food

Nooch Encrusted Sweet Potato Tacos with Black Beans, Kale, and Avocado

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Once you start to eat nooch (nutritional yeast) you start to crave it like plants crave the sun. It starts small, maybe sprinkling some on your popcorn or adding it to your tofu scramble, and then the next thing you know, you are adding it to everything you eat. Somehow, I hadn’t tried it with roasted potatoes until I came across a post by Kristy Turner on Keepin’ it Kind for a Cheesy Sweet Potato & Chickpea Bowl with Lemon Tahini Sauce. I made the bowl and I loved it, but then I ended up making the sweet potatoes three more times that week! Here I paired them with black beans and kale for a perfect easy delicious weeknight taco.

Nooch Encrusted Sweet Potatoes
1 giant or 2 normal sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast

Preheat the oven to 425 and prepare a baking sheet with parchment or silpat. Peel and cube the sweet potatoes and put them in a pile on the baking sheet. Sprinkle on the oil and mix with your hands until the potatoes are mostly coated. Sprinkle the potatoes with the spices, salt, and 2 tablespoons of the nutritional yeast. Mix again with your hands and then sprinkle on the final tablespoon nooch and spread the potatoes out so they aren’t touching. Bake in the preheated oven about 10 minutes and then flip and bake another 10 minutes or until potatoes are softened and able to be pierced with a fork. Meanwhile, make the beans and get the garnishes ready.

Beans and Greens
1 teaspoon of cooking oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
Afew handfuls of greens like spinach, kale, or chard
1/4 cup white wine or broth.

Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat and add cooking oil. Swish it around and add the onions. Let them brown, turning every now and then, for about 5 minutes. Add the beans, greens, and white wine and stir until greens are wilted. Serve immediately.

For the Tacos
Corn or flour tortillas, heated
Asmall avocado, sliced
2 teaspoons of pepitas,
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped (optional)
Juice from a small lime
2 teaspoons creamy chipotle sauce from the Taco Cleanse book or other hot sauce (optional)

Place a bit of the sweet potatoes on the tortilla followed by the beans, add the garnishes above or use whatever garnishes your body is calling for. Enjoy!

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How to Fancy Up your Guacamole

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In the Taco Cleanse book we have a very simple recipe for Guacamole that you put on tacos. But when you are serving this amazing avocado concoction as a dip alongside your tacos it’s fun to add a little something extra. Above I just scattered some toasted salted pepitas for some extra crunch but there are dozens of ways you can make your guacamole a little more fancy.

A restaurant here in Austin called La Condesa has a guacamole sampler and my favorite drizzles pomegranate molasses on the guac along with some pomegranate arils. It’s tasty and beautiful. They also do another version with chopped apples.

Another spot, a trailer called Guac and Roll has an ever- changing assortment of toppings one called Guac and Awe tops their dip with grape tomatoes, red onions, jalapenos, cilantro, crumbled plantain chips and dried edamame seeds. Another has shredded coconut, toasted macadamia nuts and currants.

Rick Bayless has a version with sundried tomatoes and he has another recipe where he recommends roasted garlic among other things.

Jason Wyrick’s cookbook, Vegan Tacos, has a recipe for Guacamole with roasted poblanos that you can find here on an An Unrefined Vegan.

Or there’s always peas.

Just remember, if you are having a party make more than you think you will need ’cause you can NEVER have too much guacamole.

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Mighty Migas

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There’s currently an egg shortage because of avian flu. Almost 50 million egg-laying chickens have been killed to stop the spread of the disease. The egg shortage is mostly effecting commercial users: the restaurants and businesses making your pancakes, cookies, and, yes, breakfast tacos.

But fear not! Taco Scientists have discovered a way to make breakfast tacos without eggs. Here we have one of their highest performing tacos, the migas taco.

Migas taco

Photo by Lazy Smurf.

Mighty Migas

Fills 8 tacos

1 tablespoon cooking oil
1/2 cup (70 g) chopped onion
1 jalapeño, sliced in rings
14 to 16 ounces (397 to 454 g) firm tofu, drained
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 cup (37 g) crumbled tortilla chips
1 cup (170 g) seeded, chopped tomato
1/4 cup (15 g) nutritional yeast
1/4 cup (60 ml) unsweetened plant milk or water
1/2 cup (48 g) vegan cheddar, optional
8 flour tortillas

1. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Sauté the onion and jalapeño for 2 minutes or until onion starts to soften. Crumble the tofu into the pan, sprinkle with the salt, cumin, and pepper, and cook until the tofu is dry and browned on at least once side, about 10 minutes. Try not to stir too often as this prevents browning. Add the rest of the ingredients, including the cheese if you’re using it, and stir thoroughly. Cook until the tomato softens and the liquid is completely absorbed. Serve in flour tortillas.

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