So the name of this dish is pretty ridiculous.
Protein Power Goddess Bowl?
Sounds more like a Women’s Football Championship than a meal.
But no matter what you call it…it’s seriously delicious.
Seriously healthy.
Seriously flavorful.
Seriously filling.
It basically had me at “hello.”
As much as I adore food blogs sometimes it’s a lot of work hunting and pecking through the entire internet to find new recipes that line up with what I’m looking for. I’ve got a lot of “food beliefs” and they really limit the kind of stuff I’m willing to make.
I was bemoaning to Andy a few weeks ago that I love brats on the grill and it was too bad they don’t line up with my beliefs.
Then I was all like, “I need new beliefs!”
Ha!
I really don’t mean that though.
Truth is, I really value healthy eating and I want to serve my family foods that will make and keep them healthy.
That often means foregoing certain tasty foods in my home cooking. And I’m talking yummy stuff like: lots of cheese, creamy soups, an abundance of beef recipes, just about all pork (which includes bacon!), too much pasta/potatoes/bread and more.
We’re not crazy strict about everything so there’s always room to occasionally eat this stuff at parties, restaurants or random pizza nights.
I just try to make sure that at least 80% of the time we’re eating things that our bodies were meant to eat. (aka vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts and happy meat – i.e. raised in a good environment and fed a proper, God-intended diet).
This recipe jumped out at me because it’s totally in line with my beliefs and it looked delicious. Check out the picture from the blog it came from (Oh She Glows).
Pinterest is awesome like that. You can leisurely browse through hundreds of food pictures and click on the ones that look good to you. I’ve often pinned recipe pictures and started following the blogs they come from because their other dishes look so good too.I hadn’t ever read this particular food blog before but instead I saw the picture on Pinterest and knew it would be right up my alley.
I’m not gonna lie…this recipe is a little labor intensive. It didn’t seem like it when I first read through it, but if you make the whole thing from start to finish in one sitting it’s going to take some time. Next time I’ll totally prepare my lentils and rice the day before.
I will say that the meal was worth every minute it took to make! I moaned through an entire bowl of it hot off the stove (good thing I’m not eating lunch at an office anymore!). The rest of the week it was just as delicious served cold from the fridge.
Go ahead and make it. You won’t regret it.
You will understand why people go vegan and insist they still eat amazing food. Because they do!
Protein Power Goddess Bowl
from Oh She Glows
- 1 cup uncooked green lentils (yield 2 & ¾ cups cooked)
- 1 cup uncooked speltberries (yield 2 cups cooked) OR grain of choice, like brown rice (I used brown rice because it's what I had on hand)
- ½ tbsp olive oil, for sautéing
- ½ red onion (~1 & ⅓ cups), chopped
- 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 large tomato, chopped
- 3 cups spinach or kale, roughly chopped (I used regular kale)
- ½ cup fresh parsley, minced
- 1 batch of Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon Dressing (recipe below)
- Kosher salt & black pepper, to taste
- Lemon Wedges & lemon zest, to garnish
- TAHINI-LEMON DRESSING
- ¼ cup Tahini
- 2 garlic cloves
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast or a bit more, to taste*
- 2-4 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil, to taste
- 1 tsp kosher salt + freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
- 3 tbsp water, or as needed
- In a food processor, add all ingredients and process until smooth. Makes just under 1 cup which is just right for this meal.
- Cook lentils and speltberries (or grain of choice) according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- Prepare the Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon dressing in food processor (see below for recipe).
- In a large skillet over low-medium heat, add your olive oil and sauté the chopped onion and minced garlic for a few minutes, being careful not to burn. Now add in the chopped red pepper and tomato and sauté for another 7-8 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped kale or spinach and sauté for another few minutes, just until tender. Stir in the full batch of Tahini-Lemon dressing, the cooked & drained grains and lentils, and simmer on low for another few minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the minced parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish with lemon wedges and zest. Makes 6 cups.
*Here’s the nutritional yeast I used. You may wonder what this is or if it’s important. I hunted it down at my local health food store (Neither Trader Joe’s nor Kroger carried it) and the dressing was amazing so I wouldn’t skip it. It wasn’t too pricey and I’ll keep it on hand for this meal alone. Although I know that lot’s of vegan recipes call for it.
