15-Minute Southwest Quinoa Bowl

For day 9 of my 15-minute meals in 15 days is this 15-Minute Southwest Quinoa Bowl. My favorite thing about this recipe is that it is easily customizable. I personally like putting chicken in my bowl to add protein, but you can simply leave it out or add a plant based protein to make this recipe vegetarian or vegan. Additionally, I chose my favorite ingredients to top the quinoa with. You can use some or all of them, and also add other ones you enjoy if you would like. I also made a tasty lime and honey dressing for the bowl, but you can always buy a dressing from the store to make the recipe even quicker! This is also a perfect meal to meal prep. You can simply multiply the ingredients by 3 and have 3 meals ready for the week saved in the fridge. This bowl is also naturally gluten and dairy free and can easily be made vegetarian or vegan.

Additionally, this meal is super healthy, and super tasty. Quinoa has many health benefits including being very dense with multiple important nutrients. It is also very high in protein, so there really is no need to add extra protein to the dish if you don't want to. It is also high in fiber and naturally gluten free. Quinoa is also also very high in minerals like magnesium in iron. Overall it is a great healthy grain option and is really yummy!

Ingredients (makes 1 large serving):

Bowl:

• 1 cup cooked quinoa

• 1/2 cup canned corn

• 1/2 cup canned black beans

• 1/2 cup red bell peppers, chopped

• 1/4 cup avocado, chopped or thinly sliced

• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

• 1/2 cup store-bought cooked chicken or protein of choice (you can also leave this out)

Dressing:

• Juice of 1 large lime, roughly 1/4 cup

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 2 tbsp honey

• 1/2 tsp cumin

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. If you have not cooked your quinoa yet, boil it according to the box directions.

2. In a medium sized bowl, add the quinoa to the bottom of the bowl. Drain and rinse the canned corn and black beans. You can either warm them on the stove or in the microwave.

3. Once the corn and black beans are warm, add them into the bowl. Then add in the bell peppers, avocado, cilantro and your protein of choice.

4. In a small jar or bowl, thoroughly mix together all of the dressing ingredients. Taste and add more salt and pepper to your preference. Poor the desired amount of dressing over the contents in the bowl.

5. Serve warm and enjoy! You can save leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days.

Note: The topping ingredients I chose are just some of my favorite toppings. Feel free to use all, just some, or add others that you like! You can also buy southwestern dressing from the store to make the recipe even quicker.