Description
These buddha bowls are packed with protein and antioxidants. Nutritious tempeh is baked with a maple, tamari, and balsamic marinade, and served alongside sweet roasted delicata squash, steamed broccoli, cabbage, herbs, quinoa, and turmeric tahini sauce in this fun, delicious make-ahead lunch recipe.
Ingredients
Scale
MAPLE BALSAMIC TEMPEH:
- 1 block (250 g) organic tempeh, diced into 1-inch cubes
- 3 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 tbsp tamari
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
ROASTED DELICATA SQUASH:
- 1 medium delicata squash, seeds scooped out and sliced into 1/2-inch semi circles
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
TURMERIC TAHINI SAUCE:
- 1/2 cup tahini
- 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 1/2 to 2 lemons)
- 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tbsp mellow white or chickpea miso
- 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/3 cup filtered water, plus more as needed
For assembling the bowls:
- 4 cups cooked quinoa (see note below)
- 4 cups broccoli florets, steamed
- 2 cups finely shredded purple cabbage
- 1/3 cup finely chopped fresh herbs (basil, parsley, mint, or cilantro)
Instructions
- Start by preparing the tempeh: Place the cubed tempeh in a 9×9-inch baking dish. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, tamari, balsamic, and maple syrup in a small dish and pour over the tempeh. Toss to coat and set the tempeh aside for at least 30 minutes to marinate.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, toss the sliced squash with the olive oil and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and roast for 25-30 minutes, or until fork tender and beginning to brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake the tempeh for 25 minutes, or until most of the liquid from the marinade has evaporated.
- While the squash and tempeh are in the oven, prepare the turmeric tahini sauce. In a medium bowl, whisk together the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt, turmeric, miso, maple syrup, pepper, and water. Depending on your your preference, you may wish to add more water. You can also blend the sauce in a blender if you prefer a totally smooth sauce. Pour the sauce into 1 container to begin with; you can portion it out into smaller containers later.
- Prepare the rest of the bowl ingredients if you have not already done so: Cook the quinoa (see note), steam the broccoli, and shred the cabbage and herbs.
- To assemble the bowls, place 1/2 cup of the cabbage at the bottom of a lunch container, followed by 1/4 of the steamed broccoli, 1/4 of the cooked quinoa, 1/4 of the tempeh, 1/4 of the roasted squash. Top with a sprinkle of fresh herbs and cover with the lid. Repeat with 3 more lunch containers. (If you are not taking the make-ahead route, ignore this step and simply portion everything out between 4 serving bowls.)
- Portion your desired amount of sauce out between 4 or more jars.
Notes
- This recipe calls for 4 cups of cooked quinoa, which can be obtained by cooking 1 cup of dry quinoa. To cook quinoa, rinse 1 cup of dry quinoa in a fine mesh sieve and drain well. Bring 1 3/4 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan, add the quinoa and a pinch of sea salt, turn down heat, and cover. Cook for 15 minutes, or until water has been absorbed.
- If delicata squash is not available where you live, acorn squash and butternut squash also work in this recipe. You can leave the peel on delicata and acorn squash, but you will need to peel butternut squash.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Lunch, High Protein
- Method: Bake, Steam
- Cuisine: Vegan