat and store in the cumin, chili and season with salt and pepper. Allow to simmer for about 10 minutes, until warm.
• Compile the bowl with the quinoa first. Add all the toppings neatly, finishing with the salsa and using a slotted spoon to do so.
• Finally, pour the juices from the salsa over the bowls, grind some black pepper over the top, add a little extra olive oil if desired and enjoy!

Bon apetit!

L, xo