Balance Bowl with Blackberry Maple Tahini

It’s official, summer is knocking and it is blackberry month. Technically, every month is blackberry month in our home wether they come fresh or frozen. It would suffice for me to say that our family of four will eat 3 clamshells of berries per day. Usually the berries are mixed but blackberries, strawberries and blueberries are our favorites. But let’s be honest – the fresher the better. When I was growing up we would watch, wait and race to the bushes every summer to beat the squirrels and other critters to the ripe berries.

I have photos of my 8 year old when she was a baby eating them out of bowls and to this day they are still her favorite berries. I don’t even want to think about that time now as it is a bittersweet memory that she is not a baby anymore.

April is blackberry month and Driscoll’s has and will always be our favorite brand of berries. A fourth generation, family-owned berry farm for more than 100 years they are the biggest player in the berry game and the preferred berry of some of America’s leading chefs. They always offer the most fresh, ripe berries both conventional and organic. When I saw them stacked neatly in the “berry” case at my local grocery I stocked up and thought about the recipes I would make using blackberries. Of course, blackberry pie, blackberry scones and jam were on the list but I really wanted to create a savory dish with our favorite berry and created the Blackberrry Maple Tahini to top our favorite balance bowls. I also ate it right from the spoon. Can you blame me?

Balance Bowls with Blackberry Maple Tahini

Serves: 4 Bowls

Bowl Ingredients

• 4 cups cooked brown rice
• 2 cups baby portabella mushrooms, sliced
• 1 head broccoli, chopped into large pieces
• 1 orange bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced thin
• 8 red radishes, sliced thin
• 1 tsp Sea Salt
• 1/2 tsp Black pepper
• 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder

Maple Tahini Ingredients

Ingredients

• 1 package (1 cup) Driscoll’s Blackberries
• 1/3 cup tablespoons tahini paste
• 1/3 -1/2 cup boiling water
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup

Instructions

1. Rinse 2 cups brown rice in colander with cold water, add to a pan with 4 -4 1/2 cups of water and cook according to package
2. While the rice cooks, add 2 tbsp water or 1 tsp coconut oil to a steel or ceramic pan and heat to medium
3. Add the chopped broccoli, bell pepper, red onion and mushrooms to pan and lightly steam/sauté and cover with a lid for 3-4 minutes to lightly cook
4. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm
5. Combine tahini sauce ingredients into a blender cup and blend for 30-40 seconds adding more hot water if necessary to thin

To assemble the bowls:

1. Add 1 cup cooked rice to each bowl, divide ingredients including the sliced radishes into equal portions and arrange as shown in photo
2. Using a fork, drizzle the Blackberry Maple Tahini over each bowl and serve
3. Garnish with additional blackberries