recipe: taco salad

I've started taking photos of everything I eat.

Bonus benefit of taking photos each day is it's EASY to post recipes now. I just type up what I ate, with a link. Photo was already taken and is already on my my blog. w00t.

Taco Salad

Ease: 1 very easy
Time: 2 quick
Ingredients: 2 easy
Source: Loosely based on Easy Taco Salad from Women Living Well.org, but veggified and substantially healthified

Ingredients: (amounts up to you, depending on your desired ratio and how many people you're feeding)

• veggie ground round (I used Yves)
• packet of taco seasoning (could be homemade but I used a package)
• romaine lettuce, chopped into bite-sized pieces, washed and dried (salad spinner ftw)
• cilantro, chopped coarsely
• tomatoes, diced
• bell peppers (sweet, green, whatever), diced
• avocado (not pictured, since I didn't have any)
• frozen corn, thawed (not pictured, since I just thought of it)
• lime juice
• hot sauce (optional)
• salsa
• cheddar cheese, grated
• tortilla chips (I used hint of lime Tostitos. The original recipe calls for Doritos), crumbled
• sour cream or yogurt (optional. Not pictured because we didn't have any)
 

Directions:

1. Mix ground round and taco seasoning in a small pot with some water. Let it simmer for a few minutes and then remove from heat and let it cool while you prepare the salad. It's OK if it's liquidy - the liquid will help substitute for dressing.
2. Let each person serve him/herself, to customize it. Below is my style.
3. Sprinkle tomatoes, red bell pepper and cilantro over a bowl of lettuce. (this is where you'd add the avocado and corn if you wanted)
4. Top generously with lime juice and hot sauce. (it's the 'dressing')
5. Add salsa, cheddar, tortilla chips, and faux meat mixture.  (and sour cream/yogurt if using)
6. Mix.
7. Enjoy.
8. Seriously, it was so easy. And really really tasty. I hope this becomes a regular meal in my rotation. 

recipe: nic & kyle's vegetarian chili

(Originally emailed Apr. 2, 2008)

our recipe!, by LG Weddings

I've added two new people to the list. Julie, from my lab (I've added you in case you find some recipes for your sis or for CR), and Dane who I know from Laurier people (hey, you said you wanted a recipe!). The background info: I (try to) send out a vegetarian recipe every week, seeing as Kyle and I usually try at least 1 or 2 new recipes per week, and I hope that someone out there actually finds something they like.

Today I will share with you my recipe for vegetarian chili. I grew up with my mom's chili recipe: simple, tasty, hearty, but full of meat. And it turns out that it doesn't work well as chili when you just omit the meat. I have tried time and time again to make vegetarian chili and it nearly always ends up tasting "off" and being overly liquidy. So I did some investigative work (including Wikipedia and some recipe sites), plus some trial and error, and finally settled on a vegetarian chili recipe I like. Kyle says it's the best food I make. I don't have a meat substitute in it (I've tried it and I didn't like it), but you could always try that if you wanted. I usually serve this chili with a dollop of sour cream and some shredded cheese. If I'm feeling fancy, I'll chop up some avocado and mix it with lime juice and serve that over top of the chili. I guess green onions would also work as a garnish. We make fresh french crusty bread for dipping.

Some comments from now me (as opposed to me writing in April of 2008). I was searching for this recipe today and I couldn't find it (can't find any recipes in our recipe box since I decided to "re-organize" it. Grr. Then I checked my second go-to spot: my blog! And I realized to my astonishment *gasp* that I haven't posted our chili recipe. As you've already read, Kyle and I developed this recipe together, but the other cool news about it is that we served it at our wedding! The caterer at the Toronto Zoo (Compass Canada) was really great about it and they made our chili for us. How cool is that?

Now as it turns out, Kyle and I have different methods of making this chili. And... his tends to end up better than mine. So I'll intersperse the Kyle Method below.

our recipe!, by LG Weddings

Nic & Kyle's Vegetarian Chili
Ease: 1 very easy
Time: 3 somewhat quick (quick to throw everything in a pot, but long time to let it simmer)
Ingredients: easy to get
Source: my mom, plus inspiration from various places

crockpot chili, by me

Ingredients:

• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 chili or jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 2 large cans diced tomatoes
• 2 cans kidney beans
• 1 can black beans
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tbsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 1-2 splashes red wine
• 1/2 tbsp oregano
• 1 squeezed lemon (or about 2-3 Tbsp of lemon juice)
  
• few grinds/shakes of black pepper

1. Saute garlic, onion and pepper in a bit of oil for a few minutes - until fragrant and onions are soft. But don't brown garlic.
2. In crockpot or slow-cooker, combine remaining ingredients and add onions and garlic.
3. Set crock pot to high until chili starts to boil, then turn heat down.
4. Boil for several hours. Throughout the day, scoop off the liquid that rises to the top and RESERVE. Do this before you stir it because it's easier. (Kyle method: don't scoop off liquid until the very end)
   
5. Before serving, mix some (> 1 Tbsp) cornstarch into the mug of reserved liquid and add gradually back into the chili until the chili is thick.
6. Serve with sour cream, shredded cheese, lime-y avocado cubes, etc. Also, fresh bread.
7. Yum.

Picante Pasta

This is my first email that I also post to the blog simultaneously. Go me!

I think eventually I'll phase out of emails and just go to blogs... However there are ways of getting notified of new blog posts so you don't have to remember to check it all the time. Either way, there will be dual posts for now. The blog will be the only place I post photos, though. Although I'd like to point out yet again that taking photos of food is REALLY REALLY HARD.

I can't remember if I've told this story but I'll tell it now anyways, at the risk of repeating myself. I'm a big fan of Freecycling (Freecycle.org - where you give away stuff you don't want anymore and you get stuff for free), both to get rid of stuff I don't want and to get stuff that I do want. A few months ago, I grabbed hundreds of recipe cards off some woman who must have been collecting them for years (literally... there were some very 50's style recipes going on there). I sorted through them and grabbed anything that sounded remotely interesting (weeding out all of the meat recipes), and I still ended up with well over 100 recipes. A lot of them are dessert recipes (which means I'll probably never make them), but some of them were salads and a few were pastas or other veggie-based entrees. Today's recipe is one of those. It's from a series of recipes called Grandma's Kitchen, and it's actually called "Linguine with Picante Sauce" but I've just been calling it Picante Pasta and there's no reason that it has to be linguine, so whatever. The recipe sounds a bit weird because it involves black beans + pasta, but I was very happy with the end result. Topping it with mozza cheese made it extra yum, too. I've modified the directions slightly because I don't agree with the order they were written in.
As always, I suggest chopping all of the veggies up first so that the actually cooking part isn't stressful.

Picante Pasta
Effort: very easy
Ingredients: very easy
Source: Grandma's kitchen card (modified from)

Ingredients:

• 8 oz linguine (I broke my linguine noodles in half because I"m a slob and can't handle full-length linguine without making a mess of myself)
  
• 1 med onion, coarsely chopped
  
• 1 clove garlic, minced
  
• 1 (15oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
  
• 1 tbsp veg oil
  
• 2 1/2 cups canned stewed tomatoes (we used diced)
  
• 1/4 cup picante sauce (we used plain ol' salsa)
  
• 1 tsp chili powder
  
• 1 tsp ground cumin
  
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
  
• 4 oz finely shredded Colby Jack cheese blend (we used mozzarella because that's what we had on hand)
  
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

1. Heat veg oil in large skillet over med-hi heat until hot. Add onion and garlic and mix well. Saute until onion is tender.
   
2. Add undrained tomatoes, picante sauce (salsa), black beans, chili powder, cumin, and oregano and mix well. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low and cover.
   
3. Simmer the sauce, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes; remove cover. Increase heat to med-high. Cook, stirring frequently, until sauce is the desired consistency, about 5 min.
   
4. Meanwhile (around step 2 or 3), cook pasta using package directions; drain. Rinse quickly and cover to keep warm.
   
5. Serve sauce over pasta (either one large platter or individual plates/bowls), sprinkle with cheese and cilantro.

taco salad

Taco Salad
Effort: med-easy
Ingredients: common
Cookbook: Student's vegetarian cookbook, Carole Raymond 1997, 2003

1 tsp veg oil
1 cup frozen corn
1 tbsp water
1 tsp ground cumin
1 med avocado, fairly ripe
1 tbsp lemon/lime juice
1/2 med. tomato, chopped
2 tbsp chopped green onion (including green part) (Nic: I prefer more onion)
2 cups salad greens, torn into bite-sized pieces
Baked tortilla chips, crumbled (I like those yellow corn ones, rather than Tostidos, for this recipe)
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (this can be omitted, but it makes it taste extra good)
tabasco or other hot sauce (optional)

- in small pan, combine oil, corn, water and cumin. cover and cook on med. heat for 3 min. uncover and cook for 1-2min until water evaporates. set aside.
- slice avocado lengthwise and remove seed. cut lengthwise and crosswise slices in the flesh, making a grid pattern. scoop avocado cubes out of shells and into med. sized bowl. stir in lemon juice. add corn mixture, tomato, and scallion.
- spoon salad onto handful of greens. crumble a handful of baked tortilla chips and sprinkle them on top. toss on cilantro and a shake (or more) of Tabasco if desired.

fiesta burrito bake

On November 5th, 2007, I sent out an email to some friends and family stating that I was starting a recipe mailing list. The first two recipes I sent out were Fiesta Burrito Bake and Taco Salad.

Fiesta Burrito Bake
Effort: easy
Ingredients: common
Cookbook: favorite brand name Vegetarian cooking 1997

1/2 envelope Club House Marinades seasoning - Tex Mex flavour
1 can refried beans
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup water
10 (6") flour tortillas (get whole wheat and it's healthier)
1 medium tomato, coarsely chopped (I usually omit the tomato)
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

- Preheat oven to 375 F
- in small bowl, combine seasoning powder, beans, sour cream and water. Spoon bean mixture onto tortillas, then roll.
- In a 13 x 9in. baking dish sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, arrange rolled tortillas; top with tomato then cheese.
- Bake covered for 15minutes. Remove cover and continue baking until cheese is melted and tortillas are heated through.
- serve, if desired, with shredded lettuce, sour cream and guacamole

Nic's comment: goes really well with "taco salad".

recipe: mexican night

(Originally emailed May. 13, 2008)

[If you're reading this on Facebook, you can read the original, non-imported, correctly-formatted version on my blog]

I don't have time to type up a recipe this week either, so I'm stealing one that Jess typed up for me when we were putting together the Base Cero recipe book. This meal was a weekly occurrence in Costa Rica, and probably our favourite too (well, at least it was my favourite). It's very easy to prepare, seeing as it just involves a lot of chopping and a little bit of heating, and it's customizable so anyone can enjoy it. One of the neat things about Costa Rican food is that they have so many different brands of hot sauces, which all taste slightly different. So for our first few Mexican Nights, we put a different hot sauce on each tortilla as a taste test, to determine our favourite sauce. I unfortunately became slightly addicted to my favourite hot sauce (Chillerito!) and since then I've been bugging people to bring me back some from Costa Rica. Fortunately, one of the girls who just came back was able to find a bottle for me, so my supply of Chillerito will last until August 2009. Phew. I don't know what I will do when I don't know anyone in Dan's lab anymore! Anyways, this meal is clearly up to the individual, but it's fun to have tons of toppings on the table so that it's colourful and chaotic. Thanks to Jess for typing it up for me :) (note: Jess was the Mexican Night chef for most of last summer in Costa Rica).

Jess adds: Mexican night is a fairly low-stress meal that requires a lot of chopping, but it's delicious and filling. You can make the tortillas however you want to, so adjust recipe according to your tastes. This meal works best if you chop veggies into very small pieces rather than large chunks.

Some comments from now me, as opposed to 2008 me: I managed to convince a couple more people to bring me back some Chillerito, so my supply will last me at least a few more months. I will cry when it is gone. In the meantime, I'm trying to find substitutes. Frank's hot is delicious, but not a good substitute for Chillerito :(

mexican night, by David Bradley

Mexican Night
Effort: 1 very easy
Speed: 4 not very fast
Ingredients: easy to get
Source: Stéphanie Doucet

Ingredients:

• flour tortillas (as small as you can get. like the little ones in the Mexican aisle of the grocery store)
• cheddar cheese, grated
• refried beans (black work best)
• cumin
• hot sauce
• rice
• hot sauce (chillerito or Tio Pelon)
• diced cucumber
• diced tomatoes mixed with minced cilantro
• diced red pepper
• onions
• sour cream
• guacamole (avocado + lime juice + garlic + sour cream)
• eggs

when heated, these'll become "cheese lakes"

Instructions:

1. Start rice.
   
2. Make guacamole and keep in fridge. (Jess' instructions: smush up an avocado, add the juice from a freshly picked limon (half lime, half lemon, grows out back), add a minced clove of garlic, and a spoonful or two of sour cream)...oh how I miss the limon tree.
   
3. Start heating the refried beans... throw them in a pot, add a pinch or two of cumin, and a few shakes of hot sauce.
   
4. Chop up all the vegetables, and put them in their own bowls.
   
5. Put tortillas on a baking sheet spaced apart. Add some grated cheddar to them so that the cheese will melt and coat one side.
   
6. Stick tortillas in the oven at a low temperature, and pull them out as soon as the cheese is melted (if you leave them in too long, tortillas will crisp up too much)
   
7. Scramble some eggs (this only takes a few minutes, which is why I leave it until the end).
   
8. Put the last few things in bowls (rice, scrambled eggs), put the hot pot of bubbling beans on the table (with a trivet underneath), and stick the sour cream and your hot sauces of choice on the table.
   
9. Assemble tortillas as desired and CHOW DOWN!
   
10. Optimal tortilla-assembling order: Beans, hot sauce (spread with spoon), rice, guacamole, veggies, + anything else.
    

What other toppings would you put on tortillas like this?