Glory Bowl “Salad”

“Great recipes are meant to be shared.” —Shelley Adams

POV: You’ve finished a weekend of imbibing, chicken-winging (hey, maybe you made the Pok Pok wings from the last Fernie Fix issue?!), and general indulgence. It’s Monday and you’re not ready for the week. There’s a voice inside your head that is begging for something healthy but fulfilling. After all, no great story started with a salad.

Well, maybe this time it’s different. Is the Glory Bowl a salad? Kind of. Does it matter? No. 

Salad is great but we all have those moments when we want a little more than just a salad. Instead of heaving a piece of greasy garlic bread on the side of your plate, this recipe urges some kind of warmed grain—I like brown rice—but lentils, white rice, or quinoa would do just fine as well. When it comes to toppings? The sky’s the limit. It’s a great way to use up the veggies in your fridge. I’ve skipped the instructions for cooking the brown rice, but did include my tips for cooking tofu. Keep in mind, you can use any protein you’d like with this recipe! I’ve added my own little kick to this by finishing it with toasted panko - trust me, you’ll never eat a normal crouton again! 

Shelley Adams created this recipe when she ran the First Tracks Café at Whitewater Ski Resort in Nelson and she’s been known to say,“great recipes are meant to be shared.” This is definitely not my personal recipe, but Shelley - bless your heart for sharing it with the world.

Dressing: 

• 1/3 cup Braggs Soy Sauce alternative (you 
• can also use Soy sauce or Tamari) 
• 1/3 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1/3 cup Water
• 1/2 cup Nutritional Yeast (you can find this in the bulk section at Save-On Foods) 
• 2 tablespoons Tahini (the best deal on 
• Tahini is at Independent) 
• 2-4 cloves of garlic
• 1 1/2 cups of oil (any kind will work)

Other things: 

• 1 “block” of Tofu
• 1 cup of panko
• “Everything but the Bagel” seasoning or garlic powder, salt, and pepper
• Romaine or spinach (cut, washed) 
• Beets (recommend grated beets) Radishes
• Green onion
• Carrot (recommend grated) 
• Avocado (cubed) 

Instructions: 
Get your rice or quinoa cooking! 

For the dressing: Combine the apple cider vinegar, water, Braggs, tahini, nutritional yeast, and garlic (everything but the oil) into a high-powered blender and blend on high until the garlic is incorporated. Turn the blender on low 
(with the lid on) and then slowly pour the oil in through the hole in the lid and blend again until smooth. Boom, the dressing is done! 

For the tofu: Cut the tofu into 1 inch cubes. Lay out a *clean* kitchen towel or paper towels on one plate, then put the tofu down, then layer one more towel and add another plate on top! Find something heavy to put on there - I usually use a couple of cans. This will press the water out of the tofu. Let it rest there for up to 30-45 minutes if you want, or just 5 minutes will help expel the water as well. While your tofu is ‘resting,’ it’s time to toast the panko! Pour the cup of panko in a skillet on medium heat. Add about 2-3 tablespoons of oil and season the panko with “everything but the bagel seasoning” (you can use salt, pepper, and garlic powder otherwise!). Get your panko nice and golden brown. Remove it from the pan, and then you can use the same pan to cook your tofu (if you don’t have an air fryer). 

Once you’ve pressed a good amount of water from the tofu (hint: you’ll have wet towels!) toss the tofu in some oil. It’s preferable to use an oil with a high-smoke point, such as avocado oil or coconut oil. Season with generous amounts of salt and pepper. I like to cook the tofu in an air fryer for 15 minutes at 350°, but you could also cook it on the stove top - it should take about 15-20 minutes on medium-high heat. Just make sure you use plenty of oil and keep an eye on it for safety and to prevent burning. 

Finally! Assemble the “salad”: Put all of your veggies except the romaine/spinach and beets in a large mixing bowl. (The beets will stain everything purple!) Pour a healthy amount of dressing on the veggies and toss them around so everything is nicely coated, then add your greens and toss. This prevents the greens from getting too soggy - so wait until right when you’re going to serve. The last step is to pour the golden brown panko on top of the salad and mix it up and sprinkle the beautiful purple beets on top. It will be crunchy and delicious! 

Serve the salad over some brown rice and then add the tofu on top, Sriracha is a nice addition. 

If you want to see this recipe in action, check out the reel on Claire’s Instagram @clairesmallwood_