MEXI BOWLS
We live in a world that is all about convenience and making things easy. Eight Minute Abs, microwave dinners, drive thru everything, gas attendants to pump your gas for you… the list goes on and on.
Let’s just be honest, it is always convenient and easy to eat unhealthy. We get busy, the kids are hungry… we will start again tomorrow.
Eating fresh, real foods does take work and planning… but is not impossible!
For me, it is a passion. My heart skips a beat when I walk into the produce section at Whole Foods. Yes, I know I am weird. Yes, I know that not everyone shares the same level of excitement over vegetables and grocery stores as I do. For some of you cooking is stressful. For others, you simply don’t know where to begin.
The first step in eating well is planning. Planning is something we all know how to do. We plan our days, our weeks, our vacations…
I know that life gets busy and we can’t eat perfect all the time… but may I encourage you to think ahead a bit? Look at the week ahead and plan for the days that you know will be busy and leave little time for cooking. Keep ingredients in your pantry and fridge that you can throw together quickly.
This week’s recipe is one of those meals for us. My husband, Brook, often works several long days in a row and needs meals he can take with him and heat up later.
This meal stays tasting great for several days in the fridge and can be made in the morning and heated up for dinner.
I would love to hear your questions and the tips you have learned along the way for meals in a pinch!
ENJOY!
Elizabeth
Mexi Bowls
Serves 6 – 8
The Mix:
- 1 large bell pepper, chopped
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 C chopped broccoli
- 1 C chopped mushrooms
*You can use any combination of veggies you like so feel free to add or substitute.
- ½ C chopped cilantro
- 1 T minced garlic
- 1 Can each of the following:
Kidney beans
Black beans
Corn (check the ingredients to make sure there is no added sugar)
Diced tomatoes (I used no salt added diced tomatoes)
Diced green chilies
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 T garlic powder
- 3 T chili powder
- 1 T cumin
- ¼- ½ tsp cayenne pepper (optional: we love spicy food. If you don’t want much of a kick then omit this part)
- Sea salt and pepper to taste
- ½ – 1 C vegetable broth (the Trader Joe’s Organic Hearty Vegetable Broth is my favorite)
*The key to this dish is making sure you use enough spices to make it burst with flavor so don’t be afraid to add more and do lots of taste tests!
The Base:
- 2 C quinoa (rinsed)
- 4 C vegetable broth
*Brown rice also works well if you are not a fan of quinoa
The Top:
You can really top these with anything you like but here is what we do:
- Shredded purple cabbage – adds a nice crunch and pretty color
- Fresh cilantro
- Crumbled feta or goat cheese (optional)
- Homemade Quick Guacamole:
1 – 2 ripe avocados
1 T minced onion
1 tsp garlic powder
Sea salt
Juice from a lime
4ish dashes of Tapatio hot sauce
*Mash it all together with a fork until it is the texture you prefer
To Cook:
Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. I use a big pot to cook mine so it doesn’t spill over the edges.
Add onions and bell peppers and cook just until they start to soften a bit.
Add broccoli, mushrooms and minced garlic and cook for a few minutes.
To avoid the vegetables being soggy at the end, make sure you undercook them at this stage. They will have more time to cook as you add the remaining ingredients.
Add black beans, kidney beans, corn, tomatoes and green chilies. Stir all together.
Add garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper and vegetable broth. Stir well and bring to simmer.
Simmer for about 10 minutes and add cilantro. Give it a taste and see if you need to add more spices. You can also add more vegetable broth if you want. Remember that some of the liquid will cook out as you simmer. Let it cook for about another 8 min for all the flavors to combine.
While the mix is cooking, start the quinoa. I just throw mine in a rice cooker and it does all the work. If you don’t have one, put quinoa and vegetable broth in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Then cover and reduce to a simmer for about 15 minutes.
*If you don’t have a rice cooker, I HIGHLY recommend them! They range in price but even the $20 one from Target works perfectly.
To Serve:
Using a bowl, place quinoa on the bottom and mexi mix on top. Garnish with toppings.
ENJOY!
- Posted
- February 11, 2012
- In
- Recipes, The Kitchen
This is one of my favorite meals that you fix! Perfect for a cold, rainy day- a sort of comfort food without all the heavy feeling of being stuffed too full afterwards. This is perfect for tonight’s dinner… and we can live off the left overs all day Sunday!
Thanks mom!
I learned from the best! 
Yum!! was just wondering what I should make for dinner tonight. Problem solved.
Looks so delicious.
Glad I could help with dinner!
Let me know how it turned out!
This is on the stove currently. My husband looks at me and says “Is this for dinner or is this for now?” Haha. Thanks, Elizabeth! Love that you post these on Saturday – it’s the only day the kid and I have energy to cook!
Tori, I LOVE your comments every week and I’m SO thankful you are trying these recipes! Praying for you and that little growing baby!
Thanks for the inspiration, Elizabeth! I am not a natural at preparing and cooking meals, but I DO share your love for that organic produce aisle!! I will try to make this for my family sometime;) Keep up the good mommy and wifery;)
I’m so glad you can relate to my love of produce!
I will keep the recipes coming and will keep them easy!
I share your passion for cooking with fresh ingredients Elizabeth. When we moved here and away from a year round farmer’s market that I could walk to
we started using a produce delivery service. It completely changed the way I cook because I have to be creative and use whatever we get in our weekly box. Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out how to make meal prep fast or veggie intensive meals appealing to my picky children but my husband and I love eating the healthy, yummy food.
Wow, I bet that farmer’s market was hard to leave! You use Organics to Your, right? I have used them before and LOVE it! I love that it forces you to try new things and that you can see where everything is coming from. I am still trying to convince Duke that veggies are delicious too.
He use to love them and now he tries to push them around his plate. With this meal, I usually make him a bowl while I’m cooking of quinoa, black beans, avocado and fetta… with a few greens hidden in there. 
That way he is eating almost what we are having but I know he will actually eat it. I hope the marathon training is going well!
You are right about Organics to You. Thanks for the kid friendly suggestion. That sounds like something they might go for. Also, marathon training is going great. It’s so fun to have a couple of friends to be training with. I hope your pregnancy is going well! I’ve yet to hear if you’re expect a boy or girl.
Gosh this looks great!! I am definitely going to try this one out for Steve and I on those weeks where I work a bunch of shifts in a row and need to cook in advance. Thanks so much for giving me an awesome recipe that is not only healthy and easy, but also works well as leftovers! Can’t wait to read the next post : )
Thanks sis! This would be great for those weeks! I’ve yet to try freezing it but I bet you could try that too. Love you!
I am SO enjoying this section of the blog! I have celiac disease and have had no trouble modifying these recipes to be gluten free and dairy free. In fact, I really haven’t had to modify much at all! Also, I really love the step by step pictures that you include along the way.
Thanks for all of your hard work, Elizabeth!
Molly, I had no idea you have celiac! I’m so glad you are enjoying these recipes and are finding them to work with your diet. I also love getting to know your mom!
I’m so glad they are coming to Sunset!
This sounds so simple and tasty! I love how colorful it is too! Meals that last for a few days are always a plus since Chris takes them for his lunches as well. Oh and I haven’t forgotten about the guest post…it’s coming slowly but surely
I’m so looking forward to your sharing all your shopping and planning tips! I loved reading your blog today.
Made it tonight – steamed some kale to go with it and sprinkled the kale with lime juice… Amazing!
Yum!! The kale sounds amazing! I will have to use that next time!
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