I am a creature of habit, as most people who know me personally can attest. I mean, I have some form of oatmeal for breakfast pretty much every single darn day. But awhile back, I had gotten into a massive rut when it came to lunches. I was still checking the boxes in terms of eating fruits and veggies and clean protein, but I wasn’t excited about lunch at all.
The rut caused a lot of boredom with my typical lunch, all the way from the prep phase to actually consuming it. I ate because what I had prepared was healthful and not eating it would have been hugely wasteful. But I usually ate at top speed and wasn’t particularly satisfied. So I went on a quest to find a few things to throw in to my repertoire that were fairly easy to prep and would make 4-5 lunches I could throw together quickly with a toddler underfoot during the week.
The grain bowl trend caught my eye. A quick way to prep lots of veggies and clean protein? Easy to throw together? Tasty? Check, check, and double check. I had tried, and liked, several different varieties and somewhere in the vastness of Pinterest I stumbled across a recipe for a Greek grain bowl.
Of course that led me to about 287654 similar recipes and I sort of took bits and pieces of each one to suit my own tastes. Full disclosure, I performed recipe surgery without actually testing any one single recipe first. What can I say, I am a kitchen maverick like that.
My bold choice paid off big time, though. My version of a Greek Grain Bowl has quickly become one of my lunch time favorites. It’s light enough to not weigh me down all afternoon, but contains enough protein to also keep me full. It’s got a good variety of veggies and texture because some are roasted and some are raw.
As with most of my recipes, this one is more of a method. Feel free to perform some recipe surgery of your own and sub your own favorites.
Greek Grain Bowls (serves 4)
For the roasted veggies:
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 each red and yellow bell peppers, chopped into ½ inch pieces
2 Tbsp olive oil
Dill, parsley, onion or garlic powder, and cumin to taste
Place chickpeas and bell peppers in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and spices. Stir to coat. Spread on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes, stirring once or twice.
For the tzadziki dressing:
8 ounces plain yogurt
Dill, parsley, onion or garlic powder to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
Place in a small bowl and whisk together to form a dressing consistency.
Other ingredients:
1 bag of pre-washed spinach
1 cucumber chopped into ½ inch pieces
1 cup of quinoa, rinsed and cooked according to package directions
Optional: roasted chicken seasoned similarly
To assemble grain bowls:
Line a plate or large bowl with spinach. Place one quarter of the quinoa, roasted veggie mixture, and cucumber over the spinach. Add chicken if you are using. Drizzle with tzadziki dressing.
To pre-prep for the week, simply roast the veggies (and chicken if using) and cook the quinoa. Chop the cucumbers and make the dressing. Store in separate containers and plate individual portions as above. The quinoa and roasted veggies can be warmed if desired.
