Meow Recipes: Amazing Mushroom Bowls with Kale Pesto

Mushroom bowls with kale pesto scooped on top.

I can honestly say I never thought I’d write the words “Amazing Mushroom Bowls” as a title for a recipe, but here we are.

If you get nothing else out of this post, please hear me say this: these are my favorite mushrooms of all time.

You don’t like mushrooms? Okay, that’s okay. I don’t know if I can change your mind. Those opinions run deep. But also… maybe I can. If any recipe can, it might be this one.

These mushrooms are smokey, sweet, and salty all at once. When they are marinated and roasted, they turn into these caramelized golden crispy-and-juicy little nibblers, and I swear I could eat an entire 8-ounce package of them.

Here they are pre-roasting, soaking up all that glorious sauce:

So naturally, let’s build some bowls with them, right? Roasty mushroom nibblers (can we just call them that now?), caramelized pineapple, peppers, and a dollop of kale pesto over some rice or cauliflower rice or honestly over nothing at all.

This combination is fresh and springy and giving me life.

If I can throw one other idea your way, it would be this: TEMPEH.

Here it is, also marinating in the same sauce, about to be roasted the same way as the mushrooms. If you don’t like mushrooms, this is your backup plan!

When I made this in our studio kitchen this week, we all just stood around the fresh-out-the-oven pan and snacked on roasted mushrooms and tempeh.

What is life right now, really.

THESE MUSHROOMS ARE AMAZING.

Smoky Mushroom Bowls with Kale Pesto

Author: Lindsay
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 4

Print Recipe

Description

Amazing Mushroom Bowls with Kale Pesto! Smoky, sweet, salt mushrooms (or tempeh!), caramelized pineapple, peppers, and dollop of kale pesto, all served over rice. SO GOOD.

Ingredients

Smoky-Sweet Marinade

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and black pepper (to taste)

Bowls

16 ounces fresh mushrooms, washed and cut into thick-ish slices
2 cups fresh pineapple chunks
2–3 bell peppers
rice or cauliflower rice
kale pesto, magic green sauce, or any other yummy sauce

Instructions

Whisk or shake the marinate in a jar until combined.
Place mushrooms in a shallow bowl. Cover with enough marinade to get some flavor on each of the mushroom pieces (you might have some marinade left – that’s okay, you can use it later in this recipe, or save for next week’s bowls).
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Let the mushrooms rest for 20-30 minutes while you prep other ingredients, including your sauce!
Place peppers, pineapple, and mushrooms with marinade each on their own sheet pans. Bake for 20-or-so minutes, rotating pans as needed, until you get some nice browning on everything (peppers will roast a few minutes faster). You can use the broiler to help with the browning as needed.
Serve in a bowl over rice or cauli rice. Top with your sauce (yeah kale pesto)! You can also put all this yumminess in a wrap or on a salad. Poof! Look at healthy, delicious you.

Notes

Tips for Roasting: don’t overcrowd the pans because the pineapple, peppers, and mushrooms might start to steam instead of roast / caramelize / brown. I would recommend draining off excess juice from your pineapple if it seems to have a lot of moisture. If your mushrooms look like they have a lot of liquid, that’s okay – keep roasting a bit longer and the sauce will kind of turn into a gooey crust and the mushrooms will get even deeper in color and flavor. YUM.

Alternative to Mushrooms: Tempeh is also really delicious here. If you use tempeh, let it marinate for at least 2-3 hours if possible because it takes a bit longer to absorb the flavor. You can pan-fry it or roast it in the same way as directed for the mushrooms.

Category: Dinner
Method: Bake
Cuisine: American