Taco Tuesday

It's time for another Taco Tuesday. Here are today's six vegetarian taco recipes, including Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos with Avocado Crema and Smoky Sweet Potato & Black Bean Tacos. Enjoy!

ROASTED CAULIFLOWER AND BLACK BEAN TACOS

This comes from Ali in her cool blog, Gimme Some Oven. Check out her blog!

This yummy recipe begins, “These Roasted Cauliflower and Black Bean Tacos are topped with a zesty tahini-cumin-lime crema, they’re naturally gluten-free and vegan, and muy delicioso.”

Total Time: 50 minutes; Prep Time: 25 minutes; Cook Time: 25 minutes Yield: About 4 - 6; Vegan

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients:

Taco Ingredients:

1 batch Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower (see below)

1 batch Black Beans (see below)

1 batch Cumin Lime Crema (see below)

corn tortillas*

toppings: diced avocado, chopped fresh cilantro, fresh lime wedges, pepitas, and/or thinly-sliced radishes

Tumeric Roasted Cauliflower Ingredients:

1 large head cauliflower (about 2 pounds)

4 medium garlic cloves, peeled and minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon each: ground cumin, kosher salt, paprika

1/2 teaspoon each: crushed red pepper flakes, freshly-cracked black pepper, ground turmeric

Refried Black Bean Ingredients:

1 small white onion

2 (15-ounce) cans black beans

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon each: chili powder, Kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper

Cumin Lime Cream Ingredients:

1 small garlic clove, peeled and minced

1/4 cup lime juice (about 2 limes)

3 tablespoons tahini

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon Mexican hot sauce (such as Cholula)

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

To Make the Tacos:

Prepare the cauliflower, refried black beans and crema as directed below.

To serve, place a layer of refried black beans in a tortilla, top with roasted cauliflower, a drizzle of the crema, and your desired toppings.

To Make the Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower:

Heat oven to 450°F.

In a large bowl, mix the cauliflower, garlic, olive oil, cumin, salt, paprika, crushed red pepper flakes, black pepper and ground turmeric until evenly combined.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat, then place the cauliflower in a single layer on the sheet. Roast for 25-30 minutes until it is tender and browned, stirring once halfway through.

Serve immediately.

To Make the Refried Black Beans:

Peel and halve the onion, then slice into half-moon shapes. Drain the beans, reserving 1/2 cup of the can liquid.

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add the beans, reserved can liquid, kosher salt, chili powder and black pepper. Turn the heat to medium low and cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring often and smashing the beans toward the end of the cook time, until most of the liquid has cooked out and the texture is mashed and thick. Scrape the bottom and sides of the pan as necessary. Taste and season with additional salt as desired.

To Make the Cumin Lime Crema:

In a small bowl, stir together the garlic, lime juice, tahini, olive oil, hot sauce, cumin and salt until evenly combined. Add 1-2 tablespoons water if necessary to achieve a creamy consistency.

*If you’d like to char the tortillas, turn on a gas burner to medium heat and place the tortilla directly on the grate. After about 15 seconds, once the edges are lightly charred, use tongs to flip the tortilla. Then heat on the opposite side until lightly charred. Repeat for all tortillas, keeping a close eye on them while cooking so that they do not catch fire.

JAMAICAN CURRIED TEMPEH TACOS

This comes from Vegetarian Times, and begins, “The yellow curry filling, mustard greens, and red pepper strips lend these spicy tacos the colors of the tropics.” Yield: Serves 4.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. peanut oil

1 small sweet onion, such as Vidalia or Walla Walla, diced (1 cup)

1 8-oz. pkg. tempeh, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 cup unsweetened pineapple juice

2 Tbs. chopped cilantro

2 1/2 tsp. curry powder

1 1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger

1 Tbs. lime juice

1 tsp. grated lime zest

4 6-inch corn or flour tortillas, warmed

1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper

1/2 cup curly mustard greens, finely chopped

2 Tbs. chopped peanuts, optional

Instructions:

Heat oil in nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, and cook 3 to 5 minutes, or until onion is softened. Stir in tempeh, pineapple juice, cilantro, curry powder, and ginger. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook 5 minutes, or until pineapple juice evaporates and tempeh starts to brown, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, stir in lime juice and zest, and season with salt and pepper.

Fill tortillas with tempeh mixture. Add red bell pepper and mustard greens. Top with peanuts, if desired.

Nutrition Information: Calories: 220; Protein: 14 g; Total Fat: 7.5 g; Saturated Fat: 1.5 g; Carbohydrates: 26 g; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 313 mg; Fiber: 7 g; Sugar: 6 g

BUFFALO CAULIFLOWER TACOS WITH AVOCADO CREMA

This is from Lindsay, whose blog, Pinch of Yum, is really good. Feel free to check it out!

This recipe begins, “This colorful, spicy, crispy, mega-yum recipe was inspired by the amazing buffalo ‘wings’ at J. Selby’s in Saint Paul and this recipe from Sarah Sullivan. Thanks to both sources of inspiration!”

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Yield: 8-10 tacos (probably 4-5 servings)

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos:

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

1/4 teaspoon each garlic powder, salt, and pepper

1 head cauliflower (4-5 cups florets)

3/4 cup hot sauce (I used Frank’s brand)

shredded cabbage or slaw

chopped fresh cilantro

tortillas

Avocado Crema

2 avocados

1 clove garlic

1/4 cup sour cream (yogurt would work, too)

1/4 cup water

1/2 teaspoon salt

squeeze of lemon or lime

Instsructions

Batter the cauliflower: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Whisk flour, milk, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Dip cauliflower pieces in the batter and let excess drip off. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake on an upper rack for 15-20 minutes until lightly crisped and browned.

Spice the cauliflower: Gently toss the baked cauliflower in a bowl with the hot sauce. Return to pan. Bake for another 5-10 minutes.

Avocado Crema: Mix all ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth.

Slaw: Toss the slaw with some of the avocado crema until it’s nice and creamy.

Tacos: Fill each tortilla with slaw, cauliflower, a drizzle of avocado crema, and cilantro. Perfection!

Notes:

Gluten Free: use almond meal and GF corn tortillas.

Vegan: use non-dairy milk and skip the sour cream in the sauce.

Cauliflower Pro Tip: It helps if you have a greased wire rack to back the cauliflower on – this allows excess batter to drip down and promotes crispiness. 👍🏼 But it works fine without, too.

Notes about texture: The texture as written is pretty firm and crispy, but not deep-fried-level crispy. Not surprisingly, you’d have to deep fry to achieve that. Which you could totally do! Here’s a recipe with a deep fry batter that I’d recommend if you want to spend the time doing that (it’s delish). But to me, this is a really great middle-of-the-road alternative that is a) much easier, b) healthier, and c) still really tasty!

SMOKY SWEET POTATO AND BLACK BEAN TACOS

This is from a really cool site, How Sweet Eats. I really encourage you to check it out. Go ahead, I’ll wait. (Tap, tap, tap…)

This recipe makes 8 tacos; Total Time: 35 minutes.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 red onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon cumin

1 (15 ounce) can of black beans, drained and rinsed

8 flour tortillas, warmed

1 cup freshly grated manchego cheese

fresh cilantro for topping

lime wedges

Chipotle Lime Crema

3 tablespoons greek yogurt

3/4 cup half and half

1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from a can of chipotles in adobo)

juice of half a lime

zest of half a lime

1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Season chopped sweet potatoes with salt, pepper, cumin and smoked paprika. Heat a large skillet oven medium heat and add olive oil. Add onions and garlic, tossing to coat, then add sweet potatoes and stir. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, until sweet potatoes are just softened and cooked through.

While potatoes are cooking, combine yogurt, half and half, adobo, lime juice and zest and salt, whisking well to combine. Set aside.

Once sweet potatoes are cooked, add in black beans and toss well. Cover and cook again for 5-6 minutes until everything is warmed through. Heat tortillas and serve sweet potato mixture topped with cheese, crema and lots of cilantro!

BUTTERNUT SQUASH TACOS WITH CRANBERRY-JALAPENO RELISH

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 30 minutes; Total Time: 45 minutes; Yield: 4-6 servings; Serving Size: 2-3 tacos

Relish adapted from The New York Times

Read more at http://ohmyveggies.com/butternut-squash-tacos-with-cranberry-jalapeno-relish/

Ingredients

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

12 small corn tortillas

2 cups cooked black beans

For the Cranberry-Jalapeño Relish:

1 (12-ounce) package fresh cranberries

1 1/2 pounds tart apples, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450°F.

In a large bowl, toss together the butternut squash, olive oil and salt. Spread on a parchment-lined baking sheet in an even layer and roast until tender, 20-30 minutes, tossing once halfway through.

Meanwhile, prepare the Cranberry-Jalapeño Relish. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the cranberries, apples, sugar and apple cider vinegar. Cook, stirring frequently, until sugar has dissolved. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring constantly, until cranberries start to pop and mixture has thickened, 5-7 minutes. Stir in the jalapeño and ginger and remove from heat.

Warm the corn tortillas according to package directions. Serve the tortillas stuffed with the butternut squash and black beans, and topped with the Cranberry-Jalapeño Relish.

Notes

Both the butternut squash and relish can be made ahead of time! Just reheat the butternut squash before stuffing it into the tortillas.

TASTY BLACK BEANS AND CORN TACOS

This also comes from Vegetarian Times, and begins, "Filled with beans and vegetables, these healthful tacos will be a kid’s favorite." Makes 12 tacos.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients:

Black Beans and Corn Filling

1 15-oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 medium-sized zucchini, diced

1 cup frozen corn kernels

1/2 cup mild enchilada sauce

Tortillas

12 6- to 8-inch corn or flour tortillas

Toppings, Optional

Note: No toppings were listed, but I would suggest shredded cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and/or sour cream. A diced avocado would be nice, too. Or if there's something else that you love to top your tacos with, go for it! Just one thing: Enjoy!

Instructions:

To make Black Beans and Corn Filling: Put all ingredients into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low. Cover, and cook for approximately 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until heated through.

To prepare Tortillas: Preheat a cast-iron skillet or griddle on stove over medium-high heat. Lay tortillas in single layer on skillet or griddle for about 10 seconds. Turn and warm other side. Remove from heat, and wrap in a napkin or dishcloth until ready to assemble tacos.

To assemble, set a tortilla on a plate, and spoon on some filling. Top as desired, roll up and eat.

Nutrition Information: Calories: 100; Protein: 4 g; Total Fat: 1 g; Saturated Fat: g; Carbohydrates: 22 g; Cholesterol: mg; Sodium: 170 mg; Fiber: 4 g; Sugar: 1 g