Hearty, healthy and incredibly delicious Roasted Eggplant Bowls with a simple, yet flavorful Black Olive Couscous. A sheet-pan dinner recipe that’s loaded with Mediterranean flavors.
I’m so excited to share this super easy plant-based recipe. These bowls are a great, satisfying meal. They are loaded with vegetables, are high in fiber and healthy fats and have a healthy dose of plant-based protein (from the chickpeas, the whole-wheat couscous and the almonds). They are one of the most delicious dinners I’ve made in a long time and immediately became one of Juan’s favorites. This is a wholesome meal everyone will love; it’s packed with so much flavor.
They look a bit fancy, but they are super easy to make. You just throw everything on a sheet pan and the oven is going to do most of the work for you. While the vegetables bake, you can make the whole wheat couscous. I love couscous, I enjoy the texture and the flavor. It’s like having miniature pasta, so what’s not to love? But what I love the most is how easy it is to make. You just add couscous to a small bowl, pour boiling water on top and cover the whole thing with a big plate. Six minutes later, your couscous is done. To make this beautiful whole grain tastier I added black olives, parsley, onion and lemon juice. Simple, but scrumptious. And it took 6 minutes to make, wooohooo.
When the vegetables are done, I just add the chickpeas, almonds, herbs and a thick, luscious dressing that I made with a whole head of roasted garlic. I’m telling you, it’s beyond amazing and takes the whole meal to another level. I used simple ingredients to create this whole dish, but the end result is spectacular. A crowd-pleasing, scrumptious meal that’s actually great for your health. Hope you love these Mediterranean-inspired bowls!
Enjoy veggie bowls? Then you might also like these easy recipes: Vegan Tempeh Black Rice Bowls with Tahini Orange Dressing, the Nourishing Edamame Bowl or the Roasted Veggie Bowls.
If you try these yummy vegan bowls, let us know what you think. Tag us on Instagram @mondaydreamsblog or leave a comment below. We love hearing from you!
Roasted Eggplant Bowls with Black Olive Couscous
Ingredients
ROASTED VEGETABLES AND CHICKPEAS:
- 1 small garlic bulb
- 1 Tbsp olive oil, plus more for the garlic
- 1 medium eggplant, diced into bite size pieces (1/2” or 1 – 1.5 cm) - about 2 cups
- 1 medium/big carrot, thinly sliced (1/8” – ¼” or 4 mm thick)– about 1 cup
- 1 small red pepper, cored, seeded and diced (1” or 2.5 cm pieces) – about 1 cup
- 1 cup small cherry tomatoes
- 1 small red onion, cubed
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed – about 1 ½ cup cooked chickpeas
- ½ cup parsley, finely chopped
- ¼ cup toasted almonds, roughly chopped*
BLACK OLIVE COUSCOUS:
- ⅔ cup whole wheat couscous
- ⅔ cup boiling water
- ⅔ cup parsley, finely chopped
- ½ cup pitted black olives, finely chopped
- ½ cup finely chopped onion**
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ - ½ tsp sea salt
ROASTED GARLIC DRESSING:
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp coconut nectar or maple syrup – or honey, if not vegan
TO SERVE:
- 4 big handfuls of arugula, chopped and tossed with a drizzle of olive oil and sea salt
- More toasted almonds, roughly chopped
Instructions
ROASTED VEGETABLES AND CHICKPEAS + ROASTED GARLIC DRESSING:
- Preheat the oven to 390 °F / 200 °C.
- Start with the garlic, it’s going to take a little more time to cook than the rest of the vegetables. Chop ¼ - ½ inch off the top of the bulb to expose the individual cloves. Place the garlic head onto a piece of foil. Drizzle with 1 – 2 tsp of olive oil over the exposed cloves. Wrap the garlic in foil and bake for 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, chop and slice the rest of the vegetables. Add the chopped eggplant, carrot, red pepper, cherry tomatoes and red onion to a baking sheet. Add oil, paprika and sea salt and use your hands (or a big spoon) to mix everything up. Make sure the veggies are well coated.
- Once the garlic has been roasting in the oven for 30 minutes, add it to the baking sheet with the rest of the vegetables. Place everything in the oven and cook for 15 minutes. Remove the garlic bulb (it should be completely soft, if not, keep baking), carefully unwrap and set aside to cool slightly. Stir the vegetables and place them back in the oven for another 10 – 15 minutes, until they are tender and slightly golden and the cherry tomatoes are beginning to burst.
- Once the garlic has cooled from hot to warm, squeeze from the bottom, to push the cloves out of their paper into a small bowl. Make sure you get it all out.
- Mash the garlic with a fork until a paste forms. Add the dressing ingredients: olive oil, balsamic vinegar, tomato paste, Dijon mustard and coconut nectar or maple syrup. Whisk to combine.
- Once the vegetables are cooked, add chickpeas, parsley, toasted almonds and dressing to the baking sheet. Toss to combine and place everything back in the oven for 5 – 8 minutes, to warm up the chickpeas. Remove from the oven and serve with couscous and arugula.
BLACK OLIVE COUSCOUS:
- While the vegetables are in the oven, make the couscous.
- Place the couscous in a medium bowl. Add boiling water, make sure the couscous is submerged, then place a big plate on top. Let it steam for 6 minutes. Remove the plate and fluff with a fork.
- Add parsley, olives, onion, olive oil, lemon juice and sea salt. Toss to combine.
BOWLS:
- Divide arugula, couscous and roasted veggies between four bowls. You can add more toasted almonds if you want to, Juan loves to add feta cheese (he’s not vegan)
- Enjoy these delicious Mediterranean bowls!
- Vegetable leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. You can then reheat them in the oven.
- Couscous keeps for 3-4 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
Notes
** I don’t like the strong taste of raw onions, so I place the chopped onions in a small bowl and cover them with boiling water. After ten minutes, I drain and rinse the onions with cold water. Bye-bye pungent taste, hello delicious mild flavor.