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Back in August, my family and I chose to relocate to Chicago. During our initial stroll through what would soon become our neighborhood, the sun shone brightly, the air felt warm, kids played outdoors, and birds chirped overhead. It was nearly impossible to imagine the icy, snowy conditions that were just a few months off. I was raised in Chicago, yet my optimistic side still whispered, “Maybe this time winter won’t be so harsh.” As autumn gradually gave way to winter, my practical side took over and declared, “This is Chicago. We’ll stay indoors, cook all season long, and rely on Instacart for our groceries.”
Well, here we are—spring is nearly upon us—and I’m still alive, still cooking, and still using Instacart. We’ve teamed up with ALDI for this post to let you know that ALDI is now available through Instacart (yes!) in Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, and Los Angeles. The best part is that prices match what you’d find in-store, and the only real challenge was hitting the $35 minimum for free delivery. That’s a nice problem to have, since everything at ALDI is so incredibly budget-friendly. I picked up the fresh ingredients for these bowls along with restocking pantry essentials like olive oil and extra cans of chickpeas. If we ever get snowed in, at least we’ll be able to whip up hummus.
Now, let’s dive into these bowls! They’re my “I’m craving spring but winter hasn’t let go yet” bowls. They’re warm and filling, yet also fresh and vibrant. I used an Ambiano Professional Nutrition Blender to create an ultra-creamy green pesto-style sauce from raw kale and pistachios. I mixed more kale with some of that sauce and layered it into bowls with quinoa, balsamic mushrooms, chickpeas, crushed pistachios, and red pepper flakes. The whole dish comes together in about 30 minutes, and though the idea is straightforward, it’s absolutely delicious.
By the way, this sauce would be amazing on all sorts of dishes (salads, roasted vegetables, and more). While we were cleaning up, I caught Jack eating it straight from a spoon—though I’m not sure I’d advise that ?
Pistachio-Kale Pesto Bowls with Mushrooms and Quinoa
- ¼ cup Southern Grove Pistachios, shelled
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 packed cup SimplyNature Organic Chopped Kale
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup Specially Selected Premium Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tablespoon SimplyNature Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 16 ounces Baby Bella mushrooms, sliced
- 2 teaspoons SimplyNature Aged Balsamic Dressing
- 4 packed cups SimplyNature Organic Chopped Kale
- 2 cups cooked SimplyNature Organic Quinoa
- ½ cup Dakota’s Pride Garbanzo Beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 tablespoon crushed Southern Grove Pistachios
- pinches of Stonemill Crushed Red Pepper, optional
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt, more to taste
- freshly ground black pepper
- Place the pistachios, garlic, kale, lemon juice, sea salt, pepper, ¼ cup olive oil, and ¼ cup water in a small blender and pulse until smooth.
- Warm the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, ¼ teaspoon sea salt, and pepper; stir to coat. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are browned and tender. Remove from heat and toss with the balsamic dressing.
- In a medium bowl, finely chop the remaining kale, discarding any tough stems. Toss with a few spoonfuls of the kale pesto sauce, then season with salt and pepper. Mix and gently massage the leaves.
- Assemble the bowls by layering the cooked quinoa, prepared kale, mushrooms, chickpeas, pistachios, red pepper flakes, and generous dollops of the remaining pesto sauce. Adjust seasoning to taste.
And here’s a glimpse of my Instacart order, which included the groceries for this recipe along with some of my everyday kitchen staples.
This post is sponsored by ALDI. Thank you for supporting the partners that keep us in the kitchen! Save $20 on an ALDI Instacart order of $35 or more by entering the code LOVEALDI at checkout.
