This Autumn Harvest Bowl is warm, comforting and filled with healthy ingredients. The base is made with arugula and it’s topped with quinoa, sweet potatoes and goat cheese, along with a delicious maple-tahini dressing for tons of flavor! 

Bowl food is the best food, and this autumn harvest bowl is perfect this time of year!

One of the many reasons why I like bowls like this (and my vegan burrito bowl and my Mediterranean quinoa bowl) is because they’re quick and generally filled with healthy ingredients. This bowl in particular is topped with all of the best foods like sweet potato, apple, goat cheese, and the most delicious maple-tahini sauce.

I still remember the first time I tried tahini. Everyone was so obsessed with it, so I had high hopes that I would be too. To be honest, plain tahini doesn’t thrill me, but tahini mixed with other things IS SO GOOD. It’s a great nut-free dressing or sauce option, and pairs well with so many flavors (in this case, maple syrup!).

Why you’ll love this bowl

• It’s loaded with vegetables like arugula and sweet potato, but has plenty of protein thanks to the quinoa and chickpeas
• The maple tahini sauce is INSANELY good
• It can be enjoyed warm or cold (yes really!)
• It’s quite similar to the harvest bowl from Sweet Green, so think of this as making your own homemade version.

Ingredients and substitutions

Arugula: The base of this bowl should be some sort of greens, and I chose arugula, but other options could be spinach or massaged kale.

Quinoa: The quinoa adds a bit of protein to this, but again, any grain works! Rice, farro, barley, etc. would all be delicious.

Sweet potatoes: You could also used cubed and cooked butternut squash.

Cranberries: Who doesn’t love cranberries? They add a little bit of sweetness and scream “fall”, but you could also use raisins or chopped pitted dates.

Goat cheese: Or sub feta cheese

Step-by-step instructions

Step 1: Cook the quinoa and sweet potatoes. You can do this ahead of time if you want to make this even quicker.

Step 2: Add arugula. Place arugula in a bowl, then top it with the cooked quinoa. Then, add the remaining salad ingredients.

Step 3: Make the dressing. Whisk tahini and maple syrup together, then drizzle it over the salad.

Expert tips

• Don’t love arugula? Try using mixed greens or even kale instead.

• Do NOT to slice the apple until you’re ready to eat it.

• If you don’t love maple syrup, you can use honey in the dressing instead.

What if I want to add meat to this?

You can! However, since the dressing is maple-tahini, I’m not sure how well that’d pair with most meat. If you do want to add meat, I’d go with chicken, and maybe just use a different dressing.

Storage

If you’re prepping this harvest bowl ahead of time, you’ll want to store it in the refrigerator, but in separate containers.

Store the arugula, chickpeas, cranberries, and goat cheese in one container and the cooked quinoa and sweet potato in another. That way, you can reheat the potatoes and quinoa if you want.

More healthy bowls

• Vegan Bibimbap
• Vegan Burrito Bowl
• Cauliflower Breakfast Bowl
• Sun-Dried Tomato Salad
• Mediterranean Hummus Bowl

If you made this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below. Thanks!

UPDATE NOTE: This post was originally published in October 2019. It was updated with new text in September 2020.