Lemony Maple Za’atar Roasted Sweet Potato and Broccoli Bowl

Culinary cabaret.

“Magic dust”and the “humble bean.” That’s what world-renowned chefs have called za’atar and chickpeas, respectively. If you combine all that magical humility with maple syrup, lemon, dates, and roasted vegetables, be prepared for dinner conversation consisting of gnam gnam gnam.

I recommend reading the entire recipe before starting—familiarize yourself with the kitchen choreography. It’s going to be preheat, pan prep, sweet potatoes, broccoli, dressing, topping, arrange, and serve. Hustle—but don’t hurry—and you’ll have taste-whopping, super-satiating za’atar bowls ready in 45 minutes.

Ingredients: makes 2 entree salads

What to do with a sweet potato the size of a football? Why, make a za’atar bowl, of course.

2 small/medium sweet potatoes or 1 large/huge sweet potato 2 broccoli heads or 6 cups broccoli florets Olive oil, divided (about 3-5 tablespoons total) Pure maple syrup, divided (about 3 tablespoons total) Fine sea salt, divided (about 1 teaspoon total) Lemon juice, divided (about 4-5 tablespoons total) 6-8 Medjool dates Lemon zest from one lemon 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar Za’atar spice divided (about 4 tablespoons total) 15 ounce can of chickpeas ½ cup coarsely chopped almonds (or halved almonds or slivered almonds) Maldon flakey sea salt – for sprinkling

Method

Preheat the oven to 425 Fahrenheit.

Line two baking sheets or oven-safe dishes with parchment paper.

Sweet Potatoes: Peel and cube the sweet potato(es). Transfer the cubes to one of the baking sheets. Drizzle the cubes with maple syrup and olive oil—about 1 tablespoon each. Sprinkle with fine sea salt. Stir the cubes, then arrange them in a single layer so that they don’t overlap. Roast the potatoes for 26-36 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes as described in the broccoli section below.

Broccoli: As the potatoes start roasting, rinse the broccoli with water and pat dry. Cut the broccoli into bite-sized florets. Transfer the florets to the remaining baking sheet. Drizzle with lemon juice and olive oil—about 1 tablespoon each. Sprinkle with fine sea salt. Stir the florets, then arrange them in a single layer so that they don’t overlap (sound familiar?). Roast the broccoli for 16-26 minutes. To coordinate the cook times of the broccoli and potatoes, wait until you stir the potatoes for the first time (at the 10 minute mark) before adding the pan of broccoli to the oven. At the next 10 minute mark—when the potatoes have been roasting for 20 minutes and the broccoli for 10 minutes—stir both the broccoli and potatoes. After another 6 minutes (26 total for the potatoes; 16 total for the broccoli), stir and check for doneness. To me, the best chew and char is at 30 minutes total roasting time for the potatoes and 20 minutes total for the broccoli.

To husk, or not to husk, that is the question…see the Notes below.

Dressing: More kitchen choreography—as the veggies roast, make the dressing. Add ¾ cup of water, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar, the zest from one lemon, and 3-4 pitted Medjool dates to a blender; let the dates soak. Immediately heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. While the skillet heats, drain the can of chickpeas. Pour the chickpeas in a large bowl or pot and cover with water. Rub the chickpeas vigorously between to your palms to remove the peels (i.e., “husks”) from most (doesn’t need to be all!) of the chickpeas. Skim the husks from the top of the water and discard or save for another use. Drain the chickpeas again and set aside. In the skillet, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil and 3 tablespoons of Za’atar spice. Stir for 60 seconds to “bloom” the spice. Add the chickpeas and stir. Continue cooking, and occasionally stirring, for about five minutes. The chickpeas should be warm and slightly softened. Pour the chickpeas into the blender with the dates.

(Stir the sweet potatoes and broccoli if you haven’t already, and return to making the dressing.)

Add ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt to the blender with the chickpeas. Blend until smooth, adding more lemon juice or maple syrup to adjust the consistency and taste. Don’t overdo the salt—other components of the bowl are salted. Set the dressing aside and make the crunchy topping.

Remember “Be Our Guest” in Beauty in the Beast? “Try the gray stuff—it’s delicious. Don’t believe me? Ask the dishes.” —Lumiere (:40 in the linked video)

Almond-Date Topping: Make the topping in the skillet you used for the chickpeas. Heat the skillet over low heat. Add 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 2 teaspoons maple syrup, ½ cup coarsely (not finely) chopped or halved almonds, and ½ cup coarsely chopped Medjool dates, 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon Za’atar spice, and a generous pinch of Maldon sea salt flakes. Stir thoroughly. Cook 5-6 minutes (stirring often) until the nuts are toasted and the dates are soft but still have their shape. If you cook for too long, the dates will melt into a caramel that hardens into a date-almond brittle—absolutely scrumptious, but not practical for sprinkling over the veggie bowl. Lesson: take the skillet off the heat when the nuts are crunchy and the dates are still intact.

(The potatoes and broccoli should be roasted by now.)

Serve warm!

Assembly: Heat one cup of LAFF protein crumbles in the microwave. Meanwhile, divide the sweet potatoes and broccoli between two large bowls. Add ½ cup of the heated LAFF protein crumbles to each bowl. Pour about ½ cup of the dressing over the veggies and LAFF. Top with the warm almonds and dates. Option: Sprinkle with a bit more Maldon sea salt flakes. Serve immediately.

Notes

All that “drizzling” and “sprinkling” on the veggies means that you can tailor the flavor and nutrition profile (e.g., salt, fat, and sugar content) to your liking.

To make it lighter: Bake the full sweet potato in the microwave; steam the broccoli; reduce the dates and maple syrup in the dressing. You can still jumble the veggies together in one bowl. Another option is to use either the sweet potato or broccoli as a plain side dish and then mix the other vegetable with the LAFF, dressing, and almond-date topping.

To make it faster: You can save time by making the dressing the day before and slightly heating it before serving. Two more options are to (1) leave the husks on the chickpeas and (b) skip the spice bloom: just blend the drained and rinsed chickpeas with the dates, water, vinegar, maple syrup, lemon juice, lemon zest, Za’atar, and salt. Both the lighter and faster versions will take a hit on texture and flavor…but do what works in your life!

Removing the chickpea hulls will make the dressing smoother. The hulls contain fiber—taking out that fiber may be a good or bad thing, depending on your food tolerances and dietary needs.

Experimenting with chickpeas brought Hamlet to mind:

To hull, or not to hull, that is the question: Whither ‘tis smoother in the mouth to feed on The peels and skins of drained-and-rinsed chickpeas Or to make sauce amidst the hulls of fiber And by digesting end them. To eat—to smile Way more; and by a smile to say we end The gut-ache and the thousand gaseous shocks That flesh is prone to: ‘tis a feast delicious Devoutly to be serv’d. To eat, to smile.

I am not sponsored or affiliated with any company other than LAFFkitchen.