Taco Tuesday: Vegan Tacos

Vegan food gets a bad rep sometimes. Now, I'm not sure about all those processed soy products claiming they're "cheese" or breakfast "sausages". But I do love the fresh, clean flavors vegan cuisine can provide...not to mention the whole good for the environment and animal friendliness thing. A simple mix of vegetables can create a delicious and filling meal without any cravings for meat! In my opinion, the best way to bring out the most flavor in vegetables is to roast them at a high temperature in the oven. You can use pretty much any vegetable but for these I picked up a nice variety of bell pepper, red onion, zucchini, and cremini mushrooms. To garnish I topped them with avocado, tomato, and homemade cashew pesto. 

 (I completely forgot the shrooms in this picture)

Vegan Tacos

Ingredients:

1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips

1 zucchini, cut into wedges

1 red onion, cut into wedges

a handful of cremini mushrooms, halved 

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

pepper to taste

1 tomato, diced

1/2 avocado sliced

corn tortillas

salsa or cashew pesto(see recipe below)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place sliced pepper, zucchini, onion, and mushrooms on a cookie sheet(lined with foil if you don't want to clean up the mess). Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on the salt and pepper. Toss to coat then roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, turning half-way through. Heat the tortillas and top with a variety of vegetables, avocado, tomato, salsa or cashew pesto(if using). Serve with a side of black beans and you've got yourself a meal!

For the cashew pesto, combine 1/4 cup of raw cashews, 2 handfuls of fresh basil leaves, 1 clove of garlic, and about 1/4 cup of olive oil. Season with salt then blend in a food processor until smooth. If the mixture seems thick, add more oil or a splash of water to loosen it up.