Pesto Protein Bowl

What is your favorite “type” of food? By type I mean ethnicity, a.k.a. where the food originally came from.

I honestly don’t have one favorite type of food. I LOVE Mexican food (salsa’s where it’s ATTTT), Costa Rican food (beans and riceeeeee), Thai food (peanut noodles = heart eye emoji), and Mediterranean food (baba ganoush and HUMMUS >>> ). But sometimes I crave Italian food (pasta, pizza, and LOTSA BASIL) and “American” food.

Okay change of subject (but it’s related) : what counts as American / USA food? I feel like it’s a mix of a bunch of other cultures’ food. When I think of USA food I UNFORTUNATELY can only think of McDonald’s type of food : burgers, fries, milkshakes, ice cream. I also think of pizza and spaghetti (but then I’m like, “aren’t those Italian!?”). SO anyway, tell me in the comments what YOU think is “American” food!

So back to my favorite food culture. I LOVE Mexican food, but I also like Italian food. That’s why I love this bowl. It’s a Mexican-type bowl full of grains, black beans, and salsa-like ingredients like corn and tomato. Then you add pesto and it adds an Italian flair to what I previously decided was a Mexican-themed bowl. So if you have a hankering for Mexican food and ALSO Italian food, try this bowl! That way, you can enjoy the foods and flavors of both cultures!

It’s a pesto protein bowl because it’s very pesto-y and chock-full of protein thanks to the quinoa and black beans. Enjoy it!

serves 4

*It’s SUPER quick and easy to make!*

For the Pesto

from pg. 12 of The New Basics cookbook

• 2 cups of fresh basil
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• salt
• pepper

Process the garlic, basil, salt, and pepper in the food processor. Slowly add in the oil through the “feed tube” while the motor is running. Process until the basil is puréed.

For the Bowl

• the pesto (obvi)
• 1 cup dry quinoa
• 1  15.5 oz. can black beans
• 4 ears of corn
• 3 tomatoes
• basil leaves (to top the bowls)

1. Measure 1 cup of dry quinoa and cook according to package directions. Pour the quinoa into a big bowl when it’s done cooking.
2. Drain and rinse the black beans (keep the liquid to make aquafaba!) and add them to the bowl.
3. Cook some corn and add it to the bowl.
   • Side note: a great way to cook corn is to wrap the ear in a wet paper towel and cook it in the microwave! Cook each ear for 2 minutes on high. So if you do 2 ears at a time, set the microwave for 4 minutes. ***Thanks Dama for the tip!***
4. Wash the tomatoes, then cut them into small pieces and put them in the big bowl.
5. Pour all the pesto into the bowl and mix all the ingredients together.
6. Scoop the mixture into bowls, and serve with fresh basil leaves and salt + pepper. Enjoy!

Have a fun day!

xx Ellie