There’s much more to it than a diet, and I’ve know too many
vegans who only follow a certain diet for health, but even that is subject
to occasional non-vegan indulgences. I’ve watched a vegan order a plate of
French fries when out at a restaurant because “I can’t even trust a salad.” –
Great, healthy option there. Another acquaintance admits to being vegan “except
for when it comes to dessert.” Oh please.
This is not to put down any vegan or variation of a vegan
lifestyle because a complete, educated, and informed vegan will typically have
an extremely healthy diet. This is simply my two cents on being vegan and what
I’ve encountered, and I think it’s all or nothing. Veganism is not for me, but
I’m happy if it is good for you. Just make sure you’re well informed and ready
to discuss your diet and lifestyle choices at the drop of a hat!
That’s it. Go big or go home. Now onto the recipe that sparked
my rant…
Sweet Potato Enchiladas… that also happen to be vegan and gluten
free.
Ingredients:
8 8" corn
tortillas (Sonoma)
3-4 hefty sweet
potatoes
2-3 carrots
2 shallots
1 t minced
garlic
1 can black beans (Eden)
1-2 T taco seas.
(Simply Org)
1 T coconut oil spread (Olivio)
1 C fresh chopped cilantro
1 C salsa (Muir Glen)
Olive oil
S+P
Set oven to 350 and start heating a large skillet on the
stovetop
Chop shallots and add with garlic to heated, oiled skillet
Cut up sweet potatoes and carrots to even chunks for
sautéing
Once shallots are browned, throw in the potatoes and carrots
and more oil if needed
Cover and allow to cook on med-med hi, tossing mixture
occasionally, until soft
While potato-carrot mixture is cooking…
Start a small saucepan on medium heat and throw in the can
of black beans
Add coconut oil and taco seasoning and allow things to heat
up
Mash about half of the beans to begin forming a sort of
chunky paste in the pot
Once potatoes are golden and soft and the bean mixture is
heated through, get ready to build…
Place four tortillas on counter or cutting board
Add a spoonful of the beans to each
Spread beans evenly to cover most of the tortilla, leaving
an inch or so of an uncovered border
Add a large spoonful of the potato-carrot mixture to each
tortilla
Add a healthy pinch of cilantro
Repeat with remaining four tortillas
Once everything is assembled, roll tortillas and place in a
9x13 casserole dish
Cover rolled tortillas with salsa
Place in oven for 20 minutes to warm everything back
up and allow flavors to meld a bit
Yum! Veggie Enchiladas that are GF and Vegan!
Warning: These tortillas crack and can be a bit of a pain to
build initially. However, once in the dish, covered with salsa, and cooked they
are great. Let’s face it, they’re not your typical “wrap” you’ll find at the
grocery store with all the chemicals and emulsifiers needed to make them nice
and flexible. The Sonomas
are made with the only ingredients needed
to make traditional tortillas: corn, water, and lime.
Several techniques exist (all using oil) to make the
tortillas more user friendly, but as long as I’m not using them for tacos, I
don’t want to add the extra fat.
You'll see in the pic of ingredients a few things not mentioned. I typically make a sweet mango rice along with the enchiladas that is superb and simple. It involves cooking some jasmine rice in mango coconut water and adding some fresh, diced champagne mango a few minutes before it's ready to serve.
No comments:
Post a Comment