Mexi-kale-y Mama Salad With The Most Perfect Vegan Sour Cream Ever

in Natural Medicine5 years ago

Excuse the kale pun, but I couldn't resist - any more than I could resist sneaking a few more jalapenos into my mex style salad. Toasted corn, sour cream and jalapenos make anything mexican to me. I can't get enough of that flavour pairing! Whilst my photos don't do it justice (note to self: teach yourself food photography over the summer holidays) this was one of the yummiest salads I've ever made, especially with the crowning achievement of finally nailing the vegan sour cream.

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The real trick was getting all the ingredients together first ready to assemble the salad together, in layers, kinda like lasagne. I've taken to cooking extra black beans when I use them so I can have them the next day in a salad, so that was easy. I am not a fan of tinned anything - it's cheaper to buy in bulk and less salt too. Cook according to directions on the pack. I often bring them to boil in the morning, wrap them in a towel to keep the heat in, and by evening they don't take long to cook. They are one of the only beans my husband can tolerate, so we eat them often, and gladly. They are full of protein, and may help protect the bones, which is something we need on a largely vegan diet! Next is to toast the corn and to make the chipotle olive pepper sauce and the sour cream. I've been buying the most amazing plain sugar free coconut yoghurt which gives this 'sour cream' a tang it was missing before, even though I was using limes.

Chipotle Olive Pepper Sauce
Dry fry or roast one red pepper (capsium) til tender.
Blend with a handful of green olives and tinned chipotles, or if you don't have any, two tbsps of spanish smoked paprika. I had found the olives already marinated - they were a revelation I tell you. A revelation.

Toasted Corn

I love toasting corn - makes for a far better, smokier flavour. I simply pan fry it without oil, but you could barbecue it, or plan ahead and roast it with your vegetables ready to shave the cob the next day for this meal.

Plant Based Sour Cream

A handful of almonds
A handful of cashews
2 small limes or lemons
2 large tbsps of coconut yoghurt

Blend - if too runny, add a little coconut flour to thicken it up. You might even like to blend this with coriander to make a creamy green sauce.

Kale Chips

As hipster as this sounds, you gotta massage your kale for this one. Tear into chip size pieces and drizzle with olive oil, salt and a good liberal sprinkling of smoked paprika. Massage into the leaves, then bake in a hot oven, making sure you don't burn the first tray like me. Those babies cook fast.

Then simply assemble your ingredients...

You can use whatever vegetables you like in between the layers - I had a few varieties of fresh garden lettuce, but I was out of cucumber, coriander and tomato which would have also been amazing in this. It's nice layered twice, so that you get a good dose of flavour all the way through. Lots of jalapenos, pleased - and liberal spoonfuls of that insanely delish sour cream. Honestly, it totally beats dairy sour cream! I dare you to try it next time!

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After having watched 'The Game Changer' on Netflix about plant based diets, I felt all inspired again in the kitchen. There seemed a lot of pre-formed vegetable proteins and vegan cheeses on that show - that's not how I learned to vegetarian cook, which was basically everything from scratch. In those days of course there wasn't a lot of vegan products on the market - TVP (textured vegetable protein), vegie sausages and canned nutmeat (ew) was about all there was. There's sooo many products out there now it's easy to be vegan, but to be honest, I prefer most things from scratch, and it's more fun that way.

My folks watched Game Changer too, and laughed it wasn't anything they didn't know already. They've been vego since the '70's, and sparse dairy, but watching this reminded them wwhy they do it, especially the inflammatory properties of meat, which Dad does not need as he needs to be as in good a shape as possible to ward off his cancer. I wonder if a vegetarian diet kept the cancer at bay as long as it did.

Did you watch Game Changer? What did you think of it?

If you'd like to join in the #fruitsandveggiesmonday fun, check out the challenge, hosted by @lenasveganliving. You can learn alot and be inspired by what others are posting. @lotusfleur is also encouraging a #veganwednesday if you missed Monday, so check that out too. Natural Medicine supports healthy food posts, especially plant based, so you can also earn LOTUS tokens that way too. Try posting these kind of natural health posts via www.naturalmedicine.io for instant LOTUS rewards!

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I want some!! :) Looks amazing and you described it so well that I could almost taste it.

O... that looks tasty... and healthy too 😘

Lovely and delicious looking salad treat yumyumyum

I want kale chips and the apple all of the time, but unfortunately, my oven still was broken for now. I try to save my money to bringing new oven into my kitchen. Hope new years make my dream come true. :)

I hope so too!!!

I totally agree about making things fROM scratch, although there is not always time for that. And yes, the market is changing by the minute with so many new products, even since 2011, when I became vegan. I was three years vegetarian prior to that. And, I have to check that movie on Netflix, I am surprised I didn't know about it.

Anyway, this Mexi-kale-y Mama Salad of yours is quite the creation! I am definitely inspired and I will be experimenting in January when all the Holiday stuff is over. I love Mexican food and it's time to make some new recipes. I never tried to make kale chips before, so that is also something to include on the list. Great recipe my Dear, I bet it was mouthwatering 😊

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Wow that is quite the compliment! Thankyou. I bet you can make it prettier than mine with your photography skills! It made the 'I would be happy to be served this at a restaurant' bar. X

You are most welcome my Dear and I agree, this would be perfect item for a vegan restaurant menu 😊

Yummy yummy yummy. You must love to cook. I'm a bit over it, having done it for a living for more than 40 years. I tend to stick to simple recipes, but you make me want to do this.
Question about the black beans - what is this they don't take long to cook?! I do the soaking thing but they still take AT LEAST 10 HOURS to cook. You bring them to a boil, then keep them warm all day and finish them off at night?

Yeah it never takes me that long! Boil, wrap in towel to insulate, simmer for 45 minutes or so. Try and see!

I definitely have uninspired times. Salads like this are so easy when you can't REALLY be bothered cooking!

What a fantastic combo of ingredients!!! and yes lol agreed, it did somewhat resemble lasagne.

It's a good one - you could barbecue your corn at your braaii (I'm sure I've got that wrong) and use it in a mexy salad the next day!

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I love me some Mexican food...this looks pretty good...Although I'm not a fan of kale mostly. I'll eat it, just don't love it.

Stop making me want to cook for you! I seriously think you would like the way I cook it ;)

Well, I'm happy to eat, so seems a match made in food heaven...😂