Date Night Dinners - Summer Veggie Bowls

8/15/2014 tringel 0 Comments

It is now mid-August, can you believe that?! I know I can't. As always, summer is moving along way too quickly; I feel like just yesterday was June, and all the possibilities of summer were still unraveling. Unfortunately that is not the case. While I won't be having the summer-is-over-school-is-beginning blues this year (because I graduated), I will still have the yearning for the long days, warm temperatures, and sense of freedom to go anywhere that comes with the season.



Now before I get totally bummed out and bring you down with me, let's remember there are still a few weeks left to the glory that is summer. And, I intend to make the most of it. I still have a ton of fun events coming up including a second bachelorette party, the annual family beach vacation (my favorite week of the year), a day trip of kayaking and paddle boarding, and of course, a few races including the Bethany Beach Triathlon. As you can, see the best is yet to come.

In another effort to keep summer alive as long as possible, I have been binging on some of my favorite summer foods, and that is what inspired this weeks dinner. Brenden and I are all about seasonal food. In the winter we are down to bulk up with heavy casseroles and warm soups, but in the summer we crave fresh salads and light snacks. When we found this barbecue inspired veggie bowl, we knew it would be the perfect meal to incorporate into our last-month-of-summer-hurrah. And with Brenden's growing pallet, I was super excited that there were no complaints about the delicious green circles I like to call zucchini and he used to call gross.


This recipe excited us for a few reasons. First there was the barbecue. Now this wasn't the traditional spare ribs and chicken on the grill, but it was barbecue nonetheless. The barbecued cauliflower was an interesting vegetarian spin that we were pumped to try. We used our favorite, Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Sauce. Next was the corn. I love corn on the cob, and at a whopping $.39 per cob, how could we pass up any recipe that involved the ingredient this summer. Then of course there was the quinoa and roasted zucchini, both good add-ons to give a little something extra to any dish. And finally was the slaw. I am not a big cabbage or coleslaw fan, but the ingredients for this slaw dressing really drew me in. The sweet of the sugar and tang of the apple cider vinegar and lime juice, sounded fantastic. Plus the ease of it all just added to the intrigue.


We prepped each component of this dish and the aroma was amazing. The salt and peppered zucchini met the barbecued cauliflower and our mouths were instantly watering. We of course tasted, okay nibbled, a bit on each part of the veggie bowl as it were being prepped and each tasted amazing. It was time to put it all together. We scooped a bit of each of the five ingredients into our bowls and began to dig. Brenden continued eating each part of the dish separately for the most part, while I began to mix flavors (weird because usually I hate to have food touch while Brenden is quick to make a concoction of sorts with all the pieces of a meal). Either way we ate it, it tasted delicious. The only change I would make (my advisement to you) would be to use a vinegar based barbecue sauce (sorry Baby Ray). The molasses based barbecue sauce we used, while delicious, did not mix quite as well as I had hoped with the slaw, which was vinegar based. Rather then complementing each other, they clashed a bit, and I think having two vinegar based components would be the fix. Besides this minor setback, the dish was great; a little tweak and it would be perfect. Easy and light with a burst of summer flavor.

Summer Veggie Bowls
Recipe adapted from www.coffeeandquinoa.com, Summer Baked BBQ Bowl

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
• 1 medium head cauliflower, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 3/4 cup barbecue sauce (vinegar based)
• 2 medium zucchini, sliced
• 1/2 Tbsp olive il
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 ears corn, shucked
• 2 cups cabbage (green or purple, we used green), shredded
• 1/2 lime, juiced
• 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp sugar

Directions

1. Quinoa
1. Cook the quinoa as directed on package and set aside. (General Directions: Mix with one cup of water until boil and then simmer covered, about 15 minutes, until water is absorbed. Fluff with fork and set aside.)
2. Corn
1. Bring a pot to boil and add corn.
2. Boil for approximately 5 minutes, remove and set aside to cool.
3. Once cooled, slice the kernels off the cob.
3. Cauliflower
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Toss cauliflower with barbecue sauce until fully coated and spread evenly on the lined baking sheet.
4. Roast until tender, about 20-25 minutes.
4. Zucchini
1. Spread zucchini evenly on a second lined baking sheet.
2. Drizzle sliced zucchini with olive oil.
3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper as desired.
4. Place in the oven with the cauliflower and roast about 15 minutes.
5. Cabbage Slaw
1. Combine the cabbage, lime juice, apple cider vinegar, and sugar.
2. Toss to coat fully.
6. Assemble
1. In serving bowls, arrange each ingredient (quinoa, corn, bbq cauliflower, zucchini, and cabbage slaw).
2. Serve, mix (or eat separately), and enjoy.