Did you know that tomorrow is National Taco Day? I have zero idea who decided Thursday, October 4th should be National Taco Day instead of a Tuesday, but maybe they just wanted people to celebrate tacos twice this week instead of stacking the celebrations. It also seems a little odd to have National Taco Day in October instead of some spring or summer date when tacos seem to be more on people’s menus, but I am definitely not complaining. Just curious. I’m especially not complaining because it prompted me to create these outrageous Thai Peanut Chicken Tacos! Spiced chicken thighs are layered inside warm tortillas along with some cabbage, cucumber and carrots before being drizzled with an Asian peanut sauce. The tacos are then topped with chopped peanuts and pickled red onions.

The initial inspiration for doing a Thai flavored taco smothered in peanut sauce came from my favorite burrito chain, Boloco. You might remember them from my New England Harvest Salad post, where I even mentioned their Bangkok Thai burrito. I knew if peanut sauce could work so well in a burrito that it would easily translate to tacos. Even though the easy microwave peanut sauce, similar to the sauce for the Sesame Peanut Noodles with Chicken, is delicious, the real star is the marinated chicken thighs. Lately I’ve been experimenting with spices I’m not as familiar with, such as turmeric and coriander, and Matt and I have surprised ourselves by being really into all the dishes I’ve tried so far. I also have been using chicken breasts for all my recipes for so long that I forgot how succulent and juicy chicken thighs can be.

The chicken only needs to marinate for one hour or it can be left overnight if you want it ready when you come home from work. The spiced chicken thighs get baked in the oven for about 18 minutes and after sampling a bite it was really hard to save all the chicken for the tacos and not dive right in. The seasonings along with the lime juice and zest have such a good balance of citrus, nuttiness and warmth, without being spicy. Unless you want it spicy and then you can certainly kick up the chili powder.

Another element in this recipe that I totally took from Boloco is the pickled red onions. Pickled red onions are sweet, vinegary, crunchy and have a very subtle onion flavor. They’re also bright pink and really amp up most burrito or taco combinations. The recipe here is for quick pickled red onions so all you need to do is heat apple cider vinegar, water, sugar and salt before pouring over the thinly sliced red onions to let them sit for one hour. That’s it! It’s so simple I’m shocked I don’t pile pickled red onions on every dish I make.

All together this taco has a winning combination of savoriness, acidity and sweetness and I am declaring it definitely worthy of being enjoyed on National Taco Day – and all subsequent Taco Tuesdays!

Thai Peanut Chicken Tacos

 

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Yield: 4 servings, 8 mini tacos

Ingredients

for the peanut sauce

• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
• 1½ tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1½ teaspoons sesame oil

for the pickled red onions

• ½ cup water
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• 1½ teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ red onion, thinly sliced

for the tacos

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1½ teaspoons ground turmeric
• 1½ teaspoons ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon chili powder (depending on spice tolerance)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• Zest from ½ lime
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 8 6-inch tortillas, warmed
• ½ cup sliced red cabbage
• ½ cup matchstick cut cucumber (see note)
• ½ cup shredded carrot
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
• ¼ cup chopped peanuts

Directions

for the peanut sauce

1. Combine the lime juice, peanut butter, soy sauce, water and sesame oil in a small bowl. Microwave for 45 seconds and stir until smooth.

for the pickled red onions

1. Combine the water, apple cider vinegar, sugar and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves then remove from the heat.
2. Place the sliced red onions in a bowl then pour the vinegar mixture over top. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour.

for the tacos

1. In a container or bowl large enough to hold the marinating chicken, combine the minced garlic, lime juice, olive oil, cumin, turmeric, coriander, ginger, chili powder, salt, black pepper and lime zest. Add the chicken thighs and toss until they’re fully coated. Marinate the chicken for at least one hour (it is safe to marinate for as long as overnight if you would prefer).
2. You can grill or bake the chicken. See the recipe note for grilling instructions. To bake the chicken, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the baking sheet with nonstick aluminum foil then place the chicken in a single layer. Bake the chicken for 18-20 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Let the chicken rest for a couple minutes then slice.
3. Top each warmed tortilla with the sliced chicken, red cabbage, cucumber, carrot, parsley and peanuts, dividing between the 8 tacos. Top each taco with some pickled red onions then drizzle each taco with the peanut sauce.

Notes

To cut the cucumber into matchsticks, first cut off the ends of your cucumber. Then, cut your cucumber in half or thirds if it’s really long so you have two (or three) pieces of cucumber. Then cut each piece into ¼” thick slabs. Stack the slabs and cut them into ¼” thick matchsticks.
To grill the chicken: Heat a grill to medium-high heat. Grill the chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. If you want to make sure you don’t overcook your chicken, you could grill them until they reach just over 160 degrees F and then allow for some carryover cooking. This is when the chicken continues to cook after it’s been removed from the grill. Temp it after a few minutes and make sure it has risen to 165 degrees F.

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Lauren Uncategorized 2 Comments

Happy October! October is my favorite month of the year for multiple reasons. First, it’s full of all kinds of fun dates, like my wedding anniversary, my birthday and Halloween (my second favorite holiday after Christmas). Second, especially for us New Englanders, the crisp weather and colorful foliage is seriously on point. Third, the weather has cooled off enough, but it’s not busy holiday season yet, which means time for making all the fall treats!

I was loving the Food Network Magazine’s concept for the October muffins – Apple Pumpkin Muffins. Pumpkin muffins are topped with some cinnamon spiced apples and a vanilla glaze. I have to be honest that these muffins were a bit of a letdown for me. I loved the apples and the texture was great, but it was missing one very important thing – pumpkin!

If I’m eating a pumpkin baked good I want it to immediately have a strong pumpkin taste, not a subtle, “I think this is pumpkin…” taste. I’m not surprised that the pumpkin flavor was so light since the recipe only uses half a cup of pumpkin. If I was to make these again I might try substituting an additional quarter cup of pumpkin puree for one of the eggs.

I might even use a different pumpkin muffin recipe entirely, but I would definitely keep the buttery cinnamon cooked apples on top. These apples would also be really good in last month’s Peanut Butter and Jelly Muffins instead of the jelly since apples and peanut butter taste so well together. Case in point – these Peanut Butter Apple Bars. The Apple Pumpkin Muffins might be a good recipe to make for someone who isn’t a big pumpkin fan and won’t be offended by the lack of pumpkin punch because they still taste good, I just had extra high hopes.

Looking ahead into November and December I have to say that I am not thrilled with the Food Network Magazine’s muffin picks for those months. Since I’m underwhelmed by the recipes (and they call for some odd ingredients) I’ve decided that I am going to create my own perfect November and December muffins so stay tuned!

Apple Pumpkin Muffins

 

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Yield: 12 muffins

Ingredients

for the apple topping

• 1 granny smith apple
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• Pinch of salt

for the muffins

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup sugar
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup whole milk
• ½ cup pure pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs

for the glaze

• ½ cup confectioners’ sugar
• 2 teaspoons whole milk
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

for the apple topping

1. Peel and core the apple. Cut into 12 wedges then chop each wedge into ½” pieces.
2. Heat a small skillet over medium-high heat. Melt the tablespoon of butter then add the apple pieces, sugar and pinch of cinnamon and salt. Cook until the apples are cooked and browned, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Let cool while you make the muffin batter.

for the muffins

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F then line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt to combine.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, melted butter, milk, pumpkin puree, vanilla extract and eggs. Stir into the flour mixture until just combined. Scoop the batter evenly into the prepared baking cups.
4. Bake the muffins for 2 minutes. Quickly and carefully, pull the muffins out of the oven and top each with some of the apple mixture, dividing among the baking cups. Return the muffins to the oven and bake for 20-22 more minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean. Cool the muffins in the pan for 5 minutes then let them cool completely on a wire cooling rack.

for the glaze

1. Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, milk and vanilla in a small bowl. If the glaze is too thick, add a little more milk. Drizzle over the cooled muffins and let set for 10 minutes.

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 Recipe from January/February 2018 issue of Food Network Magazine.

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Lauren Uncategorized 2 Comments

How gorgeous is this Roasted Beet Hummus?! This was not achieved with food dye or a photo editing trick. The hummus actually comes out this beautiful bright fuchsia color from the inclusion of a roasted beet. Making food look pretty isn’t my strong suit, but I didn’t even have to try with this one!

This Roasted Beet Hummus is my third recipe for my self-proclaimed healthy snack week. Hummus with carrot sticks, sliced cucumbers or whatever cut veggies I have in my fridge is my go-to afternoon snack. Of course, it tastes even more addictive when eaten with pita chips, but lately I’ve been sticking with the crunchy vegetables. For some reason I always forget to make hummus and instead buy it at the store. I’m not quite sure why, I’ve made hummus before so I know it is literally one of the easiest things you could make. Five basic ingredients get pureed in a food processor – done. After buying a new hummus flavor at the store that I ended up not liking I decided I should try getting back into making my own hummus so I could be sure it would taste good.

A few years ago I made Pumpkin Hummus, which is full of yummy fall flavors. I wanted to try making a different flavor and immediately thought of roasted beets. As most of you know, I love beets. Also, beets are really good for you! Yay healthy ingredients! The beet flavor adds some rich earthiness to the zing of the lemon juice and zest. So far I’ve been eating it with my usual crunchy veggies, but I’ve also eaten some with a spoon. Oh, sorry, that probably wasn’t helpful. You were hoping I would say something like, I’ve also eaten some spread on a big roasted turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato and cucumber or on some avocado toast. Or whipped into the egg yolks for deviled eggs or smeared onto a crispy flatbread topped with goat cheese and caramelized shallots. All of which sound AMAZING and now I’m definitely tempted to step out of my crunchy vegetable and spoon bubble.

This makes quite a bit of hummus, but I just discovered with a bit of Googling that hummus freezes well. I’m going to try it with half of the Roasted Beet Hummus and I’ll report back with how I froze it and how it tasted after being frozen. From what I read, for optimal texture and taste it shouldn’t be frozen a long time, which is perfect since I’ll probably be defrosting it to use in a week or two when I go through what I have in the fridge. Do you make your own hummus?

If you are looking for more healthy snack inspiration check out my recipes for Fall Trail Mix with Pumpkin Spiced Pepitas, Baked Apple Chips and Crispy Baked Kale Chips!

Roasted Beet Hummus

 

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Yield: about 2 cups

Ingredients

• 1 beet, scrubbed clean and stem removed
• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 clove garlic
• ⅓ cup tahini
• ⅓ cup olive oil
• Juice and zest from 1 lemon
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Take a piece of foil large enough to wrap and cover the beet. Peel the beet, but be careful - beet juices stain, including your fingers! If you would rather peel the beet after cooking, see the recipe not. Place the beet in the middle of the foil and very lightly drizzle with olive oil then lightly season with salt. Wrap the foil around the beet to create a little packet that is fully sealed. Place the beet on a baking sheet or pan (you might want to put foil on that, too) in case your packet falls over in the oven and beet juice leaks out. Roast the beet for 45 minutes, or until tender. You might need to roast for longer if the beet is very large. Let cool slightly - carefully cutting into the beet will help it cool.
2. If you haven’t already, cut the beet into quarters or large chunks. Put the cut beet, chickpeas, garlic, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest and salt in a food processor. Blend or pulse until smooth. Taste and adjust salt if needed.

Notes

There is not a big flavor difference whether you roast the beet with the skin on or peeled. I prefer to peel mine ahead of time so I can use it as soon as it’s done instead of waiting for it to be cool enough to handle to peel. If you want to peel yours after roasting, when it’s cooked and cool enough to handle, peel the beet by rubbing it with your hands and fingers under running water.

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Lauren Uncategorized 4 Comments

I am so excited to share the recipe for these Chocolate Cherry Coconut Energy Balls with you! I just went and ate one from my freezer to get in the mindset of writing this post. They are really good, which makes it especially hard not to eat them all. These energy balls are sweet, tart and screaming of chocolate, cherry and coconut flavors.

I wanted to be able to really taste each flavor and after a little trial and error I think I got the ratio just right. The chocolate – and the dark coloring of the energy balls – comes from the cocoa powder. I love the combination of chocolate and cherries so we have dried cherries to bring in our cherry flavor. Finally, coconut comes through via the unsweetened coconut and the coconut extract. There’s also coconut oil, but that actually has a very mild coconut taste in its raw form.

The reason I call these energy balls is because they have a combination of protein, carbohydrates and fats, perfect for giving you a little boost of energy during the day. The protein and some of the healthy fats are because of the walnuts, which also help give a subtle nutty flavor to the energy balls.

I’ll always think the best part of any recipe I post is the taste, so the second best part is how easy these little no-bake bites are to whip up in your food processor. Everything gets pulsed together then you roll them into balls while your hands become a sticky mess and you get ravenous breathing in all the chocolate, cherry and coconut scents.

I believe these Chocolate Cherry Coconut Energy Balls are paleo, but I’m definitely not a paleo expert so don’t quote me on it! If anyone is a follower of the paleo diet and knows whether all the ingredients are paleo or not please let me know in the comments. Either way, Matt and I love having these little bites in the freezer for whenever we need a little boost – I hope you all enjoy them as much as we do!

Chocolate Cherry Coconut Energy Balls

 

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Yield: 22 energy balls

Ingredients

• 10½ ounces of walnuts, about 2 cups
• 1¼ cups shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1¼ cups Medjool dates, pitted
• 1 cup dried cherries (sweetened sour cherries)
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon coconut extract
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. In a food processor, pulse the walnuts and shredded coconut until they resemble crumbs. Add the dates, dried cherries, cocoa powder, coconut oil, coconut extract and salt then pulse until a sticky batter has formed and no large chunks remain. Scoop the mixture into a bowl. You could form the balls right from the food processor, but I find it’s a lot easier and I have less waste if I form them from a bowl.
2. Line a baking sheet that will fit in your freezer with wax paper or parchment paper. Scoop up some of the mixture and use your hand to roll it into a ball. You will be making about 22 energy balls and your hands will get very sticky! As you form the balls, place them on the prepared baking sheet so they aren’t touching. Freeze them for at least one hour. You can store them in the fridge or the freezer in an airtight container. They should be okay in the fridge for 1 week and will stay longer in the freezer. I prefer to keep them in the freezer and then I let them sit for a minute before eating (or I eat them straight from the freezer if I don’t feel like waiting!).

Notes

The volume of walnuts changes depending on whether you are using whole, halved or pieces, so it’s better to go by weight. I used a mixture of whole and halved walnuts and it came out to 2 cups by volume and 10½ ounces by weight.

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Lauren Uncategorized 2 Comments

If you’ve never had roasted chickpeas you are missing out! Did you know if you roast chickpeas in the oven they turn into the crunchiest, crispiest snack? Mind blown! I don’t remember where I first heard about these, but it must have been from a food blog or food magazine. I made them about seven years ago in a tiny toaster oven and was instantly obsessed. Now I see them in packages all over the grocery store!

Of course you could buy them, but they are much more inexpensive if you make them yourself and then you can completely customize the flavors and ingredients. I used a blend of salt, paprika and garlic powder to keep them relatively simple for everyday snacking, but with just the right amount of flavor.

Over the years I’ve made roasted chickpeas quite a few times and I’ve finally settled on the method below that, in my opinion, achieves the crunchiest texture. I’ve been all about the top tips lately so here are my top two tips for getting really crispy roasted chickpeas. First, peel the chickpeas. Now, as anyone who has ever peeled chickpeas knows, it takes a fair amount of time. I personally find it soothing to stand there and pop the little chickpeas out of their peels, but I think it’s worth it since the peel can trap a lot of moisture in the chickpeas while they’re baking and keep them from reaching peak crunchiness.

Second, bake the chickpeas for a while before putting on any oil or seasonings. Basically, we’re dry roasting the chickpeas before introducing liquid to ensure our chickpeas get… you guessed it – crispy and crunchy! After they’ve had a chance to dry roast for a bit I use just a light mist of cooking spray before sprinkling with the seasonings.

I love this healthy snack on its own or especially on salads. This week is going to be all about the healthy snacks so I’m excited to share two more of my favorites with you later this week!

Crispy Roasted Chickpeas

 

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Yield: About 1 cup

Ingredients

• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and peeled
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• Cooking spray

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spread the chickpeas out in a single layer on the baking sheet. You don’t want them dripping wet, but it’s okay if they aren’t completely dry. Bake for 20 minutes, shaking the pan halfway through cooking. While the chickpeas are baking, combine the salt, paprika and garlic powder in a small bowl.
3. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and lightly spray with cooking spray. Sprinkle the seasoning mixture over the chickpeas and lightly toss to make sure they are all well coated. Spread the chickpeas back into a single layer then continue to bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until crispy. Let them cool slightly before eating. They can be eaten warm or at room temperature.

Notes

To peel the chickpeas, simply pop them out of their peels after a thorough rinsing. I find rinsing and scooping through them with my hands in the strainer tends to get off a lot of peels on their own. If you would prefer not to peel the chickpeas you could skip this step, but I find peeling the chickpeas helps in achieving the crunchiest texture.
Store in a bowl loosely covered with plastic wrap or a paper bag to help them keep their crispiness.

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Lauren Uncategorized 4 Comments