Weekly Spotlight: How to Build an Amazing Salad or Bowl!

Salads are great to make for an easy and quick meal and are a great way to enjoy greens. Plus, you can customize your salads with whatever you’d like.  This can be a good salad, but how does one take a salad from good to great? Check out this guide!

This guide aims to help you build a wonderfully tasteful, delicious salad or bowl that not only is packed with nutrition but also has a variety of textures in each bite. A great salad has a base, a protein or a main feature, and a topping that’s either dressing or other added ingredients (think banana peppers or pickled), and feel free to get as creative as you want with it!

We also highly recommend downloading the Food Monster App  — with over 15,000 delicious recipes it is the largest meatless, vegan, plant-based, and allergy-friendly recipe resource to help you get healthy! And, don’t forget to check out our Weekly Meal Plan Archives!

Are you ready to have a week full of delicious, high-protein, whole-food vegan food that leaves you nourished and content? Let’s get started!

This week, we’re bringing delicious ways to build a salad or bowl with ingredients that are fully vegan and plant-based!

Start with a Base

Source: Green Goddess and Herbed Couscous Bowl

The base of your salad is what you have as the bulk of your bowl. Mainly, this means greens, and if you’re choosing a greens-based salad, make sure you choose a few different kinds of greens, from a sweeter green like romaine, green leaf, and spinach, and mix it with a green that’s a bit more savory, like arugula, swiss chard, or kale (be sure to massage your kale with a pinch of salt, lemon juice, or just water! This makes it easier to digest.) However, you don’t have to limit your base to just greens. Feel free to do other bases like rice, beans, or even pasta!

Try out these bowls that have excellent bases!

• Green Goddess and Herbed Couscous Bowl by Dominique Ebra
• Wholesome Winter Bowl with Miso Ginger Dressing by Dominique Ebra
• Roasted Potato and Chickpea Salad With Tahini Dressing by Caroline Doucet
• Kale and Wild Rice Salad by Kristen Genton
• Avocado and Grilled Zucchini Salad by Alchemy Eats
• Pear Salad With Crispy Chickpea Croutons by Laine Rudolfa

Choose Your Protein or Main

Source: Crispy Chickpea Nuggets

Your protein can be your favorite plant-based protein! Adding some crispy tofu, crispy chickpeas, lentils, or even some sprouted beans can add a punch of flavor and texture to your salad. Not only that but having variety in each bite of your salad can make it more enjoyable. Whatever protein you choose, you can season up super well so any extra seasonings can spread into your salad. Feel free to even season your salad; you’re aiming to make it as delicious as possible!

Try out these amazing proteins:

• Simple Falafel Bowl by Robin Browne
• Baked Teriyaki Tofu Salad by Aaron Calder
• Green Pea Fusilli Salad with Orange Citrus Vinaigrette by Julie Zimmer
• Crispy Chickpea Waldorf Salad by Andrea Soranidis
• Crispy Chickpea Nuggets by Angela de Varennes

Create an Amazing Topping

Source: Roasted Vegetable Hummus

Choosing your topping can be both fun and tricky because you want something that can add to your salad without overtaking the balance you’ve built between the base and the protein. When you think of your topping, you can add something that’ll add some nutrition, such as hemp, flax, or even chia seeds, or even something creamy like vegan feta cheese or vegan bac’n bits! You can also add herbs like cilantro, parsley, and dill for added flavor, as well! If you’re feeling extra creative and want a bit more bulk in your meal, you can even top your salad with a premade vegan pasta salad, chickpea nuggets, chick’n nuggets, or even baked potatoes!

• Brussel Sprout Salad with Pecans and Apple by Robin Browne
• Moroccan Quinoa Veggie Bowl by Celine Steen
• Roasted Vegetable Hummus by Michelle Anderson
• Couscous with Roasted Vegetables by Nita Ragoonanan

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

• Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store, to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
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