These alkaline tacos from Tess Master’s Blender Girl are seriously addictive – and a lovely fresh take on this Mexican favourite that is perfect for a summer evening. I pop the nuts on the soak in the morning or the night before, then rinse thoroughly and cover in the fridge until needed. Soaking nuts gets rid of enzyme inhibitors that can play havoc with digestion allowing their health giving properties to be absorbed. It also makes them easier to blend. Check out Tess’s great summary if you want to know more on the health benefits of soaking and dehydrating or sprouting nuts, seeds and grains.
I found the recipe served 4 people as an entrée and 2 as a main, however the original recipe states double these amounts so see how you go. It was so tasty Hal and I polished it off in no time.
Filling
1/2 cup raw walnuts (soaked for 4 hours*)
1/2 cup of raw blanched slivered almonds (soaked for 8 hours)
1/2 cup soaked, drained and roughly chopped sun dried tomatoes
2 tbsp cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp Bragg liquid aminos, wheat free tamari, or coconut liquid aminos
1/8 tsp natural salt (I used a fine Himalayan salt.)
1 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
Pico de Gallo
1 cup diced tomato
1 1/2 tbsp finely chopped corianader, plus more to taste
1 tbsp diced red onion (shallots are nice too!)
1 tsp cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice, plus more to taste (I used way more! Just taste!)
1/4 tsp minced garlic, plus more to taste
1/4 tsp minced serrano chile, plus more to taste
natural salt (I used Murray River salt)
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
Slick Sour Cream
¼ cup almond milk (homemade or store-bought, works fine with soy milk)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 ½ tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice, plus more to taste
1½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar, plus more to taste (I liked mine with a touch less)
115g silken tofu
½ cup blanched slivered almonds
1 tablespoon white miso (I used ½ teaspoon dark miso and this worked)
¾ teaspoon salt (I used Murray River)
1 tablespoon chopped chives
20 medium to larger romaine or cos lettuce leafs (any lettuce like iceberg that is not too soft will do),
1 or 2 avocados, pitted, peeled and chopped ( or try making a chunky guacamole dip)
Methods
To make the filling, put the walnuts and almonds into your high-speed blender or food processor and pulse until broken up. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil, spices, liquid aminos, salt, and parsley and pulse until well incorporated and the mixture is “red & meaty” looking. Tweak flavour to taste (you may want more liquid aminos and salt) and set aside.
I added a lot more chilli and spices. I also added a cup of cooked quinoa and stirred this through the mix once it was blended. This made a more generous quantity, and slightly less dense tasting mixture. (Its so yummy I could have quite easily eaten the lot for myself – which is a lot of nuts!)
To make the pico de gallo, combine the tomatoes, coriander, onion, olive oil, lime juice, garlic, chile, 1/4 tsp salt and the pepper. Tweak flavours to taste (you may like more coriander, garlic, chile, lime juice, onion or salt)
To make the slick sour cream, put nut milk, olive oil, lime juice, and vinegar into your blender, then add the tofu almonds, miso, salt and garlic and blast on high for 1 to 2 minutes. Add another tablespoon of nut milk for blending if required. Tweak flavours. Transfer to small bowl, cover and chill for a few hours, until the mixture thickens and the flavours meld.
I used a mix of cashews and almonds. Tess advises reducing salt, lime and vinegar with cashews to begin with and adding more to taste. You could omit the tofu altogether and add more cashews till you get the consistency right. Add a ¼ cup of chopped coriander into the mix for a bit of zing!
To serve, fill lettuce cups with a teaspoon or two of the filling, pico de gallo, avocado and a dob of slick sour cream. You can make up beforehand, or let people self-assemble. Scatter with chopped coriander to serve.