Buddha Bowl Bar with Miso Vinaigrette

Buddha Bowls--we have been calling them "Grain Bowls" or "Grain Salads" and I've heard them referred to as "Hippie Bowls"  and "Power Bowls" but whatever you want to call them, they are definitely worth a try. Delicious, healthy, beautiful and easy-- what's not to love here? I set the ingredients out and let guests select their favorites, that way everybody is content. (Salad bars and Potato bars are the direct ancestor of this concept.) The list of ingredients presented happens to be vegan but adding one or two cheeses, bacon crumbles and diced deli turkey is something we do often. We even included mini pepperoni once! The Miso dressing is fab and we use it on most of our green salads. It is a terrific probiotic concoction and coupled with the prebiotic bowl ingredients, you have a top tier gut health combo.

Buddha Bowl Bar (serves 6-8)
2 cups cooked quinoa
2 cups coconut back rice
1 cup chopped parsley
1 cup mukimame (shelled soy beans)
1 cup garbanzo beans
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1/2 cup raw cashews
2 sliced avocados
2 cups chopped Romaine lettuce
2 cups chopped spinach
1 cup sliced cucumber
2 cups mixed roasted veggies (sweet potato, red pepper, cauliflower, parsnip roasted in olive oil)
Heat quinoa, rice and roasted veggies. Place all ingredients in serving dishes and allow diners to assemble their own bowls. Top with Miso Vinaigrette.
Miso Vinaigrette
1/3 cup unfiltered apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup grape seed or walnut oil (or oil of your choice)
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons white or red miso paste
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
Whisk all ingredients together until thoroughly combined. Refrigerate any left over vinaigrette.

Hints: Warming the grains allows the vinaigrette to absorb better. It also seems to make the dish more satisfying and filling to have some hot and some cold ingredients. Use whatever veggies, grains, beans, nuts, herbs and greens you have on hand. You can buy a nice vinaigrette if you don't want to make your own (but you should really try this one out someday!) You don't have to use roasted veggies--finely chopped raw ones are also really great and I do that in the summer when I don't want to heat up the oven. Adding a sweeter touch is also nice with diced pear or apple, or sectioned oranges or grapefruit, or red grapes or berries. I try to use what is in season and what is readily available. If you use kale, cut it finely and massage it with some of the vinaigrette or some lemon juice to soften it. Adding cooked crumbled bacon, blue or feta cheese and/or sliced deli meat is also really good.

I have been making variations of this bowl for a couple of years now and it is one of our favorite dinners. I'll defrost some frozen leftover black rice and open a can of hominy for the grains, raid the fridge for veggies and scour the garden for fresh herbs. A healthy and delicious dinner can be ready in 10 minutes. No wonder it has become one of our 1st choices!