Bowls or also known as power bowls are not new. If you haven’t heard of them or have had the pleasure to enjoy them, then here’s your chance! They are kind of like salads but not (like the title says). They have a combination of some warm and cold foods/raw and cooked. And the fun part? You can put whatever you want in them!!
To make sure that you feel satisfied and satiated at the end of your meal there are a few ingredients that you might have to add. Let’s start with some greens! You can use plain ol’ lettuce – like I did. Or maybe spinach? Kale? Or arugula? Or maybe something new like pea sprouts?
Next, let’s choose different kinds of veggies! I like to have a combo of cooked vs raw. But can I make a suggestion? Roast them! When you roast vegetables, it helps create a different flavour. Just compare boiled or steamed broccoli vs roasted broccoli. Roasted wins all the way!
Also, when thinking about veggies, use your eyes! Choose a variety of colours!! Your food will look more appetizing to eat.
After vegetables, comes proteins! Now, here you can be as creative as you want! You can choose either animal proteins or plant proteins. Can I make a suggestion? Maybe a combination of both? How about some fish with some nuts? Or chicken and some roasted chickpeas to add a little crunch?
The next ingredient can be a grain or starch. Today, I added a mix of sprouted rice and quinoa blend. It could be as simple as rice or quinoa or couscous? How about using some sweet potatoes or plain ol’ roasted potatoes? This can help boost up the fibre intake too and help with the feeling of satiation.
Lastly, we need some kind of dressing! You can just add a regular salad dressing or oil and vinegar combination. Or how about a creamy nut or seed butter dressing? The one I used was a mix of tahini, lemon juice, maple syrup and warm water. Some salt and pepper too, delish!
What would be one ingredient that you would want to add to your bowl?
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I’ve mentioned it before and I’ll mention it again, eating fish is great for us! There are so many benefits it just doesn’t make sense not to include it in your diet at least 1-2 per week.
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They offer many nutrients for us, from protein, vitamin D and omega 3 fatty acids (mostly from the fatty fish).  Fatty fish like salmon and herring are the only major food source of vitamin D! Eating just a 4 ounce portion of either of those fish can offer you about 100% of your vitamin D needs for the day!! That’s mind blowing!

Eating fish has also been shown in many studies, to help lower your risks of heart disease; like heart attacks and strokes.

There have also been quite a few studies showing that eating fish on a regular basis can help increase the grey matter in our brains; a part of the brain that tends to deteriorate with age and can cause certain forms of dementia.

The omega 3 fatty acids that are found in fatty fish have been shown to help with our mental health; such as helping prevent depression (alone and/or in combination with medication). Just imagine, if you were to change your diet, you could help your mental health!

There are a lot of studies out there that are showing some promise for other health benefits to eating fish. So what’s stopping you? Here’s a great recipe from Chef Michael Smith’s cookbook “The Best of Chef at Home” @chefmichaelsmith I took my cooked fish and made them into lettuce fish tacos, but you could easily pair it with some vegetables and a rice, or whatever else you would like! I chose tilapia for this recipe, but you could also choose halibut, haddock, sold, cod or flounder. And I would imagine that choosing a fatty fish would work just as well too. Also, he mentions in the recipe, that you can flavour your flour with whatever flavours you like, whether it’d be herbs or spices! And since I have celiac disease, I substituted the regular whole wheat flour for an All Purpose Gluten Free Flour :)

Pan Fried Whitefish
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
1 cup (250 mL) whole wheat flour (I used All Purpose Gluten Free Flour)
Dash of salt and pepper
1 tbsp (15 mL) paprika
1 tbsp (15 mL) of any dried herb or spice (I wanted to keep the heat so I added red pepper flakes)
Juice of 1 lemon
4-6 whitefish fillets (about 1 kg total)
A large splash of any vegetable oil (I used avocado oil)
2 tbsp (30 mL) of butter
Directions
1 – Take your heaviest saute pans/skillet and heat over medium heat. (Tip: a heavy pan will help spread the heat more evenly than a thin pan)
2 – Whisk together the flour, salt, pepper, and spices and place in a shallow dish that can hold 1-2 fillets
3 – Dredge the fillets in the flour mixture until they are evenly coated. Rest them on a plate, but don’t stack them.
4 – Pour the oil into the pan, enough to cover the bottom in a thin film, then add the butter and let it melt. Once it starts to sizzle, add the fish (but not all at once, do it in batches). Turn up the heat and adjusting as needed to make sure the pan stays hot, but not to burn the fish.
5 – Once the fish have browned evenly on one side, carefully flip them over and brown on the other side.
6 – Once all the fish are cooked, add the lemon juice to the pan and swirl it around for a quick and tasty sauce for the fish.