Winter Wellness Bowl

Excuse me if this post is a little jumbled, but I have been up since 3am and am starting to feel a little weary. Yes, 3am sounds crazy to me too, but for the next year of my life this will be my regular for a Monday. As part of my graduate programme, I spend one day a week out in the field. This involves being in a supermarket at 4am making sure all of our shelves are well stocked and tidy and that our displays are all set up.... Hence the 3am wake up.

With my Monday's spent in a state of sleep deprivation and spending quite a lot of it driving in a car, I need to figure out some great nutritious meals and snacks that are easy to eat in my breaks between stores. Today I did ok, eating a bit of fruit and some sugar-free oat mufifn things, but I definitely think that I could do better.

This winter wellness bowl that I made the other week would actually be a great choice.  This bowl is packed full of nutrition and uses some great seasonal vegetables. In this I included brussel sprouts and kumara, but it would also be great with pumpkin or butternut squash. The same goes for the chickpeas that I used. I love chickpeas as they really help to fill me up and are a great source of protein, but you could use lentils, kidney beans or some leftover chicken.

Serves 1

Ingredients

1 medium kumara      

1 cup finely sliced brussel sprouts

1/2 tsp vegetable stock powder

1/2 cup water

1 cup cooked quinoa/amaranth/rice or other grain

1 cup chickpeas

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp cumin seeds

Squeeze lime juice

If you have time, wash the kumara and roast in the oven until soft. If you are short on time, prick the kumara all over with a fork and cook in the microwave for around 6 minutes, turning half way through. 

Heat a fry pan over a medium heat, add a little coconut oil and then add the brussel sprouts. Stirfry for 3-4 minutes, then add the water and stock. Simmer for a few minutes until the water has evaportaed and the sprouts are soft.

In the same pan, heat a little more coconut oil. Add the cumin seeds and paprika and fry over a medium-high heat until the cumin seeds start to 'pop'. Add the chickpeas and saute until they are well coated in the spices. Squeeze over a little lime juice

Chop the cooked kumara, then assemble all of the ingredients together as nicely or as un-nicely as you like.