Craving These Slow Cooker Burrito Bowls

My mom has been raving about this lentil chili she made this past winter that called for smoked paprika. I keep seeing recipes call for this spice, and I came across a recipe for slow cooker burrito bowls, which — ding, ding, ding! — called for smoked paprika. Given that it’s been unseasonable cold here and that I wanted some meal prep for a busy start of the week, I pulled out the crock pot and made Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Burrito Bowls. I totally want to make these with chicken next time, but I’ll need a bit more foresight to thaw the chicken from my freezer. Instead, I tossed in sweet potatoes and made these bowls with brown rice and black beans for a yummy dish. These have a risotto-like consistency and I found myself adding more homemade vegetable broth than expected. The smoked paprika pairs so well with the black beans and sweet potato; it gives the bowls a flavor similar to chorizo, but keeps it vegetarian.

Ingredients (serves 5 with 1½ c servings).

For the Bowl:

2 c vegetable broth
1 c uncooked brown rice
1 can (13.5 oz) diced tomatoes, no salt added — keep the liquid!
1 can (13.5 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 bell pepper, diced (I used 1/4 red and 1/4 orange)
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 medium sweet potato, cubed
1½ t smoked paprika
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t garlic powder
1/4 t cayenne pepper

Toppings:

Sliced avocado *
Green onions *
Chopped romaine lettuce *
Baked tortilla chips *
Fresh cilantro
Salsa
Plain Greek yogurt
Cheese

Directions.

In a slow cooker, combine all ingredients for the burrito bowls. Mix well.
Cook on high for 2-3 hrs or on low for 4-6 hrs. Stir 2-3 times to ensure the rice evenly cooks.
- You may need to add 1/4 to 1/2 c broth as needed to help the rice cook.
- I found this cooked like risotto and you needed to add more broth every 30-60 min near the last 1-2 hrs.
Serve hot and top with desired toppings. (I used the starred toppings!)
Enjoy!