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easy lunch

Super Easy & Saucy 15-Minute Cajun Chickpea Bowl

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To be fair – I do not think you could ever go wrong with something saucy & spicy. And when you combine it with some chickpeas, tomato and coconut milk, there is no way you could go wrong. These soft beans in a creamy, rich and spicy sauce on top of fluffy quinoa and served with some thick greek yoghurt. The perfect lunch.

What is special about this dish?

Usually you you use cajun seasoning to marinate something, which you then fry or grill. So mostly that it becomes crispy. You could definitely do this with chickpeas but in this recipe it is used to make a sauce in which the chickpeas are in. It is not like any other sauce, maybe a bit like the tomato – coconut mixture in tikka masala but without the curry spices.

And we do no serve them on a regular salad or bowl but with some greek yoghurt, which adds a lot of flavour and its richness pairs perfectly with the sauciness of the chickpeas. Also the quinoa soaks up the sauce perfectly and completes the dish.

Is this dish healthy?

Yes, yes, yes! The quinoa, as a food of the month January, is loaded with protein, carbohydrates and fibre. Plus many essential vitamins and minerals. Then we have the greek yoghurt, which also is an excellent source of protein.

he chickpeas, also, are packed with fibre, which helps you with digestion and they are a great source of plant based protein. For all those who currently are or are considering a plant based diet – chickpeas are a great staple to always have at home. Plus, they are super handy and convenient since you can buy them pre-cooked and canned. Just make sure you drain and wash them before eating, otherwise you will eat the liquid they are stored in, which can cause you having gas in your stomach.

How to make this dish

This is one of those dishes, which you can make in one pan. You start by frying some onion and oregano in some oil. Once these become nice, glassy and fragrant, you can add the chickpeas and the (homemade) cajun spice mix. This is just fried for a few minutes, so the flavours really are absorbed. Now we are adding some tomato paste mixed with water to thin it out, and some canned coconut milk. This makes the sauce nice and rich. This can now simmer for about 5 minutes before we add in some sort of greens such as arugula or spinach. Once this has wilted down we are ready to serve it.

For this you quickly whip the greek yoghurt with a spoon, so it gets nice and creamy and then spread it on the bottom of a bowl or plate. Add the quinoa on top and then the chickpeas along with the sauce. You can garnish with some parsley and that’s already it! Fairly simple!

How and when to best have it + meal prep?

This works great as a quick lunch to have during a busy day. You could for example also make it a bit saucier and serve it with some naan bread as a comforting dinner. The chickpeas do work very well for meal prep. You can either reheat them in the microwave or with a splash or water or coconut milk on the stove.

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Super Easy & Saucy 15-Minute Cajun Chickpea Bowl

Creamy, saucy, spicy chickpeas flavoured with cajun spice and serve with some rich greek yoghurt and fluffy quinoa to round up the tanginess of the chickpeas.

Course dinner, lunch, Main Course
Cuisine American
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 10 Minuten
Total Time 15 Minuten
Servings 2 servings

What you will need

  • 120 g quinoa
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 can chickpeas
  • 3 tbsp tomato paste
  • 3 tbsp water
  • 4 tbsp canned coconut milk
  • 1 handful arugula or spinach
  • 200 g greek yoghurt
  • 1 tsp oregano

For the Cajun Spice Mix: (or just use 1,5 tbsp cajun spice mix)

  • 2 tsp paprika powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 ts chili flakes
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp pepper

How to

  1. Prepare the quinoa according to package intructions or just cover it with twice the amount of water and add some salt. Then bring to a boil, the reduce to simmer and let simmer until all water is absorbed. Then turn down to very low heat, cover and let it stand and fluff until finished with the rest.

    In a pan heat up the oil. Finely dice the onion and fry it along with the oregano for 1-2 minutes until fragnant. Drain and wash the chickpeas and add them to the pan along with the cajun spice mix. Fry for about 2-3 minutes.

  2. Combine the tomato paste with the water. Add this and the coconut milk to the chickpeas and let simmer for about 5 minutes. Add in the arugula and let it wilt down.

  3. Whisk the greek yoghurt with a spoon so it is creamy and spread it onto the bottom of a bowl of plate. Top with the quinoa and the chickpeas. Serve with some parsley and enjoy!

I hope you’ll enjoy this and have fun cooking this!

Enjoy,
Love,
Katie

Super Easy Saucy Hoisin Chickpea and Quinoa Bowl

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Bowls really have been the greatest invention ever. You can just take one, take your favorite ingredients, throw it all in, mix it and enjoy it. This is pure genius. Endless options and possibilities. And that can also be challenging, because how do you make a good bowl? This bowl definitely is a good one! Tangy and slightly sweet hoisin chickpeas with fluffy quinoa, crunchy veggies and soft avocado. = heaven.

How to make a good bowl?

A bowl always comes together out of several different ingredient groups. We have grains, greens, protein, veggies, fruits (optional), sauce and a topping. When we add something out of every group, we have got a perfectly balanced, healthy and delicious bowl

What’s special about this dish?

It is a bowl like no other – that is what is so great about bowls – everyone is so different. This is kind of an asian inspired bowl with flavours from China because of the hoisin. And since it is veganuary (and a lot of people are doing veganuary) we are making a vegan bowl – and no it is not boring! It is super flavourful, easy to make and packed with nutrients!

Is this dish healthy?

Definitely! You have got a very well balanced dish! As a base we have a mix of quinoa, which is packed with fibre, carbohydrates and protein, and greens, which are loaded with vitamins & nutrients. Then we have the star of the show: the chickpeas. Chickpeas are not only delicious, but also high in fibre and protein and a great source of plant based protein.

The sauce, in which the chickpeas are in, is made out of soy sauce, honey or maple, ginger and garlic and peanut butter, which provides some more protein and healthy fats. And then we also have the fresh veggies, which are very important for us with their nutrients and of course, some avocado (a bowl without avocado just wouldn’t be a bowl). Extra healthy fats and nutrients. As a topping we have spring onions and radishes, which add some more crunch and nutrients.

How to make this dish?

Really really simple. We start by preparing the quinoa (which by the way is the food of the month and you can read more about it here). Then we make the sauce for the chickpeas by blending peanut butter, soy sauce, ginger, lime juice, miso paste, honey and cornstarch

Now we are going to cook the chickpeas and the veggies. The veggies in boiling, salted water and the chickpeas with the sauce in a pan. The sauce will thicken and the chickpeas will absorb the flavour.

To assemble we now just add everything to a bowl, along with the avocado and tomatoes and top it with radishes and spring onions. That already is it!

Meal prep friendly?

Yes it definitely is, I have already had it reheated and it was at least as delicious! Just do not reheat the spring onions, tomatoes, radishes and avocado since they are meant to be eaten raw. And maybe you’ll need to add a splash of water to the chickpeas to thin out the sauce a bit!

I hope you’ll enjoy this bowl at least as much as I do, that you’ll have a fun time cooking and a healthy January!

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Super Easy Saucy Hoisin Chickpea and Quinoa Bowl

A delicious, easy & healthy (vegan) bowl recipe that is packed with a tangy, slightly sweet sauce, many fresh and crunchy veggies and fluffy, soft quinoa!

Course bowl, Main Course
Cuisine asian
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 10 Minuten
Total Time 15 Minuten
Servings 2 servings
Calories 577 kcal

What you will need

For the chickpeas:

  • 1 can chickpeas
  • 1 tbsp peanut butter
  • 4 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 lime
  • 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 thumb sized piece of ginger
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp chili paste (optional)

For the rest:

  • 120 g quinoa
  • 1 small head broccoli
  • 100 g edamame beans
  • 1 handful cherry tomatoes
  • 2 stalks spring onions
  • 100 g radishes
  • 1 avocado

How to

  1. To a pot add the quinoa, with a pinch of salt, and twice the amount of water. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Let simmer on medium-low heat until all water in absorbed. Then turn down to low heat and let the quinoa fluff.

  2. In the meantime peel the ginger and garlic, juice the lime and blend them along with all the otehr ingredients for the chickpeas, except the chickpeas themselves. If you do not have a blender, finely grate the garlic and ginger and just stir to combine the other ingredients for the sauce. Add it to a pot along with the drained and washed chickpeas and bring to a boil. Then reduce to a simmer and let it thicken a bit, about 5-8 minutes.

  3. In the meantime bring another pot of water to a boil and cook the broccoli and edmame in it for about 4 minutes, then drain.

  4. Half the cherry tomatoes, finely slice up the spring onions and half and depit the avocado.

  5. Once everything is ready, add it to a bowl and enjoy!

Love,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Not your average, super quick beetroot and couscous Kisir

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Fluffy (not dry) couscous in a packed-with-flavor beetroot sauce, all tossed together with crunchy and fresh veggies and topped off with tangy, crumble feta cheese. Every bite is an explosion of flavours in your mouth, and every bite is pure enjoyment!

What is Kisir?

Kisir usually is a Turkish dish made from roasted red bell peppers and bulgur. The peppers are blended into a sauce and the bulgur is cooked with vegetable broth. The both then are tossed with different, chopped up vegetables and a marinade from lemon juice, pomegranate juice and olive oil.

What is special about this dish?

I am not even sure if I can call this Kisir because the only aspects we are keeping from Kisir is the sauce out of a roasted vegetable, that a grain is cooked in vegetable broth and that it both is mixed with chopped up vegetables.

Instead of bell peppers we are using beetroots. They are in season now, they are super nutritious, they are a flavour-bomb and they add a pretty colour :). Instead of bulgur we go for couscous because it is quicker and easier to make. And instead of only adding cucumber and tomatoes, we are upgrading our couscous and making it more international with spring onions, edamame beans and feta.

So, you can see it is pretty far from Kisir and at the same time really similar. And it needs to be said, it is at least as delicious, I promise!

Is this dish healthy?

Oh, yes! It is not only packed with flavour but also with many many nutrients. The star of the show, beetroot, is an extremely healthy, immune system boosting vegetable, with many many healthy benefits, If you are interested in it, you can check out my September Top 5 and learn more about it!

Besides the star, we also have many other small stars. Edamame, for example is not only super delicious, but also packed with protein and nutrients. Cucumber, vitamin loaded. Bell Pepper, fibre star. spring onions and the herbs also add another nutrient kick! So, there are many ingredients that will make you feel amazing!

And then we also have the couscous, which is a great source of carbohydrates, and when bought wholegrain also a great source of protein. The olive oil, which we are adding, also adds some healthy fats and the lemon some vitamin C!

How to make this dish?

Easiest thing ever. Because no-one wants to spend an hour cooking lunch when their tummy already is groaning. It essentially comes down to preparing the couscous, blending the beets with vegetable broth and oil, chopping the veggies and mixing everything! Yes, it is as easy as it sounds!

When and how to best have it?

It is great for a quick lunch, a leftover side for dinner but also as a delicious meal prep idea. You can store it very well in the fridge (the flavours will only get more intense) and have it the next day!

I love to serve it with some feta or goats cream cheese and some fresh herbs. If you are more on the meat side you could add some grilled chicken or if you are plant based, go ahead and add some chickpeas or vegan feta!

I hope you’ll enjoy this as much as we do and that it will be a healthy staple in you winter cuisine! Have a fun and delicious time cooking and enjoy!

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Not your average, super quick beetroot and couscous Kisir

a flavor packed, creamy (not dry) couscous in a beetroot sauce, tossed with fresh, crunchy veggies and topped with tangy feta. All ready in 15 minuntes!

Course Appetizer, dinner, Main Course, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine turquish (inspired)
Prep Time 15 Minuten
Total Time 15 Minuten
Servings 4 servings
Calories 473 kcal

What you will need

  • 300 g couscous
  • 600 ml vegetable broth
  • 2 rather small beets
  • 1/2 cucumber
  • 100 g edamame beens (cooked)
  • 2 spring onions
  • 1 bell pepper
  • 150 g feta
  • 1 tbsp parsley
  • 1 tbsp mint
  • 2 tsp honey
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 lemon

How to

  1. Bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Take off the heat and add about 3 tbsp of it to a blender with the beets. Pour in the couscous to the rest and let it soak up the liquid and fluff.

  2. Chop up the cucumber and bell peppers into small (about 1cm sized) pieces. Finely slice the spring onions and chopp the herbs. Add them all to a large bowl. In a seperate bowl combine the olive oil, honey and lemon juice.

  3. When the couscous is done, add it to the bowl with the veggies, the beetroot sauce and olive oil mixture. Mix it through until the sauce has covered everything.

  4. Divide onto plates and crumble the feta on top. Serve with some fresh herbs and enjoy!

Love,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière