You know it’s the time of the season, where BBQ’s are a big hit; everyone wants to get outside, and enjoy a nice meal out on the patio with their friends and family. This dish surely will not disappoint even the pickiest of them all. You can literally trade out any veggie in for the one in this recipe, and hit all palettes. The best part? You can do this recipe inside as well, with easy clean up for a rainy day (like we haven’t had enough yet this year)…
This week I am continuing the trend, trying to give some fun and spiced up options for veggies, especially for those of you that struggle to put down the recommended 4-5 servings within a day. It’s a tough balancing act! What better way to than to adapt these to your liking, and adding some fun spices to enjoy, all the while? Not a fan of sweet potato? Go with red potatoes. Don’t like asparagus? What about green beans instead? Cauliflower look too blah? Switch it to roasted carrots. Made these last night for dinner. Oh boy. YES PLEASE.
Now I am someone who tends to prepare my meals in bulk; some can tell you I am a bit supernatural in that way, getting all of the meals my husband and I need for an entire week in 2 hours flat. It’s unheard of, right? But really, it’s all about time allocation. If I give myself 2 hours one night, it could save me up to 4-6 extra hours in a week that I’m not spent cooking in the evening during my busy week! If I get Caleb involved in the process, it makes clean up a breeze, using the “clean as you go” method. When he is finishing up dishing things out into containers, I am pre-washing all of the dishes I used for prep. Not to mention, it’s a good time for us to catch up with each other about what the week has in store.
Now some of you are thinking, Jen I have kids, and they would not want to eat the same thing every night. Of course not! If your kiddos are picky, switch out a few things (veggie combos), and while you may add time to your prep each night for dinner, you buy yourself a little bit of happiness and smiles on their faces, with more leftover for you 🙂
For some of you, this is perfect, because your kiddos are in the stage where they only like 3-4 things at a time, and that’s all they want at any given time. This could be the perfect way to feed their inner picky-eater syndrome 😛
Now I have always been a Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce fan, but I found this gem at Busch’s, as I just moved to Saline and I can now walk to the store, score for Jen! They have all kinds of flavors to choose from, and with it, you really don’t need much at all to cover the meat enough to enjoy it. If you are a fan, lather it up!
If you are not a fan of the prep ahead of time method, this recipe is meant for 3 servings, so it’s all you need! If you are, just multiply it by how many servings you need, and voila! Not to mention, you save a ton of money by preparing in bulk, and all of my containers are freezer friendly, so if I needed to, I could save these for later, and still have more variety into my meals throughout the week.
Rest assured, not all of these tips will pertain to your lifestyle, but you never know what you might enjoy doing more, until you try it out. What are your favorite grilled options for the summer months?
BBQ Chicken and Roasted Sweet Potato Bowls
- 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. chipotle powder (or chili powder)
- 1 head cauliflower
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ½ cup BBQ sauce, divided (I used Stubbs from Busch’s)
- Salt as desired
- Preheat the oven to 400°.
- Peel and chop the sweet potatoes into ½” chunks. Chop onion into 1 inch pieces and add to a lined sheet pan along with the sweet potatoes. Toss the vegetables with 1 Tbsp. olive oil, ¼ tsp. salt, garlic powder and chipotle powder and toss until well combined. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes.
- Toss the sweet potatoes and push to one side of the pan. Add the cauliflower to the pan with the sweet potatoes. Add the chicken breasts and brush with ¼ c. BBQ sauce. Bake an additional 15-20 minutes at 400° until the chicken is done.
- Remove the pan from the oven and shred the chicken breasts using two forks. Toss the chicken with the remaining BBQ sauce. Add to bowls along with the roasted vegetables and serve immediately.
Nutrition Information: NO SALT ADDED
446 calories 34g PRO : 47g CHO : 12g FAT
Notes: Not in the mood to shred your chicken? Pre cut into 1 inch cubes and prepare the same way, it will cook quicker too!