13 November, 2015

VEGAN TEX MEX SALAD

Comments : 2 Posted in : DINE STAR, PLEASE DO NOT MEAT!, THESE ARE MY SALAD DAYS on November 13, 2015 by : blonDISHious Tags: avocado, beans, black beans, Chilli, coriander seeds, cumin, garlic, guacamole, lemon, mexican, nachos, olive oil, onion, red pepper, red wine, Rice, romana salad, salad, silken tofu, smoked paprika, spelt grain, spice, spring onion, sweetcorn, taco, tomato, tortilla wraps, vegan, vegetarian

My next DINE STAR is a beautiful blonde with a distinctive voice and überhits like “Lights”, “Burn”, “Love Me Like You Do” and “On My Mind”:

ELLIE GOULDING

I remember a comment a fan once wrote on one of her first videos on YouTube: “Hey Ellie, I like this voice effect you use. What is it called?”. She simply replied: “There is no effect. It is just my voice and the way I sing.” I am sure that was not the first time people wondered what made her voice sound so special and unique. Well, the answer is: it is her natural gift. Simples!

Apart from her great songs and energetic live performances it is so easy to like Ellie as a person. In the past 5 years I worked with her several times and we had some amazing and fun moments on the road whilst promoting her music on German radio. One of my favourite ones for sure was the “SWR3 NEW POP FESTIVAL” where she performed in 2010. I treasure the memories (and a few hilarious photos) of a legendary aftershow party including Lissie, Robert Francis and several glasses of Ramazotti (the liquor not the singer!) & champers….and the rest is history and remains untold 😉

I am very proud that Ellie contributed to my blog and I couldn’t wait to start cooking this dish by using her chosen ingredients.

She likes spices and nachos. So I decided to go towards a light tex mex salad. Since she is a vegetarian I have chosen a spelt grain & red rice mix instead of mincemeat. It gives the salad a bit of a crunch.

Mexican food can be quite fattening…but since Ellie is a passionate and active runner she should be ok 💪 Additionally my dish is made of healthy ingredients with not so many calories. Just go easy with the nachos and you will be fine. I also swapped sour cream for a light version made of silken tofu. This makes the dish not just vegetarian but also vegan.

So, here we go…

INGREDIENTS::
Bean purée:
200 gr black beans (soaked in water for about 12 hours)
1 large onion (diced)
1 garlic clove (minced)
1 chilli (chopped)
1 red pepper (diced)
1 glass red wine
1 big tomato (diced)
1 ts grounded cumin
1 ts smoked paprika
1 tbs tomato purrée
1 tbs vinegar
salt & pepper

Spelt grain & rice “meat”:
100 gr spelt grain
100 gr red rice
50 gr spicy salsa
2 ts grounded cumin
1 ts smoked paprika
a splash of Tabasco sauce
salt & pepper

Salad dressing:
30 ml lime juice
50 ml water
1 ts olive oil
1 garlic clove
1/2 ts grounded cumin
salt & pepper

For the salad:
2 heads of romano salad
1 red pepper (chopped)
2 large tbs sweetcorn
6 cherry tomatoes (cut in halves)

Guacamole:
2 ripe avocados
a splash of lemon
1 garlic clove (minced)
1/2 ts grounded coriander seeds
1 spring onion (chopped)
salt & pepper

Vegan sour cream:
200 gr silken tofu (extra firm)
1 tbs olive oil
2 tbs vinegar
1/2 spring onion (chopped)
salt & pepper

Decoration:
1 pack of tortilla wraps
or
1 pack of taco shells
1 small pack of nachos/tortilla chips
1 spring onion (chopped)

METHOD:
Bean purée:
Make sure you soak the beans overnight in lukewarm water for about 12 hours.
Drain the beans and cook them in fresh water for about 60 minutes on a medium heat.
In the meantime prepare “spelt grain & rice meat” as well as the guacamole & salad dressing and salad as instructed further down in this recipe.
Drain the beans when they are ready but make sure you save a bit of the bean water.
Chop the veggies (onion, garlic, tomato, pepper)
Put olive oil in a large pan and add onions and garlic.
Cook for a few minutes over a medium heat and add chilli and red pepper.
Cook for another 2 – 3 minutes.
Add red wine, tomato, cumin, smoked paprika and the beans.
Cook for 1 hour over a medium heat.
Put beans in a blender and mix until smooth. If the purée is too thick add a bit of the water you cooked the beans in.
Add tomato purée, vinegar and season to taste.

Spelt grain & rice “meat”:
Cook spelt grain and rice as instructed on packages.
Combine spelt grain and rice with salsa, Tabasco sauce, cumin and paprika in a pan and cook over a medium heat for about 5 minutes. Frequently stir.
Season to taste and set aside.

Guacamole:
Cut avocados in halves, remove stones and peel.
Mash avocados with a fork and add lemon, garlic, grounded coriander seeds.
Season to taste.

Salad dressing:
Mix all ingredients in a small bowl.

Salad:
Chop romano salad, pepper and tomatoes.
Put all ingredients in a bowl and drizzle the dressing over the salad.

Vegan sour cream:
Put all ingredients in a blender
Season to taste and add chopped spring onion

How to serve:
You could serve the salad with the bean purée, spelt grain & rice mix and guacamole on a plate with a few tortilla chips.

Alternatively you can serve it in a tortilla wrap or taco shell.

I used a tortilla bowl.
It is very easy to make and looks nice. But you need taco bowl baking tins to make them. They look like this:

All you have to do is: spray a very thin layer of olive oil over the tortilla wraps. Of course you can use a cooking brush.I prefer to use my hands to cover the wrap with a light layer of oil.
To shape them place the wraps into the baking tins and bake the tortillas on 190° C for about 5 minutes.
Take them out of the oven and let cool down.
The tortilla wraps will have become crispy and have the shape of a bowl.
Fill them with layers of the salad, the “vegan meat”, the beans & guacamole and top with the vegan sour cream.
Sprinkle chopped spring onion over the salad and decorate with nachos.

Enjoy!

Have a bonDISHious day,
Sabrina xxx

ARTIST INFO::

Ellie’s 3rd album “Delirium” including the smash hit single “Out Of My Mind” is out now!
She will be on tour throughout USA & Europe from the beginning of 2016.

WEBSITE:
OFFICIAL WEBSITE

TOUR:
EUROPE
USA

iTUNES:
BUY DELIRIUM HERE (GERMANY)
BUY DELIRIUM HERE (UK)
BUY DELIRIUM HERE (USA)

AMAZON:
BUY DELIRIUM HERE (GERMANY)
BUY DELIRIUM HERE (UK)
BUY DELIRIUM HERE (USA)