Eat more purple veggies with this vibrant, earthy, and wholesome Mediterranean Grain Bowl, elevated by a luscious Creamy Mint Dressing.
Grain bowls are lovely for leftovers, come together fast, and are wonderful for meal prep. If you love grain bowls as much as I do, give Fall Farro Salad with Butternut Squash and Apples, Vegan Red Curry Tofu Bowl, or Vegan Taco Bowl a try.
The mint dressing is perfect in this earthy bowl. Where I live in Colorado, mint grows easily. There is so much growing wild behind the house that not even the deer or rabbits can eat it all. Bad breath doesn't stand a chance around here. Combine the ingredients for the dressing in a bullet or blender, and it's ready in seconds.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It incorporates a lot of veggies for maximum nutrient benefit
- Great for batch cooking and meal prep
- It keeps you full and satiated for a LONG time
- It's earthy, creamy, and minty all in one meal
Why Purple Veggies?
I'm on such a purple kick that Prince would be proud. I only thought about purposefully choosing produce based on color once I read the book by Dr. Deanna Minich, The Rainbow Diet, when I was getting my nutrition certification.
The book thoroughly examines each color category and the associated health benefits. It emphasizes consuming diverse, colorful produce to ensure a balanced and nutrient-rich diet.
Back to purple veggies - these gems bring a splash of color, a dash of pizzazz, and a lot of deliciousness to your grain bowls. They give a lively visual appeal to your meal and pack a diverse range of nutrients that can give your bowl a serious nutritional boost. Try Purple Cabbage Slaw to incorporate more purple in your life.
If you're up to increasing your purple veggie game, head to the market and make it a treasure hunt for all things purple and delicious to add to this bowl or any meal.
Ingredients
Even though you have to chop and roast a little for this bowl, it still comes together in less than 30 minutes. See the recipe card for suggested quantities.
Ingredient Notes
I use barley for this bowl because of its nutritional benefits, chewy texture, flavor-absorbing quality, versatility, and ability to fill me up and keep me full almost all day! Love that! I buy the 10-Minute Barley from Trader Joe's for fast results.
Feel free to use any grain you prefer or have on hand.
Variations
Like with every grain bowl, this one is super versatile. Here are some ideas for you to incorporate:
- Add falafel or smoked tofu for added protein to boost the protein content of your Mediterranean bowl.
- Incorporate additional vegetables like roasted bell peppers, artichoke hearts, or grilled zucchini for extra flavor and texture.
- Add the grain bowl to your favorite lettuce base and top with a scoop of hummus. This is over-the-top goodness.
- Use different grains such as quinoa, farro, or couscous to diversify the base of your bowl.
- Sprinkle some crumbled vegan feta on top.
- Toasted pine nuts or slivered almonds make a great crunchy topping to add a delightful nuttiness to your bowl.
- Add Lemon Pistachio Gremolata as a delicious and flavorful garnish.
Top Tips
- This bowl is great for meal prep during the week. Prepare the components of your bowl in advance, such as roasting the eggplant, cooking the grains, and making the mint dressing for easy assembly during mealtime.
- I love raw red onions in my bowls. If you do too, skip roasting the onions and dice to include them with the other raw veggies.
- Adjust the intensity of the mint sauce to your preference by adding more or fewer mint leaves and adjusting the lemon juice and syrup accordingly.
Storage
If you assemble the bowl with the dressing and have leftovers, you can store it in an air-tight container for about three days - it keeps great. However, the dressing performs a magic trick and disappears; it is soaked into the ingredients leaving a dry grain bowl. You can add more sauce to get that fresh, creamy flavor back in check. So save some dressing or easily make more.
Alternatively, you can always serve and store the bowl and the sauce components separately. Keep in airtight containers for 2-3 days and combine them when ready to enjoy.
FAQS
The mint sauce can be prepared in advance and stored in the refrigerator for up to a week.
While mint brings a distinctive freshness, you can experiment with other herbs like parsley or cilantro for a different flavor profile.
If you're not a fan of red onions, feel free to use thinly sliced shallots or scallions as an alternative.
Generally, Mediterranean cuisine emphasizes whole foods, fresh produce, health-promoting proteins, healthy fats, and minimally processed ingredients. This bowl does all that and features vegetables, whole grains, herbs, and spices, which offer a wide range of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants.
Yes, barley does contain gluten. It is a cereal grain that contains gluten proteins, making it unsuitable for individuals with gluten-related disorders such as celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.
More Delicious Vegan Grain Bowls and Salads
What did you think?
Have a minute? I'd love for you to dive into the comments and rate this Mediterranean Grain Bowl with Creamy Mint Dressing. Your feedback is invaluable—did you love it? Did you make any fun twists? Let me know how my directions worked for you so I can keep improving my recipes. Follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube for inspiration.
PrintRecipe
Mediterranean Grain Bowl with Creamy Mint Dressing
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Description
Pursue more purple veggies with this Mediterranean Grain Bowl, elevated by a luscious Creamy Mint Dressing. This vibrant, earthy, and wholesome dish combines delectable ingredients to create a delicious symphony of flavors and textures.
Ingredients
For the bowl
- 2 cups purple sweet potato (~300g; any variety; diced)
- 1 small eggplant (~ 300g; cut and diced into uniform pieces)
- ½ medium red onion (thinly sliced)
- 1-2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tsps oregano
- 1 tsp salt (or to taste)
- ½ tsp black pepper (or to taste)
- 1 can chickpeas (you can roast them for added flavor)
- 1 cup barley (look for the quick cook barley at Trader Joe's; alternatively, use any preferred grain)
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes (sliced; or grape tomatoes)
- 1 English cucumber (diced; or preferred variety)
- ½ cup Kalamata olives (pitted and sliced)
- mint (for garnish; optional)
Creamy Mint Dressing
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves (~20 g)
- 1 tbsps lemon juice
- 1 tbsp maple syrup (alternatively use agave nectar)
- ½ cup vegan mayo
- ½ tsp salt (or to taste)
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Roast the Vegetables: Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Spread the diced potatoes, eggplant, and onions evenly on a baking sheet. Toss the olive oil, dried oregano, salt, and pepper, and roast in the oven for about 20 minutes until tender. Optional - If you're roasting the chickpeas, add them to the mixture too. Adjust the seasonings if necessary.
- Cook the Barley: Prepare the barley or grain of choice according to package directions.
- Chop the Vegetables: Chop the remaining vegetables and set aside.
- Prepare the Dressing: While the eggplant is roasting and the barley is cooking, prepare the dressing by combining the mint leaves, lemon juice, maple syrup, mayo, salt, and black pepper in a bullet or blender. Taste and adjust the seasoning if desired.
- Assemble: Mix the cooked grain, roasted eggplant, red onion, potatoes, tomatoes, cucumber, Kalamata olives, and dressing for a unified flavor experience in a large mixing bowl.
- Serve: Top with mint for garnish. Alternatively, scoop out the mixture for individual portions and top with the desired amount of sauce.
Notes
I LOVE diced raw red onions in my grain bowls. Omit roasting the onions if you love them too. It's the perfect way to keep everyone at a safe social distance.
The bowl tends to soak up the sauce, so double the dressing if you want extra to drizzle over the top.
Feel free to customize your Mediterranean grain bowl by adding other ingredients such as roasted red peppers, vegan feta cheese, or grilled tofu for added protein. See the post for variations to kick it up a notch.
Nutritional information is only an estimate. Use a nutritional app like Cronometer to get information on the exact ingredients and amounts you are using.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: main course, side dish
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 267
- Sugar: 7
- Sodium: 675
- Fat: 13
- Saturated Fat: 2
- Carbohydrates: 34
- Fiber: 8
- Protein: 5
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
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