It’s Thanksgiving in a bowl! Create a harvest buddha bowl with fresh produce, Jasmine rice, and deliciously seasoned chicken breasts. Get the recipe for our savory, with a sweet hint of Cranberry Sauce +Mint harvest bowl down below.

The Best Harvest Buddha Bowl

Did you know I have had “a thing” for bowls? I love ’em! I think a nice deep high-walled bowl is the only tableware necessary. In my humble opinion, that is and a big roomy soup spoon and fork. And I love them even more filled to the brim with lots of delicious food. For me, a bowl filled with hot food is as comforting as comfort food gets! For our Buddha Harvest Bowl, we used a bounty of good tasting food. We added Jasmine rice and loaded our bowls up with additional mountains of good food. Like fresh sweet corn right off of the cob, garlic roasted sweet potatoes, caramelized Vidalia onions, steamed Swiss chard, and mustard greens.

We even upped the ante with big juicy slices of oven-baked herb chicken! And a generous dollop of Cranberry Sauce + Mint, which is so crazy delicious! All of this goodness made our autumn harvest bowl a cut above the rest. I am thinking harvest bowls may become my new obsession. And not only are these wonderfully nutritious meals they are beautifully arranged too.

I don’t know about you, but, I eat with my eyes first. If the food is artfully arranged chances are I am more likely to try it. Don’t you agree?

I started with the Jasmine rice and I made it perfect rice using our new Instant Pot®! Now, we have two of them! And yes, it is good to have two Instant Pots. Why? Well, because sometimes you need to get multiple foods done and have two Instant Pots is a great way to do it. Now, let’s get back to the rice. I prepare rice in the Instant Pot and it comes out perfect every time, and I will show you my little secret to making it. For the rest of the meal, I used my trusty cast-iron skillet and our amazing Samsung oven.

I also pulled some fresh items from our family garden. Our Swiss chard is absolutely bonkers this growing season, and because of the cooler nights, the typically bitter leaves are a lot milder this time of the year. If you haven’t tried this wonderful leafy vegetable, I do recommend it. Swiss chard is a superfood, iron-rich, and it also contains significant amounts of magnesium, potassium and has vitamins A, C, and K. This is green is a powerhouse! I also tossed in mustard greens because I love the earthy taste. This green is no slump either with vitamins A, C, and K too, and it also has vitamin E and its share of calcium, copper, and manganese. A pretty impressive nutritional resume!

And that’s just the greens! I also made pan-roasted garlic sweet potatoes, loads of caramelized Vidalia onions, and fresh sweet corn off of the cob. Pro-tip, stand the corn cob up in the skillet, using a very sharp knife, slice down evenly. The kernels will fall directly into the skillet and not everywhere else. Doing this is so much better than slicing the corn cobs on a cutting board or countertop and then going on a hunt to find all of those loose kernels which seem to get into the most interesting places.

But do you know what the cherry on top is? Well, for one it’s not a cherry, it is our Cranberry Mint Sauce! For some odd reason, our family has the “we -love-cranberry-sauce-gene” and with this recipe, we get to indulge and satisfy our cranberry sauce cravings. I used fresh mint from our garden to pull this one-off, and a mix of jellied cranberry sauce, and Ocean-Spray Craisins®. Those ingredients were tossed into a food processor and pulsed for a minute or two.

Harvest Buddha Bowl

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups Jasmine rice
Chicken Stock
1 large Sweet Vidalia Onion
1 large Sweet Potato
5 medium-size leaves of Swiss Chard
5 medium-size leaves of Mustard Greens
2 cobs of Sweet Corn
4 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
3 large cloves of Garlic, minced or ran through a garlic press
Sea Salt, to taste
Freshly Crack Black Peppercorns, to taste

Directions:

Jasmine Rice

Add Jasmine rice into the Instant Pot, pour in chicken stock until it is a 1/2 inch over the rice, do not stir. Place the lid on the Instant Pot and lock it into place. Make sure the vent nozzle is moved, so it doesn’t vent. Select the Rice option on the Instant Pot controls. Select High. It should be returning a reading of 15 minutes. When the rice is finished cooking vent the Instant Pot, unlock and remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve.

Caramelized Onions

Peel and slice onion. I use a mandoline, it makes things so much easier, but a sharp knife will work fine also. Add two tablespoons of EVOO in a skillet over med-high heat. When the oil is hot add the onions, add sea salt and freshly cracked black peppercorns. Allow the onions to brown then reduce the heat to low and cook until the onions are softened, about 20 minutes. Reserve in the bowl until you are ready to use them.

Garlic Pan-Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Peel and mince three large cloves of garlic. Set aside. Wash, peel and cut into sweet potato 1/2 inch cubes. Add a tablespoon of EVOO to the skillet. When the oil is hot add the sweet potatoes, brown the sweet potatoes. Reduce the heat to low and place a tight-fitting lid over the skillet. Cook potatoes for an additional 10 minutes. After ten minutes remove the lid and check for doneness. The tines of a fork should easily pierce the potatoes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Remove the skillet from the heat source.

Swiss Chard + Mustard Greens

Add a pair of sharp kitchen shears to remove most of the inner stem from the Swiss chard and mustard greens. Add 2 cups of water into a stockpot over med-high heat, when the water is boiling add the washed leaves of Swiss chard and mustard greens. Leave them into the water for 2 minutes or until they are bright green. Use a large slotted spoon to remove them onto a plate.

Cranberry Sauce + Fresh Mint

Ingredients:

1 can Jellied Cranberry Sauce
1/2 cup Ocean-Spray Craisins®
4 fresh Mint leaves

Directions:

Add ingredients into a food processor and pulse until smooth. Spoon into a bowl and reserve for later. You can make it ahead and store it in a Mason jar, don’t forget to place it into the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it. So good, we couldn’t get enough!

Oven Roasted Herb Chicken

Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breasts, boneless, no skin
2 tbsp McCormick Monterey Seasoning
2 large cloves of Garlic, minced
4 leaves Fresh Sage
4 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
6 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
Sea Salt
Freshly Cracked Black Peppercorns
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400° degrees
Rinse and pat dry chicken breast, trim away any unwanted fat, brush both sides of chicken with EVOO. Season with McCormick Monterey seasoning. In an oven-safe skillet, I used my trusty cast-iron skillet brushed with a tablespoon of EVOO. I arranged two bunches of herbs dividing up the sage, thyme, and rosemary. Add one minced clove to each herb bundle and lay a seasoned chicken breast, but side down, on top.
Place skillet on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer reads 165°. Remove from oven and let the chicken stand for 10 minutes, slice and arrange chicken on top of the ingredients in the Harvest Buddha Bowl. Top with a generous dollop of Cranberry Sauce + Mint. Serve.

So, what’s in your harvest bowl? Animal, mineral, or vegetable? We would love to hear some of your favorite foodie ideas you use to fill up all of those wonderful Buddha bowls. Drop us a line below. And if you make this delicious Harvest Buddha Bowl we want to know, but that’s only because we’re nosey!

Be sure to pin this recipe to your Pinterest board!