Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowls
Sweet potato black bean bowls with kale, seeds, avocado, and lemon-tahini sauce make for a lovely meal prep situation. A light but filling sheet pan dinner that also just so happens to be vegan!
In case you’re getting to a point where you can’t stand to eat one more damn cookie from the batch that you thought would be a good idea to freeze in case you got snacky and sad, here’s some vegetables and super foods! When I said in my blog post last week that I meal prepped, I meant it! I threw together these sweet potato and black bean bowls early last week, and they lasted so long, that Marc and I definitely won’t be eating them again for at least two more months. But, it was fun while it lasted, and I learned how to switch up veggie bowls so that I don’t get entirely too sick of them!
On top of feeding us for lunch and dinner for a few days, these bowls also happened to make a great breakfast! Rice is unnecessary when you go the breakfast route, because you can just plop the veggie mixture on a plate, top with a runny egg, and voilà, it’s suddenly a hash.
Here’s what you’ll need for sweet potato black bean bowls
The best part of these bowls is that they require mostly basic pantry staples + a few things from the produce aisle! While the lemon-tahini sauce is optional, I would highly recommend making it! It adds so much delicious, nutty flavor to the dish. However, if you can’t find tahini, no worries. We’ll talk about it later.
Also, I realize this looks like a ton of ingredients, but a lot of it is spices and other typical things you probably already have in your kitchen. You can mix up the ingredients if you want to customize your bowls, but here’s what I used:
- Sweet Potatoes: I use jewel sweet potatoes, but any are ok!
- Olive Oil: Or whatever oil you like to use for roasting.
- Chili Powder: For spice.
- Smoked Paprika: Or regular!
- Cayenne: For more spice.
- Salt and Pepper: Always.
- Garlic: A necessary component of any savory dish.
- Rosemary: Fresh or dried is fine!
- Kale: I use curly, but get whatever you can find.
- Red Bell Pepper: Or pepper of choice.
- Black Beans: Just one can.
- Tahini: See substitutions below!
- Lemon: Goes perfectly with tahini.
- Brown Rice: Or any grain you like.
- Toppings: Avocado, seeds (I like pumpkin, chia, and flax), cheese, eggs, etc.
Time to make sweet potato black bean bowls!
Before you begin, remember to start your rice! How many times have you forgotten to start the rice and then dinner is half an hour late? The woooorst.
Next, spread the sweet potatoes on a sheet pan, and drizzle with olive oil. Toss with the chili powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, garlic, rosemary, salt, and pepper and bake at 400°F for about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, chop up the pepper and tear the kale. Toss with more olive oil, salt, and pepper, and add to the sheet pan. Bake for another 10-15 minutes, until the veggies are tender and the kale is crispy. Sprinkle the black beans over the sheet pan, and bake for another 3-5 minutes, just until the beans are warmed.
While everything is baking, you’ll want to prepare your rice, any toppings, and the sauce! If you’re making the lemon-tahini sauce, just whisk together the tahini, lemon juice, some water, a clove of garlic, and a pinch of salt. It will seize and get clumpy, but just keep going! If it’s thick, continue adding water or lemon juice until it’s nice and saucy.
Serve the veggies over rice with sauce, seeds, avocado, and other toppings of choice!
Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowl Toppings
These bowls are customizable, which is the best part! You can use different veggies, different grains, whatever you like. As for toppings, I like to add avocado, a squeeze of lemon, and lots of seeds to my bowls! (Seeds are basically savory sprinkles, yeah?) However, if you’re feeling a little ambitious, there are lots of other fun things you can add to round out the meal:
- Fried Eggs: Obviously not vegan, but so delicious!
- Feta Cheese: Parmesan or queso fresco are great too if you can’t find feta.
- Pickled Onions: Anything pickled, really.
- Fresh Herbs: There’s never a bad time for fresh herbs. Try chives or cilantro!
- Greek Yogurt: I’ll put plain Greek yogurt on anything.
- Chicken: If you need some meat, grilled or sauteed chicken would be delicious.
What if I can’t find tahini?
I’m lucky that tahini just sits on the shelves in my grocery store. However, I know that’s not the case for everyone. If you can’t find tahini, but you still want to make a sauce, try plain Greek yogurt! As much as I love tahini, I will never say no to garlicky, lemony yogurt sauce. Or, you can always order tahini online!
Bonus: Sweet potato black bean bowls are vegan!
If vegan is your thing, then these bowls are for you! Obviously, if you add eggs and cheese and yogurt, that will not be the case. But, they will still be vegetarian! They also happen to be gluten free. So, you can pretty much make these bowls for anyone which is gr8.
How to meal prep sweet potato black bean bowls
These are my perfect meal prep situtation! Once you get all of the ingredients prepped, all you have to do is layer the bowls together into six airtight containers however you please. Top with a lid, and store them in the fridge for up to one week. I would recommend adding seeds right before you eat, or they may get soggy in the fridge. Also, maybe add avocado last-minute, or it’ll get brown and funky.
A few tips and tricks
- Make sure not to crowd the veggies, or they will steam rather than bake. If necessary, use two sheet pans so that the veggies get nice and crisp.
- Double the tahini dressing if you have no self control (hi, me).
- The veggies may get a bit soggy in the fridge. To crisp them back up, reheat them at 350°F just until they are warm.
Other delicious veggie recipes!
Farro Salad with Acorn Squash, Kale, + Pomegranate
Spring Panzanella Salad
Kale Salad with Greek Yogurt Caesar Dressing
Carrot Salad with Pistachios, Queso Fresco, + Shallot Dressing
Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowls
Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowls
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowls
- 2 large sweet potatoes (about 1 lb.), peeled and diced
- 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
- 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika (or regular)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp rosemary (fresh or dried), chopped
- 1 head kale, ribs removed and leaves torn
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Brown rice (or another grain), for serving
- Avocado, seeds, feta cheese, fried egg, etc., for serving
Lemon-Tahini Dressing
- 1/4 cup tahini
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tbsp cold water
- 1 small clove garlic, finely minced
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowls
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a sheet pan. Spread the diced sweet potatoes on the sheet pan, and drizzle with 2 Tbs. olive oil. Sprinkle with chili powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, garlic, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat, and bake for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, toss the kale and bell pepper with the remaining olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Toss the mixture with the semi-cooked sweet potatoes, and cook for another 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and the kale is crispy.
- Stir the can of black beans into the veggie mixture and bake for 3-5 minutes, just until the beans are warmed through. Taste, and season with salt and pepper. Serve the veggie mixture over rice with avocado, seeds, tahini sauce, and/or other toppings of choice.
Lemon-Tahini Dressing
- While the veggies are baking, whisk together the tahini, lemon juice, water, garlic, and a pinch of salt. It will seize, but just keep whisking until it’s smooth. Add more lemon juice or water to get a saucy texture. Drizzle over bowls!
xo Sara Lynn
*Song of the day: What Would I Do? by Strawberry Guy
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