Amazing salad bowls. That’s what CAVA bowls mean to me. With this recipe post I’ll break down all the ingredient options, layer by layer. Then I’ll show you how I put together my own CAVA Inspired Roasted Veggie Bowl with lots of helpful photos.

Using copycat recipes, CAVA’s website and social media posts, and my personal favorite recipes, I made just about everything from scratch. You can do that, or there are tons of options available that are already in your pantry or you can easily buy pre-made. Plus, this recipe is great if you are making several bowls for lunch with friends, or simply meal prepping for a few days.

I promise that if you stick around you’ll get a comprehensive look at how to create your own delicious CAVA bowls, with everything you need to easily make them at home. I’m so excited to share this with you. Let’s go!

So what exactly are these CAVA bowls?

CAVA restaurant offers “Build Your Own” salad bowls, which consist of 6 layers of diverse, indulgent ingredients. In each bowl, you have the opportunity to add a variety of mouth-watering greens, grains, dips + spreads, hearty mains, unlimited toppings, and 2 dressings. The mains include several meat, vegetarian, and vegan options, so everyone wins!

The bowls also range wildly from just 240 calories, to a whopping, no-one-should-ever-eat-1660 calories per bowl! Ultimately, anyone can customize a bowl to fit their unique dietary needs and the size of their appetite.

I decided to build my own CAVA bowls because I thought it would be fun to make all of my favorite ingredients from scratch and put them together. In doing so, definitely spent too much time and money experimenting. But it was actually pretty cool to bring so many of the flavors to my kitchen.

The end result provided enough food for about 4 bowls. When cooking for a family, it’s a nice healthy meal option. If it’s just you, then this recipe is all you need to prep meals for the next 3-4 days.

I will say though, you don’t have to make everything from scratch. There are a lot of these ingredients that can be bought at the grocery store, online, or substituted with what you already have in your pantry or fridge. That’s a huge time and money saver!

What are my ingredient options?

Great question. Now that you have a better idea of what I’m getting you into, let me share what ingredient options are available and how this recipe works.

CAVA “Build Your Own” Bowl Options

When visiting the CAVA website, you can either choose one of their signature bowls (like Harissa Avocado or Tahini Caesar) or “build your custom bowl.” In this case, we’re picking the latter, which builds a dish with 6 flavorful layers of goodness.

I’ll share with you all the options available from CAVA in North Carolina as of March 13, 2023. Then below, you will see which ingredients I chose to make and how I layered my bowl. As you might expect, many of the details are not available on the CAVA website. However, they actually do share quite a bit on Instagram. Plus, there are copycat recipes for just about everything out there.

The calories per serving are from the CAVA site. The serving sizes are approximate.

The first layer is “Greens”

You may select one option from the following:

Arugula, Baby Spinach, Romaine, SplendidGreens, and SuperGreens. SplendidGreens include romaine, escarole, chicory endive, belgian endive, radicchio. The SuperGreens include kale, thin sliced brussel sprouts, thin sliced chicory, and broccoli (equal parts).

As much as I wanted to use the mixed greens for my bowl, I knew it wouldn’t be cost effective to buy all of those ingredients, if I could even find them. Instead I kept it simple and built my bowl on baby spinach because there are so many more flavorful options ahead.

A serving for layer 1 ranges from 10-20 calories per ingredient. Approximately 2 cups per serving.

The second layer is “Grains”

You may select one option from the following:

Saffron Basmati Rice, Brown Rice, Black Lentils, and RightRice. RightRice is a low-carb alternative made from rice, lentils, chickpeas, and peas.

I’ve had the black lentils at CAVA before, but they were not available at my grocer, so I had to trek over to Whole Foods in the next town to get them. Worth it!

One of the great things about making it myself, is that I also make the rules. So I decided to split my grains between black lentils and saffron basmati rice.

A serving for layer 2 ranges from 130 – 185 calories per ingredient. Approximately 1/2 cup per serving.

The third layer is “Dips + Spreads”

You may select up to 3.

Tzatziki, Traditional Hummus, Crazy Feta, Harissa, Red Pepper Hummus, Roasted Eggplant Dip. Crazy Feta is whipped feta, jalapeno, onion, and olive oil. If you like feta cheese, it’s a worthy addition. It’s available in stores. 8 ounces is $10.49 in my area. I didn’t need that much. So yeah, I made my own for about half the price.

I also made my own Red Pepper Hummus, which I adapted from Dave Lieberman’s recipe. It includes extra virgin olive oil (which CAVA leaves out of their hummus) and uses sesame oil instead of tahini (yes, that still makes it hummus!…right?).

A serving for layer 3 ranges from 30-70 calories per ingredient. Approximately 1 tablespoon per ingredient.

The fourth layer is “Mains”

You may select one full or 2 half portions.

Roasted White Sweet Potato, Harissa Honey Chicken, Grilled Chicken, Falafel, Spicy Lamb Meatball, Grilled Meatballs, Braised Lamb, and Roasted Vegetables. The roasted vegetables include brussel sprouts, cauliflower, and carrots.

I really like falafel as vegetarian option here, but I was out of my homemade frozen batch. That’s okay because I was still excited to choose roasted vegetables and sweet potatoes. I couldn’t find white sweet potatoes, but the regular ones were still delicious.

A serving for layer 4 ranges from 100-350 calories per ingredient. Approximately 1 cup per serving.

The fifth layer is “Toppings”

You may select as many as you want. But what I’ve discovered is that by this point my salad bowl is quite full already, so there’s only so much room left. Choose 2-3 that accent the flavors you’ve previously chosen and you’ll set yourself up for success.

Fire Roasted Corn, Avocado, Pickled Onions, Salt-Brined Pickles, Tomato + Onion, Tomato + Cucumber, Cabbage Slaw, Kalamata Olives, Persian Cucumber, Shredded Romaine, Crumbled Feta, Pita Crisps, and Lentil Tabbouleh.

You see what I mean now? There are so many fun, flavorful options on this layer alone.

I love that so many of these options are similar to earlier layers. It’s kind of like getting a second chance to include all of your favorites. For example, if I passed on crazy feta, I could go with regular feta now. If I selected brown rice earlier, I can now add those black lentils. Same goes for romaine.

Another great thing about these ingredients is that many of them, especially pickles and olives, can be kept for weeks or months so they are available the next time you make this bowl.

For this layer I chose to make fire roasted corn. That’s mostly because I was already roasting sweet potatoes, and they are seasoned the same way. I also added Tomato + Cucumber, which came together nicely with some parsley, lemon juice, and salt.

Typically, I have pickled red onions in the fridge, but ran out. So didn’t use them here. I highly recommend them though, especially with tacos or sandwiches. Their pink color brightens the dish, while the vinegar packs some tang in each bite.

A serving for layer 5 ranges from 5-160 calories per ingredient. Approximately 1/4 cup per ingredient.

The sixth and final layer is “Dressings”

Choose up to 2.

Balsamic Date Vinaigrette, Yogurt Dill, Lemon Herb Tahini, Greek Vinaigrette, Garlic Dressing, Skhug, Tahini Caesar, Hot Harissa Vinaigrette.

I made my own Greek vinaigrette based on the provided ingredients of red wine vinegar, olive oil, and dijon mustard. I also tried making a garlic dressing, but it didn’t work out for me. So instead I substituted a Garlic Parmesan Dressing from Ken’s Steakhouse brand.

A serving for layer 6 ranges from 30-180 calories per ingredient. Approximately 1 tablespoon per dressing.

How to Make a CAVA Inspired Roasted Veggie Bowl

Now that you know all of the variations available for making this bowl, I’ll present my own recipe based on those options. Remember, I purposely set out to make this roasted veggie bowl from scratch ingredients. With that said, not all of them will be 100% consistent with what you may find when dining at CAVA restaurant. I based much of it from either copycat recipes or simply the ingredients that were made available.

I recommend either making some of the ingredients ahead of time, buying them premade from the store, or just using substitutes you may have in your fridge or pantry already. I mean why not? Keep it simple. Keep the cost down. Make some bowls for your family for a single meal, or meal prep for your week. There are tons of options and variety to enjoy!

LAYER 1: GREENS

This one is as easy as it gets! Just pour 2 cups of baby spinach into your bowl and prepare for the rest to fall in place.

LAYER 2: GRAINS

I knew I wanted black lentils for this. After all, I went out of my way to get them. But when I saw saffron rice, I guess I got greedy. So I broke the “choose one” rule and made both. Shhh. Don’t tell anyone, okay?

Saffron rice and black lentils take a little time to cook, but not a lot of hands-on active time. Which is great, because there are lots of other items to prepare.

The black lentils were just cooked per the directions on the bag. In this case, start by examining and rinsing 1 cup of lentils. Then add the lentils to a saucepan along with 3 cups of water. Simmer for 25-30 minutes until tender.

Saffron Rice takes a few more steps. First microwave 1/4 cup of vegetable broth for 30-60 seconds, until it starts to steam, but not boil. Then add a large pinch of saffron and infuse the broth for 15 minutes.

While the saffron is doing it’s thing, pour 1 1/4 cups of vegetable broth into a small pot and bring it to a boil on medium heat. During this time rinse the basmati rice several times until the cold water runs clear. Set aside for a moment while melting the butter in a medium pot.

Once the butter is melted, add the rice and allow it to roast slightly on medium-low. Stir frequently. Don’t let it brown.

Awesome. If you’ve made this far, it’s time to put everything together. Combine the saffron infused broth with the larger portion, which should be boiling. Then pour all the broth over the rice and cook for 20 minutes covered with a lid. Once the rice is tender. Fluff with a fork.

As you can see from the photos above, combined the lentils and rice look great together. They taste great together as well! But we’re not done yet. Not by a long shot.

LAYER 3: DIPS + SPREADS

Typically when making this bowl, I buy some tzatziki for about $4-5, some hummus for about $3, and sprinkled some feta on later. But this time, I decided these recipes would be great from scratch.

Why?

First of all, tzatziki is super easy. Greek yogurt, grated cucumber, and some dill. Maybe a sprinkle of salt. Then mix. See, told ya.

Second, I love this roasted red pepper hummus recipe I mentioned earlier. It’s so much better than store bought, and it’s pretty simple to make as long as you have food processor.

First drain and rinse 2 cans of chickpeas. Then just combine them with the rest of the ingredients: extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, garlic, salt, sesame oil (instead of tahini…Is that blasphemy?), cumin, black pepper, and water. Process until smooth and creamy.

I’m done with that guy.

Last is one that looked fun, so I had to try – Crazy Feta. There are both authentic and inspired recipes out there. I chose to borrow from one of the latter. This recipe basically calls for roasting a jalapeno whole, plus cutting off the bottom of some fresh garlic and wrapping them in foil (true, the original calls for onion, not garlic). Let that go for about 25-30 minutes.

When they are done roasting, the garlic squeezes out like butter. I still chopped it up just to make sure it spread around. The jalapeno just needed the blackened skin removed, then the pepper chopped up as well. It will be a bit squishy. I added some extra virgin olive oil and some lemon zest (that one’s not authentic either), then mixed everything by hand. In retrospect, it would have been better if I used the processor to whip it up a bit. Still good stuff though.

Alternatively, if you’re okay with spending a little more, buy all 3 of these premade and save some time too. Remember, this should be a pretty easy dish to assemble, preferably with enough to have left over or share with your family or friends.

LAYER 4: MAINS

As a vegetarian, I’m really pleased that this is not just full of fake meat and substitutes. Sweet potatoes, seasoned just right, and roasted veggies worked so well.

PRO TIP: To make things easier, either prep layers 1,2,3 & 6 in advance or buy them. Then make 4 & 5 the first day you plan to eat your roasted veggie bowl.

For the roasted sweet potatoes, I diced them, seasoned with smoked paprika, coriander, salt, and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil. Then off to a sheet pan and roasting for 25-30 minutes. I also roasted corn on the cob (from the next layer) at the same time because it’s seasoned and cooked the exact same way.

The veggies followed a similar process. I split the brussel sprouts in half, cut cauliflower into florets, and should have cut the carrots on a angled bias. But I used baby carrots thinking I wouldn’t have to cut them. The cooked carrots didn’t look as good as they would have. Oh well. The taste was still good. With these I just did salt and pepper, extra virgin olive oil. Baked for only about 17 minutes.

These were so good hot out of the oven, and even reheated the next day.

LAYER 5: TOPPINGS

Lots of easy options here, especially if you have romaine, pickles, olives, or even an avocado already in your fridge. But there is also a chance to add some fun flavor combinations too.

As I mentioned before, at this point, there’s not much room left in the bowl. So I only picked two options for this layer. Fire Roasted Corn and Tomato + Cucumber.

Fire roasted corn was already in the oven with the sweet potatoes and veggies. So that was easy. When it’s done cooking, just slice down the cob to release the kernels. Then drizzle a little garlic dressing, lemon juice, and sprinkle on some parsley and cilantro. I’m pretty sure I forgot to add the garlic and lemon. But I did drizzle them with garlic dressing on the next layer anyway.

Next I chose tomato + cucumber, which is something I enjoy having a lot with Mediterranean food, especially gyros (back in the day), falafel, and sabich. I just diced the cucumber and tomato (removing the watery seeds). Unfortunately, plum tomatoes are not in season. So the result was a pale, yucky mess. So as you’ll see in the photos, I went with my back up of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half. What you hopefully won’t see, is that those tomatoes I bought that morning were already past their peak. Okay. So I’ll try again this summer I guess. Good thing there are lots of other options here for next time.

LAYER 6: DRESSINGS

Admittedly, I don’t know what all of these dressing are. I guess I’ve got more research to do. But I did manage to pull the ingredients from CAVA’s Instagram for their Greek Vinaigrette. From there, it was just a matter of deciding on proportions. I used 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil, and 2 tablespoons of dijon mustard. The directions said to put a lid on and shake the heck out of it. I did but wasn’t satisfied. So I whisked it too. That seemed to bring it together much better and I was pleased with the result.

I tried doing the same for Garlic dressing with ingredients I found either on their site or Instagram. It was an aquafaba-based recipe, and it just didn’t work out for me. I don’t think I used nearly enough garlic or lemon juice. I tried adding more flavor, but wound up breaking the emulsion. No good. That’s where it’s so handy to have a stash in the fridge. Hello store-bought Garlic Parmesan Dressing. Thankfully, it more than did the job.

This CAVA inspired roasted veggie bowl was a lot of fun to put together from scratch! It was too expensive and too time consuming. But it was tasty! And I learned a lot of cool recipes that I can use again. The good thing about this recipe, is it doesn’t have to take a lot of time or cost a lot of money. If you plan ahead, use what you already have, buy only what you really need/want, then you can make an incredible excuse for a salad, just like I did.

Did you make this recipe? Share your experience in the comments below and a photo on Instagram @theflavorfanatic1.

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