Tag Archives: vegan queso recipe

April 26, 2012 · 1:30 pm

BAKED TOSTADA SHELLS / BOWLS

Since Cinco de Mayo is just around the corner I have been thinking about what I want to serve for dinner that night and I thought a Tostada Bar might be fun.  Traditionally tostada shells are not exactly healthy (since they are fried), so today I played around in the kitchen and found out that it is actually REALLY easy to make baked tostada shells / bowls with corn tortillas.

I preheated the oven to 350 degrees, softened some corn tortillas (which can be done on the stove top, or in the microwave), shaped the softened corn tortillas into a bowl by placing them inside some small springform pans and topping them with little pastry molds to keep the middle of the tortilla down while they baked, and baked them for 15 minutes.   How easy is that?  I am sure the same method would work for flour tortillas as well…just watch the baking time since I haven’t tried it myself.

Here are some ideas for what to put-out for a Tostada Bar:

  • Beans (whole or refried)
  • Vegan sour cream
  • Shredded cheese (Daiya is our favorite)
  • Vegan Queso (click HERE for my recipe)
  • Salsa Fresca (click HERE for my recipe)
  • Guacamole
  • Chopped onion
  • Sliced olives
  • Sliced Jalapenos
  • Shredded lettuce or cabbage
  • chopped cilantro
  • A variety of hot sauce
  • Corn
  • Quinoa
  • Brown rice
  • Finely chopped mushrooms cooked down with taco seasoning

Is there anything you would include in your Tostada Bar that I haven’t listed???  I’d love to hear your ideas.

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February 3, 2012 · 2:30 pm

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL???

I am not very versed in football.  That may not seem unusual or sad to you until you learn that I was a songleader from 7th grade through my Junior year of high school (Why am I always so embarrassed when I admit that?).  It is really criminal how little I know about the actual rules of the game.  Shouldn’t they have taught us the rules at one of the gazillion cheerleading camps I attended?

All I can say is thank goodness for Lisa Bognanno!  That girl knew the game…I mean she REALLY knew the game.  Without her we would have been stuck up there on our stools yelling out generic offense or defense cheers exclusively.  Enjoy the game Lisa (I am sure she will actually be watching the game).  I on the other hand am really looking forward to the commercials, though truth be told I do wish I understood the game!

Confessions aside, the food is always really fun at Superbowl parties, though usually not vegan…yay for guacamole!  On New Years day I made a spread for us to nosh on that would be perfect for game day.  I didn’t even plan on photographing it, but my sister-in-law forced my hand and now I am glad she did.  These pictures would have been much more “artsy” if I actually planned on taking them (and I probably would have removed the paper towels from under the strawberries!), but I guess this gives you a real glimpse into our home and what I serve when we have private occasions.

I made chocolate fondue (recipe to follow in a later post) which I served with fresh fruit (strawberries, bananas, cut apples, and sliced pear) and a 7 layer dip (which was technically 6 layers).

For the layered dip I used (listed bottom layer to top):

  • Amy’s Organic refried black beans (my favorite refried bean)
  • My vegan queso (click HERE for recipe)
  • Homemade guacamole (made with my salsa fresca)
  • Tofutti Sour Supreme
  • Salsa fresca (click HERE for recipe)
  • Sliced black olives
  • NEXT TIME I WILL MAKE A 7th LAYER WITH CHOPPED CILANTRO

This layered dip was seriously enough to feed an army.  I am not sure what I was thinking, but the left-overs made awesome taco salads for days.

I served the dip with different chips (baked tortilla, regular tortilla, and TJ’s corn chip dippers) and crudites.  Personally I prefer to eat it with the sliced veggies (celery being my favorite for this), but I also do like baked tortilla chips.

What are your must have’s food-wise for the game?

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Filed under Appetizers, Events, Gluten Free, Holidays, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

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