Lentils and Quinoa Power Bowl. A.K.A the best “cabin food” evaaa.
So…is anyone else befuzzled (yes it’s a word) by this November September weather? It’s less than two weeks till Thanksgiving, and we’re still reppin our flip-flops and T-shirts here in Utah. No complaints.
But, we heard it’s supposed to snow this week, so this past Friday we decided to take advantage of the last warm weekend of 2016 by heading up to our cabin.
A.K.A. my childhood. My parents built the cabin when I was about 4 years old, and since then, we’ve created many memories of four-wheeling, sledding and catching frogs at the lake.
A weekend at the cabin consists of just a few simple things:
✓ Sleeping/Lounging
✓Stretchy pants (duhhh)
✓ Board games
✓ Nature
✓FOOD
Always food. Never ending food with us…
So let’s talk about this so-called “cabin food” for a second. To us, “cabin food” means all those foods you want to eat at home but feel like they’re slightly unacceptable on a daily basis because, uh, healthy is the cool thing now. But at the cabin, we just pretend like healthy doesn’t exist. At least for the first few meals of the day…
Our typical menu goes something like this: German Pancakes with Caramelized Bacon for breakfast, Chocolate Peanut Butter Tillamook Ice Cream for lunch (literally, that’s what we ate for lunch, not kidding) and Lentils and Quinoa Power Bowls for din din. Because Lentils and Quinoa Power Bowls are actually very healthy, and by the time dinner rolls around, we’ve crashed from the sugar high and are ready to get some powerfoods back in our bodies.
So, whether you’re at a cabin or not, grab ONE pot (yes, it only takes one) and throw in some lentils and squash. It’s an easy, delicious and hearty meal.
Plus, it’s cabin-food approved.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1-2 shallots (about 1/3 cup chopped)
- 2 cups chopped mushrooms
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
- 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
- Sprinkle red chili flakes
- 1 tsp. garlic
- 1 cup lentils
- 3 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup quinoa
- 1 small butternut squash (about 3 cups cubed)
- 2 heaping handfuls spinach
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large cast iron pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Dice the shallots and cook until softened, about 3 - 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.
- Add thyme, rosemary, coriander and red chili flakes. Mix together and add the garlic, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Rinse the lentils and add to the pot, along with the broth. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to simmer for 15 minutes.
- While the mixture is simmering, prepare the butternut squash. With a vegetable peeler, remove the skin. Slice the squash in half the long way and scoop out the seeds and goop. Cut into small bite-sized cubes.
- Add quinoa and squash to the pot and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat. Simmer for another 15 minutes, or until the squash is fork tender and the quinoa is cooked.
- Remove from the heat, uncover and add the spinach, stirring gently to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
- Serve with fresh herbs and parmesan cheese on top (if desired)
22 Comments
Also like how you added squash and mushrooms. Perfect meal on its own or as a side dish
Thanks Candy! Yes, that squash completes this dish. Hope you like it!
Look like a good bowl of comfort food. I’m lovin quinoa.
Jere, so true! It totally is comfort food, and it’s actually healthy for you too. Bonus!
I did lentils and quinoa just this week, but as a side. This seems like a great dish for a power lunch at work 🙂
Yum! Glad you’re on board with the lentil/quinoa thing. And truly, this is a great power lunch. I ate the leftovers from this for like 3 days straight. 🙂
i LOVE lentils…such a versatile ingredient!
Yay for lentils! So glad you agree. Lentils are the BOMB.com!
These photos are stunning, first and foremost. Quinoa is becoming a bigger part of my eating habits – it’s so filling and proper flavoursome. This would be awesome with some kind of grilled fish. Good work! 🙂
Callum, thank you so much! And I love your idea about eating this with grilled fish. That would be such a yummy combo! Happy cooking 🙂
This sounds and looks amazing! I am a lover of both quinoa and lentils so this is perfect!
Thanks Kim! So glad you agree with us about the quinoa and lentils. Such a YUM combo. Enjoy 🙂
This looks so tasty! Perfect comfort food for Autumn nights! Loved the post, some great photos – I’m a little jealous I don’t have a cabin! 🙂
Thanks Betty! It def is a good comfort food! And how bout you just come to our cabin and we can all have a quinoa and lentil bowl party! 😉
This looks delicious! I’m not a huge fan of quinoa, but I like lentils and love all the other things you put in here! It sounds great!
I’ve actually started a brand new linkup that focuses on health/wellness/fitness and I’d love for you to drop a link there! I’m trying to gain some exposure on it and I have really high hopes for it! No stress, but would really appreciate it! http://www.thewanderingbrunette.com/fit-tuesday/
Thanks Kristen! You could easily omit the quinoa, and it would still be delicious! You’d probably just want to decrease the liquid by about a cup and see what happens. I dropped a link on your site…love what you’re doing there! Keep up the good work!
This power bowl sounds so delicious. I mean reading it all was like, “Mmmmmm can I have this now please?!?!” But then your photos made me so hungry for it. I think my favorite part is the — no no not the quinoa — but the SQQQAAAUUUSHH!!! I love squash so I’m already biased there, but to see it in your bowl and list of ingredients is awesome. Great job gals!
Danielle | FollowMyGut.com <3
Danielle, I’m so glad you’re on board with us about the squash obsession! Truly…squash + me = true love. Sounds like you have a similar relationship. 🙂 So glad you like the look of this, give it a try and let us know what you think!
I’m always looking for healthier dinner options, and this one looks flavorful as well as nutritious. Beautiful photos too. Thanks for the great post!
Thanks Cait! Always a bonus when you can mix healthy with flavorful. Hope you like it 🙂
I tried the Sriracha Honey Chicken in the quinoa bowl…Amazing! Thanks for the ideas, makes my “dinner preparing” less stressful!
Karlee, we’re so glad you liked the chicken! And that’s such a good idea to eat it in the quinoa bowl. Yay for easy dinner prep 🙂