So my husband decided to go on a 40-day cleanse a few weeks ago... which basically meant that I had to step up my vegan cooking skills for him and the family. I will say that though it was challenging, it was also rewarding to know that I was feeding my family (and my pregnant body) both nutritious and hearty meals.

In my weekly meal prep brainstorming I came up with the idea of this citrus ‘al pastor’ dish. I had just gone shopping to Vallarta Supermarket and had purchased these beautiful oranges, cauliflower, achiote power, tostadas caseras, and my fave can of refried black beans (among other Mexican goodies). I had also just re-watched Netflix’s The Taco Chronicles and the Al Pastor episode was lingering on my mind all week long. I knew my husband couldn’t indulge on pork, and somehow my brain clicked and this recipe was born.

I chose to layer the cauliflower on tostadas because it easily transformed the cauliflower from a side dish to an entree.). Also, when choosing the right tostadas, I recommend you use the ‘caseras’ from your local Latino Super Market. They are not only more flavorful, but are thicker and have a great crunch to them. They will also hold up a heavier serving on top…. because believe me, you are going to want seconds and thirds! I also suggest you don’t skip out on layering the tostadas with refried beans. They compliment the cauliflower beautifully and add another layer of flavor (I like to use the brand Ducal when I don’t feel like making my refried beans from scratch)

Hope you enjoy! Please don’t forget to tag me on the gram @bricialopez … I love seeing your recipe recreations!

DIRECTIONS

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat and add the onion. Cook, stirring until tender, about five minutes or so. Add the garlic, chipotle powder, cumin powder, tomato paste and ½ teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring for one to two minutes until fragrant and the tomato paste has turned a shade darker. Add 1 more tbsp of oil, the cauliflower, achiote powder, pepper and another ½ teaspoon of salt. Continue to cook, stirring for about 5-7 minutes, until it has soaked up all the seasoning and cauliflower has begun to brown. Add the orange juice and zest and bring to a simmer. Cover, and reduce the heat, and simmer for another 10 minutes. Remove from heat and test for tenderness. Cauliflower should have reduced in size by a third and be tender to the touch.

To assemble tostadas smear about a tablespoon of refried beans on top of each tostada. Follow by topping with cabbage, avocado, cauliflower, crema and micro cilantro.

AL PASTOR CITRUS CAULIFLOWER TOSTADAS

(MAKES 12 TOSTADAS)

INGREDIENTS

FOR CAULIFLOWER:

2 tbsp grapeseed oil

½ onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp chipotle pepper powder

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tablespoon tomato paste

Salt, preferable kosher sea salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 medium head of cauliflower, coursely chopped

2 tsp achiote powder

½ cup fresh squeezed Orange Juice

2 tsp orange zest

FOR TOSTADAS:

6 Tostadas

8oz Refried Beans

Cabbage (or leafy greens of choice), shredded

Pickled red onions

Bits of orange and/or pineapple slices

Queso Fresco

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Bricia Lopez.

I made these Chipotle Camarones for fathers day this year and my husband has been requesting them on the daily ever since. Enjoying my new deck outdoors and cooking family meals for everyone has been extremely therapeutic for me these past few weeks. I love being able to feed my family. I keep thinking about how all of us will have 2020 embedded in our brains for the rest of our lives. How will each of us remember the spring/summer of 2020? That question keeps lingering through my thoughts. I want my family to remember our great family meals before anything else when looking back. I want us to remember the wonderful times we spent in the kitchen and eating home made meals regularly. I want us to remember the conversations that were had and food be at the center of it all. And at the end of the day, to me this is what life is about great food and quality time with family and friends. This summer season, cook up more family meals at home (like this grilled chipotle shrimp). It’s not only packed with flavor, but quick and easy to make.

Though we do have an outdoor grill at home that we absolutely LOVE, sometimes the idea of turning it on every day for a weeknight meal isn't as feasible as one may think. I love this recipe because you can achieve the same grilled results by simply using your broiler at home for a super quick weeknight family meal. Feel free to adjust the chipotle seasoning to taste and also serve it at the table for those who want more of that smoky chipotle flavor in their dish. I love using Tabasco’s Chipotle sauce because of its smoky, light, yet robust chipotle flavor it brings to the dish. My 5 year old had these in a taco on a flour tortilla and absolutely loved them. Feel free to serve these as a family meal dish on their own with fresh minced parsley on top. You can easily also enjoy them as tacos on flour tortillas. I would put an entire bowl at the middle of the table, and pair it with different taco ingredients like cubed avocados, pickled onions, crema, slaw, cilantro and green onions to make it a taco night at home.

Directions

Start a charcoal or gas grill. Make the fire as hot as it will get, 500°F. Alternatively you could heat up your stove broiler to its highest temperature and put the rack close to the heat source.

Mince garlic with salt; mix with Tabasco Chipotle and paprika. Stir in olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest butter, and minced herbs. Combine until ingredients have reached a paste like consistency.

Smear paste on shrimp and allow to marinade at room temperature for 10 minutes. If using your broiler, lay your shrimp evenly spread out on a sheet pan. Broil or Grill your shrimp 3 minutes a side, turning once. Serve immediately or at room temperature with lemon wedges and a side of Tabasco Chipotle for those who are chipotle lovers!

Ingredients:

1 large clove garlic

1 (17gr) tablespoon coarse salt

2 tablespoons (22ml) Tabasco Chipotle

½ teaspoon (1.25gr) smoked paprika

½ tablespoon(15ml) olive oil

2 tablespoons (30ml) of fresh-squeezed lemon juice

Zest of one lemon

1 tablespoon (14.2gr) of butter, at room temperature

2 tablespoon (7.5g) minced cilantro, parsley and chives

1 - 1 ½ pounds (1/2 kg) shrimp, in the 15-17 a pound range, peeled, deveined, rinsed and dried

Lemon wedges

Posted on July 8, 2020 by Bricia Lopez.

Hello M&M family! Do you all remember when quarantine started and we thought summer was going to be the season when everything went back to normal? I sure do. I’ve been home with a pregnant belly finding ways to entertain a 5-year-old and manage my businesses from home. The kitchen continues to be my safe space and a time for me and my son to bond and sneak in an ‘activity’ in between my work and his screen time. This week, he and I made paletas, a regimen we started a couple of months back. It started off by experimenting with different aguas frescas recipes and as the temperatures began rising, we just thought why not just kill two birds with one stone and turn half of the already made batch into paletas. During the process I found two new hacks that will help you out.

To turn any agua fresca recipe into a paleta one, just up your sugar content by half.
To properly blend your water and sugar, use a blender instead of stirring it in like our moms used to (or at least mine did). This will automatically turn your water into a syrup-like consistency that will work wonders for your agua and paletas recipe

This week's paleta flavor was inspired by a partnership with the Citrus Pest & Disease Prevention Program. When they reached out about a partnership, I had to say YES. I had no idea that our citrus in California are actually in jeopardy because of a pest called the Asian citrus psyllid, which can infect citrus trees with a deadly citrus tree disease called Huanglongbing or HLB. Once the tree is infected there is no saving it, so it’s crucial that we keep an eye out for signs of the disease and comply with local agriculture officials who are inspecting citrus trees here in Southern California. The University of California has recommendations on how to keep your citrus trees healthy.

I, like many people, have really been investing in my garden. One of the trees I potted back in spring was a lemon tree, so learning about this pest threatening our trees was eye opening. Of course, the best way to protect citrus trees from HLB is to stop the tiny pest that can spread the disease, the Asian citrus psyllid. The University of California has recommendations on how to keep your citrus trees healthy.

Also, check for symptoms of HLB on the tree whenever watering, spraying, pruning or tending your citrus trees. Here are a few symptoms you should be aware of when checking your own citrus trees at home:

Blotchy, yellowing leaves
Fruit drop
Lopsided fruit
Rancid-tasting fruit

If you spot HLB in one of your trees, please call the California Department of Food and Agriculture hotline at 800-491-1899 as soon as possible.

Naranjas & limones are an essential part of my diet these days. You all have no idea how much I’ve been craving citrus during this pregnancy, and having lemon and orange trees at home has always been a dream of mine. Of course, aside from the high vitamin C levels and antioxidants, I think it reminds me of my childhood. I still remember my mom buying me my daily jugo de naranja inside that little plastic bag with a straw at our mercado trips in Oaxaca.

I hope you all enjoy and remake this recipe. It has been one of my favorites to create, and I have a feeling my boy and I will be making A LOT of these this summer! Also, please do remember to always, always properly clean the citrus fruit before using it by removing all leaves and stems and rinsing with water. This is also important when sharing fruit with family or neighbors, so you don’t accidentally spread ACP or HLB to other areas. For a deeper clean, scrub the fruit with a vegetable brush, rinse well, and pat dry.

Remember If you happen to find yourself with an abundant supply of oranges and lemons (or you’re just craving something citrus-y and sweet) don’t think twice about making this recipe. I suggest you double it to have it both as an agua fresca AND paletas. If you do remake it, please don’t forget to tag me on the gram!

For more information on how you can help save citrus trees, visit: californiacitrusthreat.org or peligrancitricosencalifornia.org

INSTRUCTIONS:

Blend water and sugar in a blender until sugar has completely dissolved. Mix in the orange juice, lemon juice and chopped orange bits.

Pour into popsicle molds and allow to freeze overnight.

Remove popsicles from mold, one at a time. Add a tablespoon of chamoy to the bottom of each mold and returning frozen paleta to mold. Return to freezer and freeze for at least one hour.

You can sprinkle your fave chile powder on top or sea salt before serving!

Paletas de Naranja con Chamoy

Makes 12 paletas

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup sugar

3 cups filtered water

1 cup (8oz) fresh-squeezed orange juice

¼ cup (2oz) lemon juice

2 oranges, washed, peeled, sliced and chopped

½ cup chamoy

Items used in this post:

ONYX STAINLESS STELL POPSICLE MOLD - https://amzn.to/3iin2PY

TOVOLO SILICONE MONSTER POP MOLDS - https://amzn.to/31Co8QD

VITAMIX 750 BLENDER PROFFESIONAL GRADE - https://amzn.to/2ZyC3oe

IMUSA CITRUS SQUEZER - https://amzn.to/2YV0f5b

GLOBAL CHEFS KNIFE - https://amzn.to/2BWysbw

Posted on July 2, 2020 by Bricia Lopez.