Grilled Vegetable and Black Bean Tostada with Avocado Cream & a Giveaway!
PIN IT!Hi friends! Happy Monday! I’m still in Las Vegas doing some work so I have the lovely Jen from Savory Simple here to share this amazing grilled vegetable and black bean tostada recipe with avocado cream.
Don’t it look incredible? Oh, but not only that! I also have a GIVEAWAY for y’all so you can make your own favorite Mexican inspired dishes at home! Before we get to that, I want to introduce Jen, a featured August sponsor!
This girl is seriously talented in the kitchen and behind the camera. Just one glance at her photographs and you’ll completely get it. Her dishes are inspiring, innovative and creative. Plus, her blog is fun to read and as a culinary school graduate, she has such a fabulous perspective on food and ingredients. So please give Jen a big warm welcome and check out these amazing tostadas!
Grilled Vegetable and Black Bean Tostada with Avocado Cream
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 6 tostadas
Ingredients:
For the Beans:
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 jalapeno, finely diced
- a handful of cilantro, chopped
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- a pinch of black pepper
For the Avocado Cream:
- 1 avocado, pitted and diced
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1/4 cup grapeseed oil (or any neutral flavored oil)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon neutral sweetener such as agave nectar or Karo corn syrup
For the Grilled Vegetables:
- 1 red onion, sliced into half moons
- 1 green or purple pepper, sliced into 1/2 inch strips
- 1 red pepper, sliced into 1/2 inch strips
- 1 poblano pepper, sliced into 1/2 inch strips
- 1 yellow squash, sliced into 1/2 inch strips
- 1 ear of corn with the husk
- a high heat oil for grilling (grapeseed, canola, regular olive oil, etc.)
Additional Ingredients:
- 6 corn tortillas
- Cilantro for garnish
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment.
- Brush the corn tortillas with a bit of oil, sprinkle lightly with salt and bake for 15 minutes.
- Prepare the beans: In a medium bowl, combine the black beans, lime juice, jalapeno, cilantro, salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Prepare the avocado cream: In a sturdy blender or food processor, puree the avocado, lime juice, grapeseed oil and sweetener until smooth. Set aside.
- Brush all vegetables lightly with and a sprinkle of salt.
- Grill the corn directly in the husk until charred. Allow it to cool for before carefully removing the husk and silk. Slice the corn kernels from the ear and combine with the black beans.
- Grill the rest of the veggies on both sides until tender and lightly charred.
- To assemble: place a baked corn tortilla in the center of a plate and top with a generous helping of the black bean and corn mixture. Follow with the vegetables and avocado cream. Garnish with cilantro and serve.
AND now for the giveaway! The amazing people at MexiAmerica sent me a box filled with all different kinds of tortillas to play around with, like whole wheat, honey wheat and gluten-free, to name a few!
Tortillas, especially corn, are a low fat, healthy way addition to any meal. Plus, most tortillas are lower in carbs and calories than traditional bread, so swap your sandwich bread for a whole wheat tortilla and make a wrap instead! So, how can you win an entire box of fabulous tortillas and wraps? Follow the prompts below!
Spring Rolls with Shrimp, Tofu and Melon Recipe
Howdy friends! Happy Thursday! I leave for Vegas tomorrow morning and I literally have about 10,000 more things to do. So, while I run around frantic like a chicken with its head cut off (and feet cut off too for that matter), I’d like to introduce you to the lovely Barbara of Barbara Cooks! Well, technically you met her a few weeks ago, but she’s here today to share a spring roll with shrimp, tofu and melon recipe! So take it away!
Hello everybody! I’m so pleased to be able to guest post on Miss Claire’s blog today. She is such an inspiration and a lovely person. I’ve been so happy to be a sponsor on her blog! My name is Barbara and my blog is so cleverly named Barbara Cooks. I strive to make healthy food that will fool all your family members and friends into eating better. I also have a penchant for experimenting with different ingredients, spices and flavors. I like to give the ordinary everyday a little twist to make things interesting.
I recently tried a Korean melon for the first time and after I bit into its crisp sweet flesh I knew immediately that I wanted to put it in a spring roll. Spring rolls make a great appetizer or an alternative to salad. The key is to use fresh chilled ingredients. You can put all kinds of ingredients in them but my favorite includes shrimp and tofu. In these, I added the Korean melon, chives and perilla (or sesame leaf).
Korean melons are crispy like an apple but taste similar to honeydew. Perilla is earthy and nutty. If you have an Asian market nearby, these ingredients should be readily available. As an alternative, honeydew melon or pear and mint would be a great addition instead of the Korean melon and perilla.
I believe cooking is all about experimentation so if you can’t find or don’t like a particular ingredient, switch it up! Just be sure to let me know when you come up with a good combo so I can try it too!
Spring Rolls with Shrimp, Tofu and Melon
CLICK HERE FOR THE PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS RECIPE!
Serves about 12.
Ingredients:
- 12 large spring roll wrappers
- 2 ounces thin rice vermicelli (mai fun)
- 24 medium cooked shrimp, butterflied and tails removed
- 6 ounces tofu cut into 12 strips
- 6 sesame leaves, split in half (substitution: mint leaves)
- 1 bunch chives (about 2 ounces)
- ½ Korean melon, cut into strips (substitution: honeydew melon)
- 2 cups fresh bean sprouts
- Sweet chili sauce for dipping
Directions:
- Soak the vermicelli in cold water for 10-12 minutes or until softened. Drain and set aside.
- Fill a shallow dish with water. Quickly wet 1 spring roll wrapper in the dish and place flat on a cutting board.
- In the half of the wrapper closest to you, layer 2 shrimp, 1 tofu strip, ½ sesame leaf, a few chives, 3-4 pieces of melon, a small palm full of vermicelli and several bean sprouts, leaving 1 ½ inches free on each side.
- Roll up like a burrito, folding over the sides and end closest to you and rolling up away from you.
- Repeat until all rolls have been assembled. Serve with the sweet chili sauce for dipping.
Nutritional informational per 1 roll with 2 tablespoons sauce:
Calories:123
Fat: 1.6 grams
Carbohydrates: 14.3 grams
Fiber: 0.8 grams
Protein: 9.3 grams
Weight Watchers Points: 3
Roasted Asparagus and Poached Egg Canapè Recipe
Helllloooooooo! (Said in my best Julia Child voice). Do you know what today is? Why, it’s Julia Child’s birthday, of course! Let’s celebrate with roasted asparagus and poached eggs!
[photo via PBS]
She would have been 100 years old today, can you believe it? Like every other food blogger and lover in the world, Julia is sort of a heroine for me. She cooked because she loved it and she loved to eat. Simple enough, right? I think we lose sight of why we cook and why we love food as bloggers and it’s important to step back and gain a little perspective. Cook to love or don’t cook at all. You know? Well, happy birthday dear Julia! To commemorate, I made something kind of French.
I was thinking “oh I’ll make one of her recipes!” and then I remembered I leave for Vegas in 2 days, have 16,000 things to make for work and have about 4 articles due. So instead, I made something kind of French, a roasted asparagus and a poached egg open face sandwich, or as the fancy French say, a canapè.
Open face sandwiches are the bomb. Yes, I’m bringing that back. You get all of the incredible flavors of your sandwich fillings without all the bread. Don’t get me wrong, I love regular American sandwiches, but sometimes, I just don’t need or want that much bread. Plus, with thicker, crusty bread like this (Ciabatta), you really don’t need a top and a bottom. Besides the lower carb aspect, what really makes this recipe SING is the poached egg. I’m a sucker for runny yolk.
COME TO MAMA. This was my second time ever poaching an egg (well, fourth if you count my first string of mess-ups) and I’m happy to say this poaching process only took the life of 4 EGGS (as many as the recipe calls for)! No more were sacrificed to the water gods b/c I can’t poach.
We got these beautiful eggs at the farmers market and I couldn’t wait to use them. E, of course, was like “we have a bunch of eggs from Costco, is there even a difference?” Is there even a difference. HA! Silly man, of course there is. But I digress. Each bite of this perfect breakfast sandwich is filled with runny egg on crispy bread perfection.
I mean, that’s a thing of beauty, right? But that’s not all. You also get the bursting flavors of the slow roasted asparagus paired with the fabulous shavings of champagne white cheddar cheese. It’s truly an orchestra of the best flavors ever. And I’ll be honest. I needed a break from goat cheese. I’m fearful I’ll fall dead at 27 with a heart attack due to goat cheese blockage.
Roasted Asparagus and Poached Egg Canapè
CLICK HERE FOR THE PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS RECIPE!
Yields 4.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 pound of asparagus
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 4 slices of thick bread (I used ciabatta)
- 4 eggs
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup grated white cheddar champagne cheese
- Liberal dashes of salt and pepper
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut ends off asparagus and disgard. Place asparagus side by side on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Place in the oven and roast for 8 minutes. Flip the asparagus and roast another 8 minutes. Remove from oven.
- Meanwhile, poach your eggs. Bring a full pot of water to a rapid simmer (DO NOT BOIL). Add rice vinegar. Crack your eggs, one at a time, into shallow bowls. Carefully pour the egg into the simmering water. Using a slated spoon, gently move the egg whites over the egg yolk. Turn off the heat, cover and let sit about 4 minutes, or until the egg whites are fully cooked. Using the same slated spoon, very carefully remove the egg from the pan onto a plate. Repeat until all your eggs are poached.
- Place about 5 asparagus spears on the bread. Sprinkle with about 1 tablespoon of grated cheese. Carefully put the egg over the cheese and asparagus. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Serve warm and enjoy!
Nutritional information per canapè:
Calories: 300Fat: 10
Carbohydrates: 30
Fiber: 4
Protein: 16
Weight Watchers Points: 7
Ravioli with Spinach, Bacon and Goat Cheese Recipe
I feel like I need a disclaimer here. Friends? This dish? It’s not that good for you. And I’m sharing it anyway because you know what? Sometimes I eat unhealthy meals. GASP! CALL THE PRESSES!! GROUND-BREAKING NEWS!
Sense a little sarcasm in that last paragraph? 🙂 I’m only kidding, kind of. I made this amazing dish for work and it was too good NOT to share, you know?
Which is no surprise because it has ravioli, bacon, goat cheese and wilted spinach. Oh, and the wilted spinach was cooked in bacon grease. Bahhah! This dish won’t make you skinny, but it’ll make you happy.
I mean really. Can you get any better than cheese filled pasta shells, paired with crispy bacon, goat cheese and BACON SOAKED SPINACH? If I could eat one thing for the rest of my life it would be spinach wilted in bacon grease.
This is the PERFECT meal if you’re having a bad day and you just want some bacon comfort food. Or, if you’re having a great day and just want some goat cheese. Or if your day is indifferent and you want to perk it up. I mean, you could make regardless of your mood and your day would end up happy. Like reading rainbows, puppies, butterflies everywhere kind of happy. Which is exactly why I’m sharing it.
It may not be skinny, but damn it’s good. CLICK HERE FOR THE DELICIOUS RECIPE!!
Nutritional information per serving:
Calories: 419.5Fat: 15.25 grams
Carbohydrates: 47.5 grams
Fiber: 5 grams
Protein: 22.75 grams
Weight Watchers Points: 11
Claire
Tags:bacon recipes, goat cheese recipes, healthy recipes, low-fat pasta recipes, pasta recipes, ravioli recipes, spinach recipes
Mandalay Bay Food & Wine Event Teaser
Happy Tuesday, friends! If you’re starving for a new recipe, stay tuned! I have one of those coming up right after this! Right now, I’m going to gush a bit about my trip to Vegas this UPCOMING weekend for the Food and Spirit’s Weekend! Vegas, it’s my happy place.
The event is being held at the BEAUTIFUL Mandalay Bay resort and casino. Guys, can I tell you how much I love Mandalay Bay? It was one of the first casinos I went to on my very first trip to Vegas (January of 2009) and I’ve been hooked ever since. This year will mark my first year actually staying there. Since most of the rooms look like this…
and the pool like this…
[Photo via Mandalay Bay]
Well, I guess you could say I’m a little psyched. But that’s not all I’m pumped up about! The line-up of events is incredible. On Friday, we’re meeting and mingling with some fabulous wine makers at THEhotel at Minus5° Ice Bar. THEhotel is super duper fancy and the Ice Bar is one place I’ve been dying to check out. Pair wine, wine makers and a fabulous setting and you have one happy girl. Plus, we get dinner at STRIPSTEAK. So, yeah.
We have a full day of fabulous activities lined up for Saturday, including a late brunch and champagne toast. After that, a lunch at Fleur by Hubert Keller. Which is completely awesome. Then we have an interactive session with Vincent Pilon and a private dinner with Private Dinner with Christophe and Jeff Yedlin.
[via Mandalay Bay]
One of my favorite parts of the itinerary, though, HAS to be the private viewing of a concert with Colbie Calliat and Gavin DeGraw. Yes, you read that right. Private viewing. Oh and we get dessert too, of course.
On Sunday, we have a fun farmers market activity and I get a two hour spa appointment at Mandalay’s fabulous spa.
Can I just say I LOVE MY JOB? Because I freakin’ LOVE MY JOB.
