Mushroom, Kale, & Sweet Potato Quinoa Bowl

For my first post, I figured a recipe was fitting, since cooking is one of the things I love most. For the most part, I don't eat meat, aside from some seafood, which I try to make sure is sustainably sourced (a topic for another post). I'm not militant about it; if we're out to brunch and Geoff has bacon, I'm going to eat a bite- I'm only human! But the short of it, as I learned how much of our resources it takes to raise animals for meat as opposed to growing plants, as well as how poorly animals are treated, it just made sense to cut out meat almost entirely. I find I don't really miss it, mainly because I make effort to cook recipes that are full of flavor without any meat! It's a mistake to assume vegetarian means boring. I find the best recipes aren't those that pretend to be meat, but those that celebrate the vegetables, lentils, beans, etc. for exactly what they are.

I love trying new and complicated recipes, but I also recognize you have to have some simple go-tos that don't take two hours while your husband wilts away from hunger. This is one I make over and over- no complicated sauces, only uses two pans, and comes together really quickly. It's so simple, but the flavors just go together so well: the sweetness of the yams, the bitterness of the kale, the earthy mushrooms- it's perfectly balanced. It's a slightly adapted version of this recipe from Real Simple, with some chickpeas added to make it more of a full meal, and almonds for crunch. I also swap the parmesan cheese for pecorino romano. I LOVE pecorino romano; it's a sheep's milk cheese very similar to parmesan (hard, salty) but generally a lot less expensive. Occasionally nothing but that nutty flavor of aged parmesan will do, but most of the time I swap in pecorino and I don't miss a thing. I add a bit of something acidic to my bowl, a squeeze of lemon or a splash of vinegar; whatever you have on hand probably works!

Sweet Potato, Kale, Mushroom Bowl

Serves 4

1 1/4 cups quinoa (any color)

2 1/2 cups veggie or chicken broth (water is fine, broth just adds more flavor)

2 medium sweet potatoes 

1/2 lb or about 14 crimini mushrooms (button or baby bella work as well)

1 bunch of kale

2 cloves of garlic

1/2 tsp dried thyme or 1 tsp fresh thyme

1 can garbanzo beans

1/4 cup roasted almonds, chopped

2 Tbl Olive oil

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Pecorino romano for serving

Lemon or red wine/balsamic vinegar (optional)

Rinse quinoa in a fine sieve, add to medium saucepan with broth or water. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to low, cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed (12-15 minutes); remove from heat and leave covered.

Scrub sweet potatoes, chop into 1/2 cubes. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add sweet potatoes, stir to coat and cover with lid. 

Wipe mushrooms with a damp rag or paper towel, cut in half and then slice thinly; add to pan when sweet potatoes are starting to soften (5-7 minutes) along with thyme, salt and pepper to pan, stir to coat. Increase heat to medium high and cook uncovered. 

Rinse kale, remove stems and tear into bite size pieces. Mince garlic, and add both to pan once mushrooms have released liquid and started to turn golden brown (5 minutes). Drain and rinse chickpeas, add to skillet. Sauté two minutes to warm. 

Add quinoa and veggie mixture to bowl, top with almonds, grated pecorino, and lemon or vinegar if you wish. Enjoy!