Taco Salad w/ Cilantro-Mint Guacamole Sauce

This is my absolute favorite taco salad.  The Cilantro-Mint Guacamole Sauce is unbelievably good.  You might want to double the batch so you have extra to eat with some chips.

Taco Salad w/ Cilantro-Mint Guacamole Sauce

Equipment:Cutting Board, Knife, Food Processor, Large Saucepan

Cilantro-Mint Guacamole Sauce

·      1 cup cilantro

·      1 cup mint leaves

·      1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

·      Zest of 1 lemon

·      1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

·      6 cloves garlic

·      ½ teaspoon Celtic sea salt (See Resources)

·      ¼ teaspoon kelp granules (See Resources)

·      1 ripe avocado, remove pit, quarter

Taco Meat

·      1 ½ tablespoons pasture butter or coconut oil

·      1 pound grass-fed ground beef (See Resources)

·      3 cloves garlic, grated or minced

·      1 tablespoon chili powder blend

·      1 teaspoon cumin

·      1 teaspoon dried oregano

·      ½ teaspoon coriander

·      ¼ teaspoon kelp granules (See Resources)

·      ¼ teaspoon Celtic sea salt (See Resources)

Salad & Optional Toppings

·      Mixed greens of choice, I use Red Leaf Lettuce

·      Seasonal chopped veggies – cucumber, red bell pepper, etc.

·      Grated raw cheddar cheese

·      Cultured sour cream

·      Kimchi

·      Hot sauce

1.    Wash produce for the Cilantro-Mint Guacamole Sauce. 

2.   Fit food processor with metal “S” shaped blade – add cilantro, mint, olive oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic, salt, kelp, and avocado.  Pulse until combined and smooth.  Set aside.

3.   Prep garlic for the ground meat – remove skin/peel, grate/mince garlic cloves.

4.   In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, melt fat of choice.  Add ground beef, garlic, chili powder, cumin, dried oregano, coriander, kelp and salt.  Break up meat with spoon, stir to combine seasonings, cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes.  Remove from heat, set aside.

5.    Prep optional toppings for the taco salad.

6.   Add mixed lettuce greens to a deep bowl, top with taco meat, seasonal chopped veggies, grated cheese, Cilantro-Mint Guacamole Sauce, cultured sour cream, kimchi and hot sauce.  Serve immediately and enjoy every bite.

Taco Salad w/ Cilantro-Mint Guacamole, Cultured Sour Cream, Raw Cheddar Cheese, Cucumbers and Kimchi

Yield: Makes about 3-4 servings.

This post is part of Monday Mania @ The Healthy Home Economist,  Slightly Indulgent Tuesday @ Simply Sugar and Gluten Free, Fat Tuesday at Real Food Forager, Real Food Wednesday @ Kelly the Kitchen Kop, Allergy-Free Wednesdays Blog Hop @ Gluten Free Pantry, and Whole Foods Wednesday @ This Chick Cooks.

Spicy Barbeque Pork Chop Tacos with Chunky Avocado Salsa

Spicy Barbeque Pork Chop Tacos with Chunky Avocado Salsa

Last night I planned to make simple grilled pork chops using my Maple Chipotle Barbeque Sauce but number one son, Noah, had a yen for tacos. No problem, we combined the two into a very delicious dinner; compromise is what brings family harmony after all.

As the expression goes here in Newfoundland, we all went "face and eyes into it"! We had both hard and soft shell tacos on hand and they were both fantastic. We added some simple homemade chunky avocado salsa to the tacos too which made them even better. I'm always up for a quick, easy dinner idea and this was a particularly good one that I know we will be making again soon.

Spicy Barbeque Pork Chop Tacos with Chunky Avocado Salsa

Serves 4-6

Grill 

8 center loin pork chops

In the last minutes of grilling brush on a good spicy barbeque sauce. You can find my recipe for the Maple Chipotle Barbeque Sauce that I used here.

Let the chops rest covered in aluminum foil for 5 minutes before thinly slicing them across the grain.

Add the sliced pork to either warm soft or hard shell taco shells and top with the salsa.

Chunky  Avocado Salsa

Coarsely chop

2 small tomatoes

1 small red pepper

1 avocado

1/2 small red onion

Add

1 clove minced garlic

finely grated zest of one lime

juice of one lime

1 tbsp chipotle powder

1/2 finely minced jalapeño pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

season with salt and pepper

Toss together well.

Chicken Souvlaki Wraps with Tomato Avocado Tzatziki

Chicken Souvlaki Wraps with Tomato Avocado Tzatziki

We are having a lovely summer here in Newfoundland, which is a welcome relief after the wettest, coldest summer in decades that we experienced last year. The great weather is providing plenty of warm evenings for grilling our evening meals and this one from late last week was a particularly delicious one.

We used our favorite souvlaki recipe to marinate thin cuts of chicken breast and served it on warm grilled flatbreads with creamy tzatziki. We added tomato and  avocado chunks to our tzatziki for extra flavor and texture. Some crumbled feta cheese and fresh salad completed these terrific wraps dor a delicious and very satisfying dinner.

Serves 4

• 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts

Lay the chicken breasts flat on a cutting board and cut them in half horizontally to crate two think portions.

Souvlaki Marinade

• 6 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 rounded tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 3 cloves minced garlic

Mix all of the ingredients together and pour over the chicken in a Ziploc bag. Toss the chicken around well in the marinade to coat on all sides. Marinate in the fridge for 15 - 20 minutes. Cook on a preheated grill at medium high heat for about 3 minutes before turning over and grilling for an additional 3 minutes on the opposite side or until the chicken is completely cooked through.

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Tzatziki

• 3 cups Greek yogurt, drained

Draining the yogurt removes much of the liquid and produces an end product about the consistency of thick sour cream. To drain the yogurt, line a colander with several layers of cheesecloth (or in a pinch, several large coffee filters) Pour the yogurt into the colander and place it in a large bowl or in the sink for an hour or two. this should produce about 2 cups of thick yogurt.

• 6 inch piece of English cucumber

Peel the piece of cucumber and remove the seeds and pulp at the center with a teaspoon, then dice the outside flesh of the cucumber into small cubes of  1/8 inch or less.

Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of kosher salt over the diced cucumber and toss together well. Let this rest for about a half hour , stirring occasionally. This process removes some of the liquid from the cucumber so that it will not water down the consistency of your finished tzatziki. Drain all of the liquid off the diced cucumber before adding it to the drained yogurt along with

• 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh oregano
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• pinch salt and pepper to season

Mix well, cover and store in the fridge for at least a half hour before serving.

Before serving, stir in:

• 1 avocado, diced
• 1 medium tomato with the pulp removed, diced

Get our recipe for grilled flatbreads here. We sometimes use store bought pizza dough to make flatbreads in a hurry.

Add some Greek salad on top of the flatbread before topping with the chicken and tzatziki. Some crumbled feta cheese makes a nice addition on top as well.

Grilled Chicken Avocado Club Sub with Spicy Sundried Tomato Mayo

Grilled Chicken Avocado Club Sub with Spicy Sundried Tomato Mayo

These may be the lazy days of summer but summertime meals can still be just as time constricted as any other time of the year. With a 5:30 baseball game to attend one evening, it left very little time for a family dinner but a little pre-planning saved the day once more. We had grilled chicken breasts the previous evening and purposely grilled extra chicken to make these delicious club sandwiches.

Some homemade Spicy Sun-dried Tomato Mayo made these a little extra special and ripe avocado slices added more flavor and creamy texture in every bite. My daughter declared this the best sandwich she's ever eaten and is already asking when we are having more. With a full roster of baseball games, dance and music camps and other summer activities in the coming weeks, I'd say the opportunity to enjoy them again is probably just around the corner.

Serves 4

• 4 sub sandwich rolls split and toasted
• 4 grilled boneless skinless chicken breasts, sliced
• 2 ripe avocados, sliced
• 12 slices crisp cooked smoked bacon
• baby spinach leaves
• Spicy Sun-dried Tomato Mayo

Spicy Sun-dried Tomato Mayo

You can make your own homemade mayo for this recipe or use 1 1/2  cups of good quality mayonnaise. Olive oil mayo works really well. Find my recipe for Lemon Olive Oil Mayo here.

• 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp crushed chili paste or sauce (more or less to taste)
  1/2 tsp black pepper
• pinch kosher salt
• 1/4 cup oil packed sun-dried tomatoes

Pulse together in a blender until smooth. Store in the refrigerator.

Chocolate Raspberry Avocado Pudding

Back in February I was honored to exchange guest posts with my friend Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama.  In case you missed the post, here's my Chocolate Raspberry Avocado Pudding recipe.  Please head over and make sure to check out Hybrid Rasta Mama, her site is fabulous, she writes about conscious parenting, real food, natural living,  holistic health and more.  Check out her latest post The Ancient Art of Fermentation ... it's fabulous. 

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Decadent, nourishing, creamy and smooth, this chocolate pudding is so delicious!

Chocolate, raspberry AND avocado?  Really?  Yes!  Avocado is full of healthy fats, protein, vitamin E and makes the pudding so creamy and smooth.  The raw cacao powder adds a bold, chocolaty flavor, it’s full of antioxidants and very high in magnesium and iron.  The raspberries are also an excellent source of antioxidants and are high in vitamin C.

Enjoy this rich pudding as a snack or for dessert.  It makes a wonderful dip too. 

Chocolate Raspberry Avocado Pudding

It’s a perfect snack for kids (or adults), cut up some chunks of fresh fruit and serve it as a cold fondue.  Don’t worry, the “green” flavor of the avocado will be masked by the other ingredients. 

Equipment: Food Processor, Fine Mesh Strainer, Medium-Size Bowl, Spoon

·      1 cup frozen or fresh raspberries

·      1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice – use Meyer lemons if you can

·      1-2 tablespoons filtered water

·      2 ripe avocados, remove skin and pit, quarter

·      ¼ - ½ cup raw honey (I use local raw clover creamed)

·      ¼ cup raw cacao powder (I use Divine Organics)

·      1 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla extract (I use Simply Organic)

FOR THE FULL RECIPE visit Hybrid Rasta Mama