It’s time for the first frost of the season here in Minnesota. That means we rush to harvest any of the last offerings of the summer garden. Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, and pumpkins all were collected and protected from the frost. Once the bounty is brought in a cleaned up, we scramble to make yummy dishes with what we have filling the pantry.
That usually means lots of refrigerator pickles, canning of any type, and lots of Hash and Veggie dishes. Power Bowls, or Buddha Bowls are a hot trend at many restaurants for the health minded crowds. Panera Bread Restaurants is one of those. The problem there is that the sodium is way too high. Here is what you can eat there and stay low sodium at Panera Bread. It is perfect timing than that the Recipe Redux Challenge this month was to create a plant protein power bowl recipe. So I came up with a low sodium Maple Chipotle Harvest Vegetable Power Bowl.
Um, What is a Plant Protein Power Bowl
At first, being a guy, it scared me a bit. I mean I’m all for a great vegetarian dish, but come on “plant protein” doesn’t sound that filling. Then I took a breath and looked a bit deeper. Don’t let the name scare you off! It means using veggies, legumes, grains, nuts, or seeds as the source for the protein in the dish! You can do this! You will fill your belly too! I am here to help!
Low Sodium Maple Chipotle Harvest Vegetable Power Bowl
Let’s start with the basics. We are going to serve this over brown rice. You could use barley, quinoa, and so on. I haven’t fallen in love with those yet, so I will stick with my brown rice. When I am going to make a veggie dish, I like to still think I am eating something solid (like meat), so I head to the “meat” of the veggies; potatoes (sweet and red in this case) and squash. You could also go with mushrooms, but I am sticking with what we had on hand from the garden.
I also love Brussels Sprouts this time of the year. I know, some people hate them, I did too as a little kid, but once you roast them on the grill, you will be persuaded to the Dark Side! That is also a secret of mine for many vegetarian recipes. I will grill the veggies to allow the flame to deepen and make the flavors more robust. Finally, this recipe with the Maple Chipotle Glaze scream fall with it’s sweet heat and the caramelized veggies. I dare you to try this recipe!
Recipe For Low Sodium Maple Chipotle Harvest Vegetable Power Bowl
Low Sodium Maple Chipotle Harvest Vegetable Power Bowl
Ingredients
- 1.5 Tbsp 1/2 Olive Oil
- 2 cups Sweet Potatoes - cubed
- 1 cup Carrots - cubed
- 2 cups Red Potatoes - cubed
- 1 cup Brussels Sprouts - fresh quartered
- 2 cups Yellow Squash - cubed
- 1 medium Onion Chopped
- 1 Green Apple - cored and cubed pick a flavor if you don' like green
- 2 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1/4 cup Maple Syrup lowest sodium you can find
- 1 Tbsp Ground Chipotle Pepper
- Fresh Ground Black Pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup Raisins Tart Cherries, Or Currants
- 1/4 cup chopped Walnuts
- 2 cups Brown Rice
Instructions
- I use a Rice Cooker to cook the brown rice, and start it prior to grilling the veggies. You can cook it while the veggies grill, or before and keep it warm.
- Dice, cube and chop veggies and apples place into a large mixing bowl
- Toss veggies in the oil until coated
- Add Vinegar, Chipotle, Black Pepper, and Maple Syrup and toss again to coat everything
- Transfer Mix to a grill wok or grill safe roasting pan.
- Grill veggies over medium high heat for 15-18 minutes until the edges get a little char. Stirring occasionally
- Serve the grilled veggies over the rice in bowls and top with raisins (or other dried fruit) and walnuts.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
Check out more great plant protein power bowls
If you want to check out more Healthy Power Bowl Recipes, Check out these great recipes from the Dietitians & Nutritionist of the Recipe Redux crew. I can vouch that they all are healthy, but I cannot vouch they are all low sodium. As always check the reicipe and nutrition and hack out the salt accordingly!