Roasted Harvest Bowls – Eating Bird Food

These roasted harvest bowls combine maple turmeric chicken, roasted butternut squash and brussels sprouts and crisp apple chunks all served over a bed of kale drizzled with an apple cider vinaigrette dressing. Perfect for meal prep!

If you’re looking for a warm, comforting dish for fall and winter, these roasted harvest bowls are perfect because most of the ingredients are roasted and added while still warm. Of course, you can also use this recipe for meal prep and serve the roasted components cold or at room temp. I’ve done both and the bowls taste delicious either way.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• It’s jam-packed with veggies and lean protein.
• Loaded with flavor!
• Super easy to meal prep in advance for quick assembly during the week.
• It’s completely customizable. Feel free to make this recipe your own!

Ingredients Needed

• maple turmeric chicken – this sweet & savory maple turmeric chicken is definitely the star of the show! I recommend using boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but chicken thighs will work as well.
• brussels sprouts – trim the tough end of the sprout off and remove any damaged or wilted leaves. If they’re smaller brussels sprouts, you can just halve them, otherwise I like to cut them into quarters.
• butternut squash – cut the squash into uniform, bite-size pieces so they roast evenly. Here’s a simple tutorial for how to peel and chop butternut squash before cooking.
• avocado or olive oil – for roasting the vegetables!
• sea salt & black pepper – to bring all the flavors together.
• apple – for some crunch and a burst of juiciness! My personal fave is Honey Crisp, but you could use your favorite variety of apple with this recipe.
• chopped kale – for the base of the bowl. I prefer to use curly green kale, but any type of kale works!
• pepitas – for topping, which adds a nice crunch. Pepitas are pumpkin seeds without the shell, but if you can’t find them you can use roasted pumpkin seeds or even butternut squash seeds. To roast them remove any remaining strings from the seeds and toss with a 1/2 teaspoon oil and a pinch of sea salt. Roast at 325°F for 30-40 minutes or until crunchy and golden.
• dried cranberries – adds a touch of sweetness and tartness! Try to look for dried cranberries that are sweetened with fruit juice.
• goat cheese – optional, but this adds a nice flavor and creamy texture to the bowl.
• apple cider vinaigrette dressing – the perfect dressing to pair with this bowl, It’s a combo of apple cider vinegar, olive oil, dijon mustard, maple syrup, garlic, salt and ground black pepper.
• cinnamon & cayenne – completely optional, but I love adding a dash of cinnamon and cayenne to the roasted butternut squash. The warming of the cinnamon and spice from the cayenne pair perfectly together with the sweetness of the squash.

How to Make

Make dressing: Make dressing by adding all ingredients into a blender and blending until smooth. Set aside.

Roast veggies: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Prep one extra large baking sheet or 2 medium baking sheets with parchment paper. Add chopped butternut squash chunks into a bowl and toss with 1 Tablespoon oil, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Feel free to add a sprinkle of cinnamon and cayenne as well. Toss to coat and spread onto a baking sheet. In the same bowl, add the brussels sprouts and toss with 1 Tablespoon oil and remaining salt and pepper. Save the bowl for later! Place on the other side of the baking sheet (or the additional baking sheet). Roast for 30-40 minutes, or until squash is tender, flipping halfway.

Cook chicken: While veggies are roasting prep chicken. Add oil to a cast iron skillet and turn heat on medium/medium-high heat. Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Add chicken to the skillet and sear for 4-5 minutes on each side. While chicken is searing combine maple syrup, tamari, garlic, turmeric and black pepper in a small bowl. Once both sides of the chicken are seared, carefully pour maple turmeric sauce over chicken and toss to coat. Move skillet from the stovetop into the preheated 400°F oven and bake for 10 minutes or until chicken is tender and cooked throughout.

Massage kale: Add kale to the same bowl you used to toss the butternut and brussels. Drizzle on 1-2 tablespoons of the dressing and use your hands to massage it into the kale.

Assemble and serve: To make bowls, add a base of kale to each bowl, top with maple turmeric chicken, roasted Brussels sprouts, roasted butternut squash, apple chunks, dried cranberries, pepitas and goat cheese. Drizzle dressing over the bowl and enjoy!

Customize Your Roasted Harvest Bowls

• Protein: I love the flavor of the maple turmeric chicken, but feel free to swap it with a different chicken recipe or another protein altogether, such as salmon, shrimp, tempeh, tofu or chickpeas. Here are some ideas: air fryer chicken breast, balsamic glazed salmon, marinaded tempeh, crispy baked tofu.
• Roasted vegetables: Feel free to swap the squash and brussels sprouts for your favorite veggie or whatever you have on hand. Roasted sweet potato, cauliflower, broccoli or acorn squash are all great options!
• Greens: Swap the kale, or add more greens to the bowl with arugula or spinach.
• Fruit: Swap the apple with a different variety of fruit. Pears would be a nice addition. And instead of dried cranberries you could use dates, raisins, dried cherries or dried apricots.
• Spices: Feel free to add other spices to your roasted veggies! Cumin, smoked paprika and turmeric, are all great options!
• Pepitas: Swap the pepitas for slivered almonds, walnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds or hemp seeds.
• Cheese: Swap the goat cheese with another cheese like feta, blue cheese or mozzarella. If you need this recipe to be vegan, use vegan cheese or omit the cheese altogether.
• Add grains: Want to bulk up your bowl a bit? Feel free to add a grain like quinoa, wild rice or farro.
• Use a different dressing: I love the ACV dressing, but you can totally switch it up! This bowl would also be delicious with my lemon vinaigrette dressing or balsamic vinaigrette. Check out my full collection of salad dressing recipes for more inspiration.

How to Meal Prep

These roasted harvest bowls are the perfect meal prep recipe! The flavors are so unique and delicious that I could honestly eat this one meal every day for a whole week. You can prep all of the components in advance and have a delicious, filling meal in minutes! Here’s what I would do:

• Chicken – prep the chicken in advance for quick assembly. You can warm the chicken before assembling the bowls or eat cold.
• Roasted veggies – roast these in advance and heat before assembling or enjoy cold.
• Dressing – another simple component to prep in advance!

How to Store Leftovers

These roasted harvest bowls are great because they store so well! I would store the chicken and veggies together and the dressing in a separate airtight container. Everything should last 5 days in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to enjoy, heat up the warm components over the stovetop or in the microwave and assemble your bowl!

More Bowl Recipes to Try

Be sure to check out the full collection of dinner recipes on EBF!