I know this isn’t technically a taco buuut it is a taco bowl! It’s a fresh and  yummy way to get your taco fix without binging out on tacos.

serves 4

FISH

• 2 pounds of white fish –  halibut, haddock, sole, flounder or tilapia
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1 lime, zest and juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• safflower oil, for frying

To make the fish: Preheat a large cast iron skillet ( or any heavy pan ) over medium-high heat. In a shallow bowl mix together the flour, spices and zest. Dredge the fish in the flour mixture until evenly coated. Pour enough oil in the skillet to evenly coat the bottom. Cook fish in two batches adding more oil if needed. Make sure the pan is still sizzling; if not, turn the heat up a little. Cook for a few minutes or until the bottom of the fish is golden brown. Carefully flip. Cook for a few more minutes then add 1/2 the lime juice. Remove from skillet and set aside. Repeat.

CREAMY CHIPOTLE DRESSING

• 1 cup plain greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup vegenaise or mayonnaise
• 1-2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 1/2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp minced chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, if you can’t handle the heat make sure to remove the seeds. If you like heat feel free to add a little more!
• pinch of salt

To make the dressing: toss all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until fully mixed. Set aside.

SALAD

• 1/2 cup fresh corn kernels
• 2 ripe avocado
• 3/4 cup black beans, strained and rinsed
• 2 tomato, chopped
• 1/2 cup red cabbage, shredded
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 1 handful of lettuce per bowl
• cilantro for topping

To serve: Fill four bowls with corn, avocado, black beans, tomato, cabbage, red pepper, onion and lettuce. Top with fish and a generous drizzle of creamy chipotle dressing . Sprinkle with cilantro. Enjoy!

Want to mix it up a bit? Try adding any of the following to your taco bowl -

• Mexican rice
• shredded cheese
• chopped pineapple or mango
• chicken instead of fish
• fresh or picked jalapeno
• crispy tortilla strips like in this recipe

I came up with this recipe yesterday while brainstorming the millions of different types of tacos I could make for dinner. I just happened to have a butternut squash kicking around that needed to be eaten asap…and so the “pulled butternut squash taco” was born. This is another recipe in progress. Don’t take that the wrong way though, these taste amazing! I just mean I will definitely be playing around with it. I would like to make a healthier bbq sauce and maybe add a few tasty extras. So if you have a fave bbq sauce, feel free to swap it out for the recipe I used. Enjoy.

serves 8

PULLED BUTTERNUT SQUASH

4 cups butternut squash, shredded

1 red pepper, thinly sliced

1 green pepper, thinly sliced

1 large yellow onion, sliced in half moons

1 can of black beans, strained

safflower oil

BBQ SAUCE

3/4 cup ketchup

1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

1-2 tbsp honey

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp chipotle chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 1/2 tbsp mollases

1 tsp dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

TO MAKE BBQ SAUCE: Add all of the above bbq sauce ingredients in a medium sized bowl and whisk until blended.

TO MAKE THE PULLED BUTTERNUT SQUASH: In a Cuisinart using the shredder attachment, shred the butternut squash. In a large pan ( preferably one with a lid ) heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the shredded squash, peppers and onion. Cook, covered, for 10 minutes stirring throughout. Add 2 tbsp of water and cook, covered for 5 min. Add the sauce, as much or as little as you like. Add the black beans and cook for 5 more minutes.

TO SERVE: Warm taco shell of choice ( I used a soft corn tortilla ). Spread a layer of crema. Pile on some pulled butternut and top with avocado, shredded cheese and sriracha.

WANT TO MIX IT UP A BIT? TRY ADDING ANY OF THE FOLLOWING TO YOUR TACO-

-Shredded red cabbage

-pickled jalapeno

-Fresh diced tomato

-turn it into a breakfast burrito and add some scrambled eggs!

2 tbsp olive oil

2 medium onions, diced

1 large red pepper, chopped

1 medium zucchini, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp cumin

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp chipotle chili powder ( more or less depending on how much heat you like )

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4-1/2tsp liquid smoke

1 lb ground turkey

1 can diced tomato

1 can organic pumpkin puree

4 cups beans of choice ( I used black beans, black eyed peas and chickpeas )

4 cups veg stock

In a large pot over med heat add the oil. Now add the onions, red pepper, zucchini and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes or until tender. Add the turkey and cook for a few minutes until browned. Stir in the spices and add the tomato, pumpkin, beans and stock. Dump in the liquid smoke and worcestershire. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes to an hour ( Keep in mind the longer it simmers the better it tastes! ) 

To serve:

Top with your choice of- grated cheese, avocado, plain yogurt or sour cream, fried egg, hot sauce

Enjoy!!

Recipe adapted from BEARD & BONNET

• 1 package GF rice noodles
• 8 cups sodium free vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup Tamari GF soy sauce
• 2  Tbsp grated or minced ginger
• 4 1/2 cups assorted veg, I used shredded carrot, cabbage, sugar snap peas, crimini mushrooms, thin strips of red pepper, broccoli flouretts, bean sprouts and baby bok choi
• 1/2 cup left over water from cooking the noodles

Garnish:

• fresh chopped cilantro
• sesame oil
• sesame seeds
• hard boiled egg
• sriracha hot sauce

In a med sized pot add the veg broth, soy sauce and ginger. Stir. Over med/high heat let the flavours come together. In a separate pot cook the noodles according to package ( do not over cook ). While the pasta is cooking add the veg to the broth, allow to cook for about 2 min. Once the pasta is finished cooking reserve 1/2 cup of the starchy water then drain the noodles and rinse with cold water. Set aside. Add the starchy water to the veg and broth let cook for another min then remove from heat.

To serve. Divide the noodles into bowls. Drizzle with a little sesame oil now ladle on the broth and veg. Top with a sliced hardboiled egg some sesame seeds, fresh cilantro and a couple dashes of hot sauce. Enjoy!!

This was the perfect thing to feed my exhausted husband after he finished a long day of portaging a canoe all over the city for Amici’s Canoeheads For Kids event.

Recipe adapted from Thug kitchen

• 3 cups cooked chickpeas
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 crown broccoli, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 large lime

Spice blend:

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1 1/2  tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425. Chop the onion, red pepper and broccoli making sure they are all just a bit larger than the chickpeas. Mince the garlic and set aside. Toss all the veg in a large bowl along with the cooked chickpeas. Add the oil and soy sauce; now mix in the spices making sure everything gets coated evenly.

Place mixture on a large baking sheet ( or two ) and bake for 20 min. Remove from oven; flip the mixture and add the garlic and bake for another 15 min. At this point or maybe before this point you will probably think the mixture is burning and if you are like me you may be freaking the fuck out thinking the whole meal is going to be ruined and then you wont have anything to eat for dinner and you will have wasted all this food not to mention your time…if you are like me you may even take it out of the oven early and hum and haw over whether or not you should put it back and let it cook for the correct amount of time. PUT IT BACK – it will be fine, as Thug Kitchen says “it’s supposed to look that way”. Allow the mixture to finish baking; now take it out of the oven and squeeze the lime juice over mixture. Make your burrito. I used a little yogurt, some salsa, avocado, shredded carrots and cucumber. Enjoy.