THE BEST DAMN NACHOS YOU EVER HAD! FEATURING DAIYA FOODS

I know, I know that is a pretty ridiculously bold statement to proclaim but what can I say. I am pretty impressed with myself on this one.

LOLZ. Gosh could I be less humble?

In all seriousness though, the first time I made these I was literally pulling together the "random" ingredients left in my fridge before I really had to go shopping.

Lentils, cauliflower, Daiya cheese, and chips were pretty much what was left and I figured I'd try my hand at nachos.

Funny how when we have a small box to work within (random ingredients), we really expand outside of it with our creativity and end up with a delicious unexpected recipe.

Of course I used my go-to vegan dairy-free cheese Daiya-Foods. They have two new flavors for their slices, Mozzarella and Smoked Gouda, both of which I used in this recipe and are really freaking good!

Ingredients:

• Oil for roasting and sauteing

• 1 medium head cauliflower, chopped into bite size florets

• 1 small onion, diced

• 1 3/4 cups cooked lentils

• 2 handfuls kale, chopped into bite sized pieces

• 2-3 tsp cumin, divided

• 2-3 tsp garlic powder, divided

• 2 tsp chili powder, divided

• pinch of cayenne

• 2-3 tbsp garlic sauce,*see note

• pink salt & pepper to taste

• 4-6 slices of Daiya Cheese Style slices, I used half Mozzarella and half Smoked Gouda

• chips

Toppings:

• cilantro

• green onion

• hot sauce

• avocado

• crushed red pepper

Directions:

Heat oven to 450 F

On a large baking sheet, lay out the cauliflower and toss with some oil, I used coconut. Then add half of the seasonings, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder and cayenne. Season with some salt and pepper. Toss well to evenly coat and then roast in the over for 5-6 minutes until crispy and brown on one side.

In a large skillet, melt oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the onion and saute, seasoning with salt and pepper for 3-4 minutes. Then add in the cooked lentils and kale and mix well for one minute. Lower the heat to lower and add in the remaining half of the seasonings. Add some salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and then turn off the heat. Set aside

Pull out the cauliflower once cooked and transfer to a bowl. Add in the garlic sauce and mix well to evenly coat. Set aside.

Lower the oven to 375 F

Using the same baking sheet, lay out chips generously to cover the entire tray. Then rip up the cheese slices using your hands and spread them out evenly to cover the chips. Place in the oven for 5-6 minutes. See picture below to see about how much cheese to chip ratio I used.

Take out the chips, layer on the lentils and cauliflower and then put back in the oven to warm up for 2-3 minutes.

Take out and add your desired toppings, including cilantro, green onion, hot sauce and avocado.

Serve immediately.

*NOTES:

For the garlic sauce, I used Trader Joe's store bought brand. Majestic also has a great option that you can find at most health food stores, or I found this recipe online you can use. I do not recommend skipping the garlic sauce it really makes this recipe burst with flavor.

NORMAL & HEALTHY EATING IS NOT ABOUT SELF-CONTROL

THIS IS NOT SELF-CONTROL.

I know- we’re led to believe the key to eating healthfully is willpower, discipline & self-control but it’s not.

I don’t try to control myself around food at all.

Its not what has me reach for nutrient-dense foods like these bowls over other foods, and it's not what helped me heal from my eating disorder either.

Back in the day, the more I tried to control myself, the more out of control I became around food.

The reason I no longer binge eat is not because I developed superhuman willpower and control, rather it is the result of a profound shift in perspective towards food and weight.

It wasn’t until I let go and shifted my mindset to self-care that all of a sudden things began to change.

I started to look from the perspective of taking care of myself and my body, not trying to control it or change it. I started to see myself and my body as already inherently worthy and enough as they were, in the here and now- not X-LBS from now.

I started to experiencing eating as a form of self-care that helped me live the life I wanted, it was a form of self-care the fueled my energy so I could chase after my dreams and create a life I loved.

It is my devotion to taking care of myself (self-care) that has me eat the way I do, not my disciplined attempts to control myself (self-control) that does.

So every time I am thinking about what to eat, I ask myself what feels most like self-care.

Sometimes it really is the french fries and other times it’s kale & sweet potatoes. It’s moment to moment.

xo C

P.S. In my bowl: kale, rice, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, cashews, edamame, tahini

FIRE ROASTED GREEN CHILE CHILI WITH QUINOA, BEANS AND CASHEW SOUR CREAM | VEGAN & GLUTEN FREE

Happy V-day fam.

I am not really into the commercial aspect of this day but I do like celebrating and expressing love regardless of what the calendar says.

One of my fav ways to do that is through cooking. Which you probably already know if you are a long time reader of this blog.

This chili was the result of not having much of anything in my fridge and really needing to go shopping but I knew my man was coming home from a particularly important day at work and I wanted to have dinner ready.

So I looked through the cabinet and saw that I could pull a chili together. Gotta love canned food for this reason!

Honestly, I am most creative when I appear to have "no food" in the house. When all my staples are dwindling, my ingredients don't match up in obvious ways, that's when the creative kitchen witch in me comes out.

Ok Ok, I get that chili is nothing new, nor very creative lol... my point is that I was about to go shopping then discovered I had some odds and ends I could toss together and this dish ended up coming out delicious and in less that 30 minutes which is how I like to roll.

FIRE ROASTED GREEN CHILE CHILI WITH QUINOA, BEANS AND CASHEW SOUR CREAM | VEGAN & GLUTEN FREE

Ingredients:

Chili

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 medium yellow or white onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup dry quinoa

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne

2 cups vegetable broth

1- 15oz can of fire roasted tomatoes with green chili (I got mine from Trader Joes)

1- 28 oz can of unsalted peeled diced tomatoes (I got mine from Trader Joes)

1 - 15oz can of each garbanzo beans, black beans and kidney beans, rinsed and drained (or any combination of 3 15-oz cans of beans that you have or prefer)

1 tsp liquid smoke (optional but recommended)

Cashew Sour Cream

1 cup cashews, soaked for 30 mins in almost boiling water

1/3 cup warm water (not the soaking water, this is for blending)

1 lemon, juiced

1-2 tsp apple cider vinegar, more to taste

pink salt and black pepper to taste

Garnish:

Green onion

Cilantro

crushed red pepper

Directions:

Start by soaking the cashews in enough water to cover them. Set aside while you make the chili.

In a large pot over medium heat, melt the coconut oil. Once hot, add in the onion and saute for 5-7 mins, until translucent. Add a pink of salt and black pepper. Then add in the garlic and spices. mix for 30 seconds.

Next, add in the quinoa and toast it. Stirring every 45 seconds for about 3-4 minutes. Then add in the vegetable broth. Bring to a boil then lower back to medium.

Add in the tomatoes and bring up to a simmer. Increase the heat of you need to but it does not need to fully boil, just a light simmer. Let the quinoa cook for about 8-10 minutes with the lid off, absorbing both the broth and tomato juices.

Once the quinoa is almost cooked, you can tell by looking at it, add in the beans. Mix for 1-2 minutes.

Make sure it's coming back to a low simmer. Add in the liquid smoke, salt and black pepper and put a lid on the pot and turn to low, letting it simmer for another 5 minutes while you make the cashew sour cream.

For the sour cream, add all the ingredients into a high speed blender like vitamix and blend on high until smooth. Taste it and see if you like the acid level and flavor. If not add some more lemon of vinegar and salt.

Ladle the chili into bowls and top with a big dollop of the sour cream and desired toppings.

ALSO, if you have been loving my recipes then you I am so excited to share that my first ever cookbook Vegan Buddha Bowls is now available for order.

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