This quick and healthy Autumn Harvest Bowl is full of color, texture, and seasonal produce! Dress it up with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette, and you’ll forget the salad from Sweet Green altogether!
If there’s one thing I love about a good bowl, it’s that it has a little bit of everything!
So, I took a little inspiration from Sweetgreen’s Harvest Bowl and decided that I refuse to pay $10 for a salad anymore when I can make it at home.
I’ve got roasted sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, chewy wild rice, blackened chicken breasts, sweet apples, crumbled goat cheese, and crunchy almonds in the mix. This is a dream of a bowl! And it’s served on your favorite base—use baby spinach, arugula, mixed greens, or fresh kale, and drizzle it with homemade balsamic vinaigrette.
Plus, when you make restaurant favorites at home, you can swap the veggies for what you like! Use butternut squash instead of sweet potatoes. Do you like roasted broccoli better than Brussels sprouts? Who is stopping you? Want more protein? Use quinoa instead of brown rice or wild rice blend. Have a feta fetish? Let’s do that. Do you prefer pears over apples? I don’t see why you shouldn’t have what you want! Have roasted pepitas or pumpkin seeds at home and don’t want to run out to grab almonds? Make that swap, friend.
Ingredients for Autumn Harvest Bowls
- Brussels Sprouts: are a great source of fiber, and roast beautifully in the oven on the baking sheet alongside the sweet potatoes. I like to toss them with kosher salt and black pepper and roast them. Then, we’ll drizzle maple syrup and balsamic so they caramelize in the oven!
- Sweet Potatoes: To keep things simple here, add a little oil and season them! Sometimes, I’d sprinkle some cayenne and cinnamon if I want that additional cozy heat, but this is entirely optional.
- Maple Syrup: helps the sprouts caramelize in the oven.
- Balsamic Vinegar: is used to make the vinaigrette and flavor the sprouts.
- Chicken: To make meal prep for the week easier, you can cook chicken with blackened seasoning or grab a rotisserie chicken on the way home.
- Blackened Seasonings: Just use the kind you like from the store – or make your own!
- Kale: I used kale for this recipe because I think it holds up nicely with the grains. You can use anything you like though!
- Goat Cheese: Make your life easier by purchasing crumbled goat cheese! I’m not a fan of the log for this recipe!
- Apples: This is a great salad to make for apple-picking season! I love using pink lady apples, fuji, or Honeycrisp apples for this recipe. But really, any kind of snacking apple you like will work here!
- Almonds: I prefer roasted, lightly salted almonds, but as mentioned previously, you can use whatever you like!
- Honey: helps sweeten the vinaigrette.
- Dijon Mustard: helps emulsify the dressing.
- Garlic: you can use garlic powder if you don’t feel like grating it fresh, but I like the hit of fresh garlic in the vinaigrette.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: for the vinaigrette. However, I’d suggest using regular olive oil or avocado oil for when you roast the veggies.
Bought blackened seasoning and looking for other ways to use it? Try my Blackened Hot Honey Salmon with Broccoli, Blackened Shrimp Tacos, or Blackened Salmon Tacos!
Making Harvest Bowls
- Roast it up. Start by adding the Brussels sprouts to a bowl. Toss with a bit of olive oil, kosher salt, and black pepper. Then, pop them on the baking sheet. In the same bowl, you’ll want to add the cubed sweet potatoes and toss them with the oil, salt, and black pepper. Pop these in the oven to roast. Give it a toss in between, and then drizzle the maple syrup and balsamic vinegar over the sprouts around the halfway mark. While the veggies are roasting, make the vinaigrette and the blackened chicken.
- Make the vinaigrette. Add all the ingredients except the olive oil to a bowl or blender. Whisk or run the blender while pouring in the olive oil.
- Cook the chicken. Season both sides with the prepared blackened seasoning. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of oil and cook the chicken for 5-6 minutes per side. Sometimes, I like to sear the chicken for 3-4 minutes per side and finish thicker chicken breasts in a 375ºF oven for another 5-7 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate and let it cool for a few minutes before dicing it up for the autumn harvest salad bowl.
- Get ready to serve. Add the kale to individual bowls. Top with the sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts, chicken, wild rice blend, goat cheese, apples, and almonds in each bowl. Drizzle with the prepared vinaigrette and serve!
FAQs about this recipe
Keep the harvest bowls in an airtight container in the refrigerator. I suggest keeping the balsamic dressing separately in small dressing containers until you’re ready to serve.
If you like this recipe, you might also like:
- Harvest Pumpkin Leek Soup
- Autumn Pearl Couscous Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash
- Autumn Crisp Apple Sweet Potato Salad
- Autumn Harvest Salad with Sweet Dijon Vinaigrette
- Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Apples and Manchego
Autumn Harvest Bowls with Balsamic Vinaigrette
This quick and healthy Autumn Harvest Bowl is full of color, texture, and seasonal produce! Dress it up with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette, and you'll forget the salad from Sweet Green altogether!
Ingredients
Harbest Bowls:
- ½ pound brussels sprouts, cut in half
- 1½ tablespoon olive oil (plus more)
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs)
- 2 teaspoons blackened seasoning
- 6 cups shredded kale
- 1 cup prepared wild rice
- ½ cup crumbled goat cheese
- 1 cup diced pink lady apples
- ¼ cup roasted almonds, roughly chopped
Balsamic vinaigrette:
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1-2 tablespoons honey (plus more to taste)
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- ROAST: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 425ºF. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Toss the Brussels sprouts in a bowl with 1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil, ½ teaspoon of kosher salt, and a pinch of black pepper. Spread the sprouts on one side of the baking sheet. Add the cubed sweet potatoes to the same bowl and toss with 1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil, ½ teaspoon of kosher salt, and a pinch of black pepper. Spread them on the other side of the baking sheet and roast in the oven for 12 minutes. Prepare the vinaigrette and the chicken while the veggies are roasting.
- TOSS: Remove from the oven and give the individual veggies a good toss. Then drizzle with the maple syrup and balsamic vinegar over the Brussels sprouts and place the tray back in the oven for another 10-12 minutes or until glazed and browned. Allow them to cool for a bit.
- VINAIGRETTE: In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, honey, dijon, garlic, ½ teaspoon salt, and a pinch of black pepper. Whisk as you pour in the olive oil to emulsify the dressing.
- CHICKEN: Season the chicken with blackened seasoning all over. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of oil and cook the chicken for 5-6 minutes per side or until it reaches 160ºF on a meat thermometer. Remove the chicken to a plate, tent loosely with foil, and let the chicken cool slightly before dicing.
- ASSEMBLE: Add the kale to individual bowls once the veggies are done. Divide the chicken, sweet potatoes, and Brussels sprouts into each bowl. Then add ¼ cup of wild rice mix, 2 tablespoons goat cheese, ¼ cup pink lady apples, and 1 tablespoon of roasted almonds to each bowl. Drizzle with the prepared balsamic vinaigrette and serve immediately!
Notes
- Vinaigrette: this recipe makes an ample amount of dressing. You definitely wouldn't use all of it on your bowl!
