Epic Lentil Taco Salad
Hey, y'all!
Life has been extremely hectic these last couple of months. I'm sure you could tell, since I haven't blogged since January, lol. My work life was starting to outweigh my home life and become out-of-balance. I had three audits I participated in, a large annual meeting I had to prepare for and participate in, a court date or two (nothing serious, of course), and so on and so on. Last Thanksgiving, I decided that enough was enough, and after two years I could no longer handle the 1 hr 20 min commute (one way), the being on call 24/7, and the feelings of guilt and isolation from both my immediate family, and my parents and in-laws living 8 hours away. In addition, I was frequently stressed, tired, and moody, and with 15 hours of driving each week on top of 42-55 hour work weeks (depending on the week), I wasn't able to do many of the things I enjoyed: working out, cooking, reading... and everyone needs a hobby for their mental health. Furthermore, I was going to school at the time. Talk about a time suck.
After talking with my husband we started kicking around some ideas. We knew we would never move back to where we were originally from. Ever. That place is terrible: failing schools, lack of jobs, crime-infested, overrun with meth. It was #7 in a Newsweek article about the top 25 cities where crime is soaring... and that article is from March of this year. Yikes. We talked about KC, STL, and just returning to Missouri in general.
Finally, after four months of filling out job applications, I got my first call, and I knew that it was the job for me: staff scientist at a contract research lab. I've worked in labs in manufacturing for almost a decade and after managing the lab at a manufacturing facility, I was ready to work a regular 8-4:30 job, Monday through Friday. I was also ready to get back into the lab myself! I had a great team where I worked, but managing people isn't for everyone. I enjoy making decisions and managing projects, but I'm an introvert and I can be a little terse and a little blunt, which can sometimes come off the wrong way. Regardless, in the three months since my last post, I've had a heck of a lot of life changes, and for the better!
Know what the best thing about having more free time is?
FREAKING COOKING.
Cooking for a couple hours on Sunday is ok, but sometimes it's nice to get an urge to cook yourself a little something-something on a Wednesday, and not have it interfere with yourstrict bedtime schedule other obligations.
So yesterday for dinner, I made this:
Lentil Taco Salad.
Obviously the recurring theme on this blog is that I like tacos and Mexican-inspired food. I swear I do eat other stuff!
This salad was made with Lentil Taco "Meat" from The Abundance Diet, a vegan cookbook by Somer McCowan. It came out a few years ago. I made the lentil taco filling just like the recipe directed, except I didn't add the almond butter because that was just a little too odd for me. I also wound up using additional water, which made it a little more chili-like. I could've cooked it longer to thicken it up, but hey, the lentils were done and I was ready to eat.
The salad is a mix of my favorite things: a baby lettuce blend (that contains none of that E. coli infested romaine), shredded green and purple cabbage, roasted poblano and corn salsa, green onions, smoked jalapeno sauerkraut, homemade guacamole, and a squeeze of fresh lime. The first night I ate the lentil taco filling hot on my salad, which wilted the lettuce a bit, and I found to be kind of unpleasant near the end. However, today for lunch, I made the same thing, but ate the lentils cold and it was so much better. This salad would be excellent with a cumin-lime or a knockoff Chipotle vinaigrette, but I was too lazy to make one. It happens.
So while I won't share the lentil taco "meat" recipe (it's not mine to share), I will share my roasted poblano and corn salsa recipe! I found a blend of regular and roasted corn in the freezer aisle, but you can use regular corn, or toast thawed, squeezed dry corn in a dry skillet until it's as toasty as you like.
Roasted Poblano and Corn Salsa
1 1/3 c. frozen roasted corn
1 poblano pepper, washed
1/4 c. chopped onion
3 Tb. chopped cilantro
1-2 Tb. fresh lime juice
Kosher or sea salt to taste
1. Thaw corn, or rinse a few times with hot water until it isn't cold anymore, and squeeze out some of the excess water. Set aside.
2. In an oven set to 375F, roast the poblano pepper until blackened. You can oil it and place it on foil, but I was lazy and set it directly on the rack and it was fine (though you might want to put a piece of foil or a pan down for drips. Or just put it on a cookie sheet.).
3. Remove blackened poblano from the oven and place it in a bowl and cover it. Steam it for about 10 minutes, then remove the skin and seeds. Chop into pieces and add to the bowl with the thawed corn.
4. Stir in the chopped onion, chopped cilantro, lime juice, and salt to taste. Mix well, and add a little more salt or lime juice, depending on your tastes. It will keep for a few days in a covered container in the fridge.
3 servings. Per serving: 82 calories, 1.5 g fat, 13.8 net g carbs, 3.4 g protein.
Anyway, it's good to be back and to have my life back! There will definitely be more to come!
Life has been extremely hectic these last couple of months. I'm sure you could tell, since I haven't blogged since January, lol. My work life was starting to outweigh my home life and become out-of-balance. I had three audits I participated in, a large annual meeting I had to prepare for and participate in, a court date or two (nothing serious, of course), and so on and so on. Last Thanksgiving, I decided that enough was enough, and after two years I could no longer handle the 1 hr 20 min commute (one way), the being on call 24/7, and the feelings of guilt and isolation from both my immediate family, and my parents and in-laws living 8 hours away. In addition, I was frequently stressed, tired, and moody, and with 15 hours of driving each week on top of 42-55 hour work weeks (depending on the week), I wasn't able to do many of the things I enjoyed: working out, cooking, reading... and everyone needs a hobby for their mental health. Furthermore, I was going to school at the time. Talk about a time suck.
After talking with my husband we started kicking around some ideas. We knew we would never move back to where we were originally from. Ever. That place is terrible: failing schools, lack of jobs, crime-infested, overrun with meth. It was #7 in a Newsweek article about the top 25 cities where crime is soaring... and that article is from March of this year. Yikes. We talked about KC, STL, and just returning to Missouri in general.
Finally, after four months of filling out job applications, I got my first call, and I knew that it was the job for me: staff scientist at a contract research lab. I've worked in labs in manufacturing for almost a decade and after managing the lab at a manufacturing facility, I was ready to work a regular 8-4:30 job, Monday through Friday. I was also ready to get back into the lab myself! I had a great team where I worked, but managing people isn't for everyone. I enjoy making decisions and managing projects, but I'm an introvert and I can be a little terse and a little blunt, which can sometimes come off the wrong way. Regardless, in the three months since my last post, I've had a heck of a lot of life changes, and for the better!
Know what the best thing about having more free time is?
FREAKING COOKING.
Cooking for a couple hours on Sunday is ok, but sometimes it's nice to get an urge to cook yourself a little something-something on a Wednesday, and not have it interfere with your
So yesterday for dinner, I made this:
Lentil Taco Salad.
Obviously the recurring theme on this blog is that I like tacos and Mexican-inspired food. I swear I do eat other stuff!
This salad was made with Lentil Taco "Meat" from The Abundance Diet, a vegan cookbook by Somer McCowan. It came out a few years ago. I made the lentil taco filling just like the recipe directed, except I didn't add the almond butter because that was just a little too odd for me. I also wound up using additional water, which made it a little more chili-like. I could've cooked it longer to thicken it up, but hey, the lentils were done and I was ready to eat.
The salad is a mix of my favorite things: a baby lettuce blend (that contains none of that E. coli infested romaine), shredded green and purple cabbage, roasted poblano and corn salsa, green onions, smoked jalapeno sauerkraut, homemade guacamole, and a squeeze of fresh lime. The first night I ate the lentil taco filling hot on my salad, which wilted the lettuce a bit, and I found to be kind of unpleasant near the end. However, today for lunch, I made the same thing, but ate the lentils cold and it was so much better. This salad would be excellent with a cumin-lime or a knockoff Chipotle vinaigrette, but I was too lazy to make one. It happens.
So while I won't share the lentil taco "meat" recipe (it's not mine to share), I will share my roasted poblano and corn salsa recipe! I found a blend of regular and roasted corn in the freezer aisle, but you can use regular corn, or toast thawed, squeezed dry corn in a dry skillet until it's as toasty as you like.
Roasted Poblano and Corn Salsa
1 1/3 c. frozen roasted corn
1 poblano pepper, washed
1/4 c. chopped onion
3 Tb. chopped cilantro
1-2 Tb. fresh lime juice
Kosher or sea salt to taste
1. Thaw corn, or rinse a few times with hot water until it isn't cold anymore, and squeeze out some of the excess water. Set aside.
2. In an oven set to 375F, roast the poblano pepper until blackened. You can oil it and place it on foil, but I was lazy and set it directly on the rack and it was fine (though you might want to put a piece of foil or a pan down for drips. Or just put it on a cookie sheet.).
3. Remove blackened poblano from the oven and place it in a bowl and cover it. Steam it for about 10 minutes, then remove the skin and seeds. Chop into pieces and add to the bowl with the thawed corn.
4. Stir in the chopped onion, chopped cilantro, lime juice, and salt to taste. Mix well, and add a little more salt or lime juice, depending on your tastes. It will keep for a few days in a covered container in the fridge.
3 servings. Per serving: 82 calories, 1.5 g fat, 13.8 net g carbs, 3.4 g protein.
Anyway, it's good to be back and to have my life back! There will definitely be more to come!
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