One Meal, Two Takes: The Better-Than-Football Super Bowl

Today we are giving Super Bowl Sunday a whole new meaning... We'd like to thing that our version of the Super Bowl is far more exciting for our fellow non sport fanatics as it involves a tasty and nutrient-packed meal that you can easily put your own twist on to make it your own! This hearty grain bowl is loaded with all kinds of super foods that make it both insanely delicious and insanely healthy. Football fans, step aside... There's a new Super Bowl in town!

Also, as you can tell by the title, we are trying a new "segment", shall we call it, where we both will make our own versions of a similar meal. Since we are now back at school and already feel like the massive wave of assignments and readings has engulfed us, who knows how regularly this segment will appear on the blog. We were originally going to make it a weekly thing called Two Take Tuesdays, but we really can't commit to such a rigid schedule and therefore aren't making any promises. We really hope this doesn't upset anyone. We're only human!!!

Anyway, today's meal is based around a healthy grain (we use quinoa), some vegetables and legumes and topped off with a creamy homemade sauce. Let's begin!

Claire's take: quina, sweet potatoes, black beans, zucchini, mushrooms, and a hummus soy sauce.

Ingredients: (for one serving)

1/4 to 1/2 cup quinoa, cooked

1/2 a medium sized sweet potato

1/4 cup black beans

1 tsp oil of choice

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1 clove garlic (or garlic powder)

1/4 a zucchini

3 medium sized mushrooms

For the sauce:

2 tbsp hummus

2 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp water

1/2 tsp lemon juice

Instructions:

Start by preheating the oven to 350.

Cut sweet potato into small cubes and bake on parchment paper for 30 minutes.

Cook quinoa according to package directions.

Cut up the zucchini and mushrooms and bake with the sweet potatoes for another 15 minutes or until all veggies are tender.

In a separate baking dish, add your black beans with a tsp of oil of your choice (we used olive oil) along with the cumin, paprika, and garlic. Place in the oven at the same time as the other veggies and cook for 15 minutes.

For the sauce, add all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix. Add more lemon juice or water to achieve your desired consistency.

In the biggest bowl you have, pile in your quinoa, roasted veggies, and black beans. Mix in your dressing and enjoy!

Talya's take: quinoa, spinach, broccoli, broccoli sprouts, pinto beans, lentils, and a spicy hummus sauce.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup quinoa

1/4 cup broccoli

Handful of sprouts (we used broccoli sprouts)

Handful of fresh spinach

1/4 cup pinto beans (canned)

1/4 cup lentils (canned)

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

For the dressing:

2 tbsp hummus

1/4 tsp sriracha

1/2 tsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp tahini

1/4 tsp water

Instructions:

Cook quinoa according to package directions.

In a small pot, steam your broccoli with 2 cups of water until they become tender and soft.

Meanwhile, put the pinto beans and lentils in a sauce pan with roughly 1/4 cup of water along with the cumin and chili powder. Cook for about 7-10 minutes or until they are hot and have absorbed the water.

To make the dressing, mix all of the ingredients in a bowl, adding more water or soy sauce to achieve your desired consistency.

Again, use the biggest bowl you have and pile in the quinoa, cooked beans, and broccoli. Top with fresh spinach and sprouts and drizzle with dressing.