Mango Ginger Rice Bowl

This rice bowl is one of our go-to meals when we're craving something light. It's easy to make, and mango, ginger & basil make it wonderfully refreshing.

Welcome to another meal planning week! About a month ago, I wrote a 5-part series that was all about my basic approach to meal planning. This was the plan: I started the week with a set amount of groceries and ideas for 5 meals, each meal utilizing the ingredients from the day before. The “plan” was not set in stone, so that my dinners would be somewhat flexible if I got a new idea mid-way through the week. If you missed that series.

After getting such a wonderful response to that series, I thought, let’s do it again! I chose this particular week because it’s summer(!), which means that we’ve been spending more time outside, more evenings strolling our neighborhood, and more time eating out. I love to eat out, but after a while, I’m ready to start eating in again.

So here’s the first recipe for the week: this super refreshing Mango Black Bean Ginger Rice Bowl – basically a burrito bowl with Asian-ish flavors.

What’s in this rice bowl recipe?

If you’re a fan of our cookbook, you’ll recognize the sauce/dressing here – it’s a light tamari-lime vinaigrette, similar to the one that I poured over the Brussels Sprouts with Coconut Rice on page 63. I’m crazy for this dressing because it’s so simple but seriously flavorful – perfect for a bowl with many components.

Along with the sauce, I filled these bowls with mango, black beans, shredded cabbage, and a few crunchy veggies – blanched snap peas, sliced cucumbers, and carrots. The interesting pops of flavor come not only from that dressing, but also from pickled ginger, sliced basil, and a combo of toasted peanuts and sesame seeds. (If you’re nut-free, skip the peanuts and just go for the sesame seeds).

For an even healthier variation, you could use brown rice, cauliflower rice, or cilantro lime rice as the base of your bowl.

This rice bowl is everything I want to eat in the summer: it’s light, crispy, crunchy, and herby with a light sauce and a great pop of sweetness from the mango (use mango salsa for a fun variation!).

If you’re looking for the rest of this 3-day meal plan, check out these nori wraps and these mango tacos, and then find the grocery list here.

Maki Sushi Recipe

Fun & fresh maki sushi rolls made with brown rice, roasted shiitakes, cabbage, cucumber, avocado, and a tangy carrot-ginger dipping sauce.

It’s sushi day! You might be wondering – why the heck would you roll sushi at home when it’s so much easier to order it at a restaurant? Because this maki sushi recipe is fun, affordable, and way more fresh than take-out sushi… but the best part is that you can get creative about what you choose to fill your rolls with. No more cucumber-only veggie sushi rolls!

These maki sushi rolls are filled with savory roasted shiitake mushrooms, avocado, cucumber, and red cabbage for crunch & color. There’s also a fun dipping sauce – the carrot ginger dressing from the Rainbow Kale Salad that I posted on Monday. If you make that salad and reserve just a bit of the dressing it makes for a yummy, fresh, and unexpected sauce for these rolls.

What is Maki Sushi

Maki is simply a sushi roll with fish or veggies, and rice, rolled in seaweed.

How to Make Sushi Rice

While white rice is traditional, I opt for healthier short grain brown rice which works great. Here’s how to make it:

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the rice, water, and olive oil and bring to a boil.
2. Cover, reduce the heat, and simmer for 45 minutes.
3. Remove the rice from heat and let sit, covered, for 10 more minutes.
4. Fluff with a fork and fold in the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Cover until ready to use.

Here’s how we roll:

Step #1 is to not stress out. Your rolls don’t have to be perfect. The first one might even fall apart, but even if it does you’ll pick up the pieces, smush them together and (hopefully!) enjoy eating it anyway. The second one will be better, and the third will be a breeze.

1. Place a small bowl of water and a kitchen towel near your work area as your hands will get sticky.
2. Place one nori sheet, glossy side down, onto a bamboo mat and press a handful of rice onto the lower two-thirds of the sheet.
3. At the bottom of the rice place your toppings (see picture). Don’t overfill or it will be more difficult to roll.
4. Use the bamboo mat to tuck and roll the nori. Once rolled, use the bamboo mat to gently press and shape the roll. Place the roll to the side, cut side down.
5. Use a sharp chef’s knife to cut the sushi. Wipe the knife clean with a damp towel between cuts.
6. Serve with soy sauce, tamari, or the carrot ginger sauce listed below.

These are best enjoyed just after they’re rolled, but the dipping sauce and mushrooms can be made in advance to speed up the process. If you want to make this in advance (i.e. for lunch the next day) store whole, uncut rolls wrapped up in the fridge. This keeps the rice from drying out after the pieces are cut. Slice as you’re ready to eat.

Homemade Taquitos

Meet my new favorite appetizer: Baked Green Chile Taquitos! They're crispy on the outside, gooey in the middle, tangy, lightly spicy, and so. much. fun!

Who would have guessed that moving to Chicago would have made me a taquitos fan? Just after Jack and I moved here, a new bar opened up down the block from our house. At first, we went there for drinks, but we’ve kept going back for taquitos! As it turns out, this bar has an inventive chef who comes up with a rotating menu of homemade taquitos. They make their tortillas from scratch and stuff them with seasonal, local ingredients. After just a few visits, Jack and I were total taquitos converts, and I knew I had to try making my own!

The results: Baked Green Chile Taquitos! Unlike the taquitos from down the street, these little guys are baked, not fried, and I use store bought tortillas, so making them is quick and easy. Still, they’re totally delicious.

Baking the taquitos makes them lighter than fried ones, and they come out of the oven perfectly crispy and golden brown. Their crunchy shell gives way to a creamy, bold filling made of refried beans, melty cheese, and spiced green chile jackfruit. This is a great recipe to serve as a party appetizer (hint, hint Super Bowl/Oscars fans!), but we’ve also been known to eat them for dinner with a side of cilantro lime rice.

Homemade Taquitos Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make these DELICIOUS homemade taquitos:

• Tortillas – I tested making these taquitos with every type and size of tortilla I could find. These small, pliable tortillas made from a mix of flour and corn yielded the best results. They rolled up nicely, they got deliciously brown and crisp, and they didn’t crack or unroll in the oven. If you need to use gluten-free corn tortillas, choose the most flexible kind you can find, and make sure to warm them in the oven or microwave before you roll them up.
• Jackfruit – Who needs rotisserie chicken when you can have bold, spicy jackfruit instead? I punch it up with cumin, coriander, and cayenne to give these taquitos extra kick. If you’ve never worked with jackfruit before, look for it in the canned section of your grocery store. I find mine at Trader Joe’s.
• Refried beans – A big slather of refried beans adds the perfect soft contrast to the crunchy taquito shell, and it helps seal the taquitos shut.
• Green chiles and scallions – The green chiles supply tangy, spicy flavor, while the scallions add a nice fresh finish.
• Jack cheese – It acts as a binder and adds that crave-worthy gooey cheesy texture. Yum!

And of course, you can’t go wrong by serving them with cilantro, guacamole, pico de gallo, and sour cream or this “cheese “sauce. I wouldn’t say no to tomatillo salsa for dipping either!

How to Make Taquitos

This taquitos recipe is SUPER fun and easy to make! Here’s how I do it:

First, shred the jackfruit. Open your can of jackfruit, drain it, and break apart the fruit, discarding any tough core pieces. Pull apart the tender, flaky jackfruit until it has the texture of shredded chicken.

Then, bake it! I roast the jackfruit in the oven to infuse it with flavor before I roll it up inside the taquitos. Spread it on a parchment-lined baking sheet and toss it with the drained green chiles and spices. Bake at 400 until the jackfruit is lightly golden brown, about 15 minutes.

 

Next, stuff and roll the taquitos. Spread a thin line of refried beans all the way down a tortilla, close to the left edge. Top it with a bit of the jackfruit, scallions, and cheese, and tightly roll the tortilla over the fillings. When you finish rolling each tortilla, place it seamed side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Finally, bake! Spray the taquitos generously with cooking spray, and transfer the baking sheet to the oven. Bake until the taquitos become golden brown and nice and crispy around the edges.

Last but not least, top them with your desired fixings, and dig in!

Best Taquitos Recipe Tips

• Warm the tortillas before you roll them up. To make your tortillas extra-pliable, warm them in the oven for 3-5 minutes or in the microwave, wrapped in a damp paper towel, for 30 seconds before you stuff and roll the taquitos. This extra step is so easy, and it makes the tortillas less likely to crack or unroll in the oven.
• Spread the filling towards one side of the tortillas, not in the center! This way, you’ll be able to wrap and roll the tortilla edge tightly over the filling. The tighter you roll the taquitos, the more likely they are to hold their shape, and the crunchier they will be!
• Save some for later. Eat your taquitos right away, or freeze them for up to a month! To thaw frozen taquitos, bake them in a 400 degree oven until they are crisp and warmed through, about 25 minutes.

Sheet Pan Nachos

The BEST nachos recipe! Made with creamy queso, chili-spiced taco meat, and tons of fresh fixings, it's the ultimate game day or party appetizer.

If you’re watching the Super Bowl this weekend, you have to make this nachos recipe. If you’re not watching the Super Bowl this weekend, you still have to make this nachos recipe. Jack and I may not be football fans, but we are fans of football food. These loaded nachos are our latest obsession. They’re quick and easy to make, and they’re a veritable explosion of flavor and texture. You get something crispy, something creamy, something bright, and something spicy in every bite! Whether you serve them as a party appetizer or as dinner for two, they’ll disappear in no time.

Plus, while I wouldn’t necessarily call these nachos health food, they are a cut above your average nachos plate. Instead of smothering them in melted Monterey jack or cheddar cheese, I top them in a gooey plant-based cheese sauce that’s totally dairy-free! I swap my favorite vegan taco meat for ground beef and add a big pile of veggies as a final finishing touch. As far as game day food goes, they’re pretty darn good for you, so go ahead and dig in!

Nachos Recipe Components

To make this nachos recipe, pile these components onto a tray of your favorite corn tortilla chips:

• Nacho cheese – Instead of topping my nachos with melted shredded cheese, I make an oozy, gooey vegan queso. A creamy blend of sweet potatoes, potatoes, cashews, and nutritional yeast, it’s just as good as the real thing. To give your nachos a smoky, spicy kick, blend a chipotle from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce into the cheese.
• Taco meat – I have two go-to plant-based taco meat recipes, and both are delicious on these nachos. One is a meaty, chili-spiced mix of shiitake mushrooms and walnuts. The other uses a store bought plant-based ground meat substitute. Cooked with a homemade taco seasoning blend of chili powder, onion powder, and cumin, it’s lightly spicy, hearty, and savory. Whichever way you go, you won’t be disappointed!

Then, finish your tray of nachos with fresh toppings. I like to add cilantro and green onions, radishes for crunch, tomatoes for juiciness, serranos or jalapeños for heat, avocado for extra creaminess, and pickled red onions for a bright pop of flavor. Enjoy!

Best Nachos Tips

• Assemble them right before serving. These nachos are best right after you put them together, when the chips are crispy and the cheese sauce and “ground beef” mixture are still warm, so assemble them just before you’re ready to eat! If they sit for too long, the chips will soften under the queso.
• Leave no chip un-topped! One of my pet peeves is eating the top layer of a loaded nacho plate and finding a stack of bare chips underneath. To make an exceptional nacho tray, make sure to layer the fixings throughout, getting a little something on each chip.
• Change them up! The topping combination listed below is dynamite, but there are so many different fixings that would be delicious here. Use guacamole instead of the avocado, or swap pico de gallo for the diced tomatoes and scallions. Instead of serranos, top the nachos with pickled jalapeños, or replace the taco “meat” with black beans or refried beans. Try adding dollops of cashew sour cream, or, for a surprising sweet twist, finish them with mango or pineapple salsa. Let me know what variations you try!