I always love a good veggie bowl, and this basic bowl has been my go-to recently. I love it so much that I realized on the days I wasn’t bringing a version of it to work, I’d run across the street to Jivamuktea Cafe and essentially get the same thing. So, I’ve been making a big batch of black rice on Sunday, along with some roasted sweet potatoes and massaged kale. Then I’m all set for a few quick easy lunches and dinners. I top it with some perfectly ripe avocado and super crunchy sprouted watermelon seeds. The turmeric tahini dressing is the perfect compliment (and a much needed anti-inflammatory during these extra rough winter months).

Mung beans are magical. They are a super nutrient dense legume, and have been used in Ayurvedics (ancient holistic medicine) for thousands of years. They are full of all the good stuff like folate, magnesium, potassium, B6 and are also packed with fiber. Unlike some other beans, soaking the mung beans overnight and cooking them with these spices makes them really easy to digest. They are a winter staple for me, but I’ll also be picking up sprouted mung beans at the farmers market for salads and avocado toasts as soon as spring arrives!

If I’m ever on “The Best Thing I Ever Ate”, I might just choose the cauliflower starter at Gracias Madre. Cauliflower doesn’t seem all that exciting at first (it took my friends convincing that we needed to order it), but she was right. Their version is flash fried, ours is roasted. Regardless, both methods transform the cauliflower into a crispy, delicious dish for Super Bowl Sunday.

I’m planning to make a whole huge pile of these for a little Super Bowl party this weekend. The key to making these fries is to coat them just lightly with olive oil and lay them out in a single layer to bake. They’re the perfect vehicle for my whipped avocado aioli – a super light dip that’s made bright with some lemon and Sir Kensington’s dijon mustard.