Ingredients used for the Taco Salad:

romaine lettuce, shredded

cabbage, shredded

carrot, grated

red onion, thinly sliced

radishes, sliced

baked corn tortillas

broiled tempeh

creamy chipotle dressing

citrus salsa

For the Baked Tortilla Chips:

corn tortillas (I like Food for Life sprouted corn)

olive oil

Preheat oven to 375F. Cut tortillas into triangles and transfer to baking sheet. Brush or spray tortillas lightly with oil. Bake in a single layer until crisp, flipping the tortillas over halfway through cooking. I'm reluctant to give an exact time as it can vary depending on the tortillas you use. The Food for Life sprouted corn tortillas I used took about 15 minutes.

Citrus Salsa

1 navel orange

1 blood orange

1/2 large lime

2 scallions, chopped

1 red or green jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

handful of chopped cilantro

Peel, section and chop the citrus. Place citrus in a mixing bowl along with remaining ingredients. Season with a little salt to taste.

Broiled Tempeh

The marinade is a variation of the one used in my recipe for Tempeh and Bell Pepper Fajitas. It soaks into the sliced, simmered tempeh pretty quickly - no need for a long marinade.

8 oz package of soy tempeh

Marinade:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder

2-3 cloves minced garlic

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon water

Simmer tempeh in water for 15-20 minutes. Drain and allow to cool enough to handle. While tempeh is cooling, combine all ingredients for marinade in a wide, shallow dish (dinner plate sized or slightly smaller would be perfect). Slice tempeh into thin strips. Add to marinade and toss gently to combine. Allow to marinade about 15 minutes.

Place tempeh strips in a single layer on baking sheet either coated lightly with non-stick spray or lined with parchment. Broil 5-7 minutes then flip strips over and broil another 5-7 minutes, or until browned on both sides and lightly crisp around the edges. Your cooking time may vary from mine so keep a close eye on things to ensure the tempeh does not burn.

This makes enough tempeh for us to prepare 3 salads.

Creamy Chipotle Dressing

This will make enough dressing for 2 large salads. Measurements are approximate.

1/3 cup low-fat silken tofu

1 scallion, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon lime juice

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 garlic clove, smashed

handful cilantro leaves

1/4-1/2 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (start with less and add more if desired)

Whiz tofu, lime juice and olive oil in food processor until smooth. (I use a mini-food processor.) Add remaining ingredients and process until ingredients are very finely chopped. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

This meal was part of my “Hearty Dinner Salads” meal plan for the week of March 3rd, 08.