August 4, 2016
(last updated January 27, 2020) 
On Tuesday, I shared my new favorite snack, savory granola. As I suggested in that post, it has been turning up everywhere, finding its way onto my salads, spreading out generously over trays of roasted zucchini or cauliflower, and even sneaking into a yogurt parfait or two. It’s so good, and I’m having a lot of fun finding different uses for it. This sweet potato breakfast bowl may be my favorite yet.
It’s no big secret that I’m a big savory breakfast person. I think Steven is finally getting used to the smell of leftovers in the morning, even if he still occasionally stares at me incredulously as I heat up a bowl of curry or pilaf. Especially now that I’m in the thick of frenzied recipe testing for the cookbook, I’ve got a lot of leftovers to contend with at home, and savory breakfasts make it easy for me to use them up. But even without the surplus of food to motivate me, I’m partial to savory breakfasts: I often find them to be more varied and filling than sweeter options.
For a while, savory oats–either my steel cut version, or my favorite turmeric chickpea oats–were my go-to. I still love them, but now that summer is here and a piping hot breakfast doesn’t always call to me, I’m expanding my options. Since lunch bowls are a mainstay for me, I’m exploring some breakfast bowl options, too.
What I love most about this particular bowl is the contrast of texture: tender sweet potato, chewy steamed kale, crispy granola. I also love the color, the vibrance of the bowl, and the fact that it’s so adaptable. If you don’t have zucchini (or it’s not in season), play around with cauliflower, broccoli, or eggplant instead. And if you’d like to switch up your greens, try collards, chard, bok choy, or mustard greens. The bowl is also good with raw greens; this morning, I tried it with baby spinach. It saved me the step of steaming, and it added a different texture to the meal.
In order to pick up the turmeric and curry in the granola, I chose to drizzle my anti-inflammatory turmeric tahini dressing (a favorite) over the bowls. You can definitely make bowl assembly faster by preparing the dressing and granola in advance! If you don’t have the dressing handy, you can swap another dressing of choice, or you can simply add a hunk of avocado to the bowl.
Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowls with Savory Granola
Author -Yields: 2 bowls
Ingredients
- 2 small sweet potatoes scrubbed clean
- 2 small or medium sized zucchini quartered lengthwise and then cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- Coarse salt and pepper
- 6 cups tightly packed raw kale (or another leafy green of choice), stems removed and torn into bite-sized pieces
- 2/3 cup savory turmeric spice granola
- Turmeric tahini dressing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F and line two baking sheets with parchment. Prick the sweet potatoes a few times each with a fork. Toss the zucchini with the olive oil. Transfer the sweet potatoes to one sheet and the zucchini pieces to the other. Sprinkle the zucchini with salt and pepper, then transfer both baking sheets to the oven.
- Bake the zucchini for 25-30 minutes, or until the pieces are turning golden, stirring once halfway through cooking. When the zucchini are ready, remove them from the oven and allow the potatoes to bake for another 10-25 minutes (40-45 minutes total), or until they're totally tender when pierced with a fork. Remove the potatoes from the oven, and when they're cool enough to handle, cut them into pieces or rounds.
- While the vegetables are baking, bring a pot of water to boil and attach a steamer insert. Steam the kale till bright green and tender.
- To assemble the bowls, divide the kale, zucchini, and sweet potato into two bowls. Top each with 1/3 cup granola and a generous drizzle of the turmeric tahini dressing. Serve.
These bowls are an altogether wonderful way to start the day. You can prepare the components in advance, the simply steam the kale and put them together when you’re ready to eat. If you’re having company over for brunch, you can easily double the recipe, too! I’m eager to make it more often as we transition into fall, perhaps using some different, roasted winter squash (especially kabocha) in place of the sweet potato.
Hope this green and golden bowl of goodness strikes your fancy. And happy early weekend to you all–see you for a link roundup on Sunday!
xo
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Categories: Recipes,
Savory,
Vegan Bowls
Method: Oven
Ingredients: Sweet Potato
Dietary Preferences: Gluten Free, Soy Free, Vegan
Recipe Features: Meal Prep
Method: Oven
Ingredients: Sweet Potato
Dietary Preferences: Gluten Free, Soy Free, Vegan
Recipe Features: Meal Prep
Leave a Comment
Simply amazing! So glad I stumbled on this recipe and it’s dressing recipe! I’ve been in a vegan breakfast rut for some time and this just shook my world! I will be serving this to my husband for dinner as well, cause it just is that good! Thank you for this unique take on breakfast!
I like the recipe it looks new and very unique than other books online, I will try this sweet potatoes with savory at home rather calling up for food delivery, and also will spread around the word If I enjoyed this, appreciate for sharing your ideas with others.
This recipe is amazing and delicious. Thank you so much! The idea of it inspired me to prepare it the same day.
I hope you enjoyed it, Anna!
This breakfast bowl looks amazing! I never thought about the idea of savory granola, but it sounds like an incredible addition!
I love your turmeric tahini dressing, and I’m positive that it is perfect on this bowl. I still can’t wait to make that granola… Someday I’m going to try a savory breakfast. The closest I’ve gotten to so far is a tofu scramble with greens…but that’s more of a brunch. I’m just addicted to my morning smoothies.
This looks so yummy! I always think of sweet foods for breakfast bowls, but I love the idea of a more savoury option 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Akino | akinokiki.blogspot.ca
So colorful, Gena! I am addicted to the turmeric kombucha at my co-op…I need to get in on this turmeric-granola fun … looks so good!
I love your love for savory breakfasts Gena! It is so inspiring. Really opening up my mind to a whole other side of breakfasting I’m still new too, being a sweets gal on the regular. This turmeric granola is magical! And hearing you talk about your second book just gets me all sorts of excited <3 Have a stellar weekend lady!
Thanks for your sharing. This look simple and i will definitely give it a try. By the way, can I replace any other things beside turmeric tahini if i couldn’t find it?
Rachel
I’m so far from a savory breakfast person, but these bowls sound amazing!!
This looks delicious!
I really want to try it 🙂 Where did you get the beautiful bowl from?
Best
Michaela
Michaelablog
I found it on Etsy, Michaela!
oh wow, i absolutely need this in my life! breakfast is my favorite meal of the day but i hate most conventional breakfasts. bookmarked :)) thank you!
Gena, I just love where you’re going with all of this! Splendid! I love weird unexpected combinations of things and this just tickles my fancy no end. I’d probably eat it for dinner though. 🙂 I’ve always liked breakfast for dinner. 🙂 If you wanted to save a little time with the roasting, I’ve gotten into the habit of cutting sweet potatoes into wedge slices and baking them at 400 on baking parchment. They are done in my oven in about 36 minutes., almost the same time as your roasted zucchini. I just create slices on the diagnoal so that there’s one thick end and the other is thin. I bake these a lot in the morning before it’s hot or to warm up the kitchen if it’s cold, so who knows, I might end up with a bowl like this for breakfast! Thank you!! xoxo