Roasted Veggie Grain Bowl

This grain bowl recipe checks all the boxes: it has plant-based protein, lots of veggies, a vibrant sauce, and a scoop of sauerkraut for pop!

Grain bowl

This grain bowl recipe is Day 1 of a meal planning week here on Love and Lemons! Why? Well first and foremost, it’s because our meal planning journal, The Love & Lemons Meal Record and Market List, is out today! If you missed my post last week, click here to read all about it. If you haven’t pre-ordered one, click here to get one now!

When I write about meal prep or making quick, easy dinners throughout the week, I often suggest cooking components on Sundays in big batches. I like this approach, but this week I’m doing something a little bit different. Starting with one meal – this yummy, easy Roasted Veggie Grain Bowl – I’m going to transform the same components into a new dinner every night for 5 nights so that each new meal builds off of the previous one. Find the recap for the whole week here!

Grain bowl recipe components

How to Make an Awesome Grain Bowl

A grain bowl was a natural choice for the start of our meal plan week, because all good grain bowl recipes rely on components. I used them first in this grain bowl recipe and then mixed and matched them into other meals throughout the week. Here are the component categories I started with:

  • A grain: I use quinoa! It’s naturally gluten-free, and it packs a punch of plant-based protein.
  • Plant-based protein: I use chickpeas, one of my go-tos. Feel free to roast them for extra crunch!
  • A yummy sauce: A super-bright, vibrant kale pepita pesto.
  • Fresh vegetables: I top this bowl with roasted cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and parsnips for a surprising sweet twist.
  • A pickle: Sauerkraut adds a tangy, briny twist to this healthy quinoa bowl.
  • Something extra: Top it all with pepitas for crunch!

Load these components into this grain bowl recipe tonight. Then, mix and match them into the other recipes in the meal plan throughout the week!

The Love & Lemons meal prep guide

Recipe Variations

I love making this grain bowl recipe as part of my 5-day meal plan, but it’s also a great template for making a DIY grain bowl at home. To make your own bowl, think in terms of the categories I listed above:

Let me know what variations you try! In the meantime, you can record your own meal plans here in our pretty (and pretty useful) new meal planning journal 🙂.

The Love & Lemons Meal Prep guide

More Favorite Grain Bowl Recipes

If you love this grain bowl recipe, try making one of these tasty bowls next:


5.0 from 8 reviews

Roasted Veggie Grain Bowl

 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
This roasted veggie grain bowl is an easy, healthy dinner or make-ahead lunch. See the post above for ideas for customizing it based on what you have on hand!
Author:
Recipe type: Main Dish
Cuisine: American
Serves: 4
Ingredients
Grain (makes extra):
  • 1 cup raw quinoa, rinsed
  • 1¾ cups water
Creamy Kale Pepita Pesto (makes extra):
  • ½ cup pepitas (or shelled raw pistachios)
  • 2 small garlic cloves
  • 1 packed cup chopped kale
  • 1 packed cup cilantro, more for garnish
  • ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • ½ cup water
  • ½ teaspoon maple syrup or honey
Roasted Vegetables:
  • 2 parsnips, chopped into ½ inch pieces
  • florets from ½ cauliflower
  • ½ bunch broccolini
  • 1½ cups halved Brussels sprouts
Protein:
  • 1 (14-ounce) can chickpeas, drained & rinse, use ¼ cup per bowl, save the extra
Pickle:
  • scoop of sauerkraut (I like Bubbies)
Extras:
  • sprinkle of toasted pepitas
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 425°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. First, make the quinoa. Add the rinsed quinoa and water to a medium pot. Bring it to a boil, cover, reduce the heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it sit, covered, for 10 more minutes. Fluff with a fork. This will yield about 3 cups; I used a heaping ½ cup per bowl.
  3. Next, make the sauce. Combine the pepitas, garlic, kale, cilantro lemon juice, sea salt, pepper, olive oil, water, and maple syrup or honey in a blender and blend until smooth.
  4. Then, roast the vegetables. Place the parsnips, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower on one large baking sheet. Place the broccolini on the second baking sheet. Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil and pinches of salt and pepper, toss to coat, then spread evenly onto the sheets. Roast the parsnips/Brussels sprouts/cauliflower 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. Roast the broccolini for 10 to 12 minute or until tender. When cool to the touch, chop up the broccolini stems.
  5. Assemble bowls with a scoop of quinoa, the roasted vegetables, about ¼ cup chickpeas, and a scoop of sauerkraut and top with pepitas. Drizzle with the sauce. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if desired, and serve. I assembled these components into 2 bowls (although the whole recipe will make 4) and saved the leftovers for tomorrow’s dinner - stay tuned!
  6. Store the extra sauce, quinoa, and remaining chickpeas in the fridge.

 

29 comments

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Rate this recipe (after making it):  

  1. Thea Kelley
    11.27.2023

    I followed the instructions for the pesto and ended up with a big bowl of slightly bitter green liquid. I suggest less kale, less water.

  2. kristen
    09.20.2023

    wow – i made this last night and just ate the leftovers for lunch and felt the need to review it.

    changes – roasted veg were eggplant and carrots, since that’s what i had, had homemade vegan pesto and used that, and topped with pickled spicy onions and roasted beets (again since that’s what I had)

    SO good. idk why i never put these things together in a bowl before but it’s gonna be on the regular rotation now!

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      09.21.2023

      Hi Kristen, your changes sound delicious! So glad you loved the bowls.

  3. Britt
    03.26.2023

    This is SO good!! We air fried tofu because we were out of chickpeas but this was so flavorful and delicious!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      03.27.2023

      Oh yum, I love air fryer tofu! I’m glad you enjoyed the bowl.

  4. Mehar Singh
    02.01.2023

    great recipe! Thank you for this!

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      02.02.2023

      So glad you enjoyed it!

  5. Alyssa Crilley
    08.30.2022

    Love this make ahead lunch! Easy variations to try as well. Have been using Trader Joe’s Green Goddess and Cilantro dressings. Sauerkraut is awesome!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      09.02.2022

      I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed it!

  6. Sophia
    05.09.2022

    I’d love to make this pesto, but I have a nut allergy. I’m curious what I can substitute the pistachios with!?

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      05.11.2022

      Hi Sophia, I love to make it with pepitas, they give it a nice vibrant green color too.

  7. Sharon
    10.14.2021

    I didn’t have kale so I used spinach….delicious with roasted veggies (turnip, sweet potato, beet, carrot,onion, butternut squash, and zucchini). I used farro. Thanks

    • Lynne
      03.22.2022

      Hi, did you measure veggies i 4 bowls or 2? I have that same mix and was curious how much roasted veggies per svg?

  8. Sarah H.
    08.31.2021

    Love, love, love this recipe!! While the pesto seems lacking when you taste test it on its own, it’s perfect once you mix everything around. We use cannellini beans instead of chickpeas, only because we like Them better; both are good. And this DEFINITELY makes excellent leftovers! This has entered our regular rotation of meals!

  9. b from loveandlemons.com
    04.29.2021

    How much calories do these bowls have

    • Holly
      05.09.2023

      I would also like to know this information

  10. Claire Worthington
    02.16.2021

    This is probably a daft question but what size of bowl would you typically use for these? (We only have cereal/soup bowls which aren’t really suitable for these). I’m looking forward to creating some exciting lunches that aren’t sandwiches!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      02.16.2021

      Hi Claire, a big cereal bowl could work – I have some bowls that are a bit larger (usually sold as “pasta bowls”) that I also like to eat large salad lunches out of.

      • Claire Worthington
        02.17.2021

        Thank you! 🙂 I’ve found something suitable now.

  11. Brian Kanter
    01.31.2020

    Can you post the macros?

  12. Claudia
    06.24.2018

    This pesto is a delicious way to brighten up the roasted veg and grains (I used faro). It’s very easy to make.

  13. Sarah
    05.28.2018

    Solid meal tonight! Looking forward to tasting the remaining installments!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      05.29.2018

      so glad you enjoyed the bowls! 🙂

  14. Josie
    05.14.2018

    This is amazing! So easy and delicious. Thank you so much for this great meal plan – it is so good to learn how to put things like this together and very budget friendly (even in NZ where groceries can be killer!) Very grateful – thanks again!!!

  15. Natalie
    04.09.2018

    The Creamy Kale Pepita Pesto looks amazing!!!
    As an salad addict, I always try something new everyday.
    Yours looks delicious with the roasted vegetable as my favourite ingredients <3
    I'll try it soonn!!

  16. I’m so excited about making this, I want to toss my to-do list out the window and head to the kitchen right now!

    • Morgan from raisinandfig.com
      04.03.2018

      ABSOLUTELY delicious! Grabbed the ingredients and made this for dinner tonight. Excellent flavor. The only changes I made were to use red sauerkraut and broccoli (vs broccoli). Nervous how hubby would feel about a meatless meal I dry-poached some organic chicken breasts and added that. Two thumbs up!!!

      • Jeanine Donofrio
        04.04.2018

        I’m so glad you liked it! Happy you found the recipe to be so flexible too 🙂

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.04.2018

      ha ha 🙂

A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.