Lately, I’m really into bowls. Not the food container – I’ve always been a bit obsessed with those (lame, I know) – but rather the concept of serving ingredients together in a bowl as a sort of non-traditional food dish.

For me, these kind of dishes are perfect, as they allow me to add ingredients that are nutritionally great for vegans (like pesto with nooch, and sweet potatoes) and to play around with the flavours , textures and ingredients therein. It also lets you get rid of anything that’s leftover in the fridge, cutting down on waste – and I HATE waste.

This lunch bowl recipe, in fact, is absolutely perfect for a packed lunch for you or your child. It’s very nutritionally dense, but is fun and delicious too, and can be made the night before and served cold for a next-day lunch without losing any of the taste or texture at all. BANG. DONE.

You’ll need:
(Feeds 2 big people and 3-4 little folks)
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and sliced into fat slices
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 small head or 10 large florets of broccoli, washed
6 large leaves red lettuce, washed and torn
1 red pepper, sliced
1 – 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
2 heaped tablespoons hummus
2-4 tablespoons Vegan Basil Pesto
4 spring onions, sliced
a few cooked / canned chickpeas
salt
black pepper
olive oil

Method:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees
Mix a tablespoon or so of olive oil with the dried oregano in a small bowl, and add in the sweet potato slices, stirring to coat
Lay the sweet potato slices out onto a baking tray and bake for 30 minutes or until done, turning halfway
Steam the broccoli florets for around 5 minutes, until bright green and just tender
In two bowls, lay the lettuce leaves so that the pretty ends are coming up the sides of the bowl
Arrange the quinoa, slices of red pepper and steamed broccoli as in the picture above, leaving room for the sweet potatoes
When the sweet potatoes are done, add the the bowl
Drop one heaped tablespoon of hummus in the middle, as shown, then scatter a few chickpeas on top
Drizzle the pesto on top (adding a little water if necessary) all over the bowl, the scatter the sliced spring onion
Season with black pepper and salt
Serve, or pack away to take for your lunch!

This meal is fantastic both hot and cold, and little mouths will love it just as much as big folks. It can be difficult to find a lunch box recipe that gives your child all the nutrition they need, but this is a great option!