Pinto Beans Avocado Quinoa Bowl

BM #85 Week 2 Day 2 - 

Here is a Mexican-American Quinoa bowl which is a fantastic way to include all the healthy ingredients. This can be customized as per preference. 

The quinoa can be substituted with brown rice/white rice. The pinto beans can be substituted with red kidney beans/garbanzo beans etc. Kale or spinach or any other power greens can be included. Any salad vegetables like lettuce, onion, cucumbers can be included.

Sour Cream can be excluded to make it Vegan. The guacamole can be customized to individual taste buds. I found that the pumpkin seeds add a very interesting bite to the whole bowl.

A splash of Sriracha Sauce can be a garnish too. In my case, the guacamole was super spicy so I didn't need additional sauces.

Recipe Source
Ingredients - 

Quinoa 1/2 cup 
Pinto Beans 1/2 cup 
Assorted Vegetables finely chopped (Carrots, Green Beans, Colored Peppers) 2 cups
Peas 3 Tbsp
Corn 1/2 cup
Avocado, mashed 1 cup
Garlic 2-3 cloves
Salt, Pepper and Green Chili paste as needed
Lemon/Lime juice 2 Tbsp or as needed
Coriander leaves few
Olive Oil 2 Tbsp (divided use)
Kale or Spinach as needed
Pumpkin Seeds 2 Tbsp (Or as needed)
Sour Cream / Hung Curd 1-2 Tbsp (Optional)

Method Of Preparation -

Wash and soak Pinto beans 4-6 hours. Boil the beans with some salt and set aside.

Cook quinoa as per your preference (in a pressure cooker or in a pot on stovetop).

Blend the avocado, 1 tablespoon of oil, lime juice, garlic, salt, coriander leaves and green chili paste to make guacamole.

In a heated pan, add oil and saute the vegetables. After the vegetables are 80% cooked, add in the cooked and drained beans. Sprinkle salt and add green chili paste. Mix well.

Remove from heat. Allow it to cool a little.

In a wide bowl, arrange quinoa, the mixed vegetable-pinto beans mixture, chopped baby kale/spinach, pumpkin seeds, guacamole, sour cream/hung curd and sprinkle some salt and pepper.

Serve individual bowls.  

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#85.

Preparation Time 30 minutes
Serves 3-4