We’ve been making this fun taco salad every other weekend since I adopted this diet. It is surprisingly tasty for being low carb raw vegan. It does contain a lot of omega-6-rich nuts so on days we eat this I’m sure to balance those with lots of omega-3s from fish oil supplements, chia seeds or more flax seeds.
If you’re not as strict on carbs as I am, be more generous with the tomato and onion and consider adding some bell peppers, cucumbers, radishes, and even raw corn. The meat, crema and avocado can be served in a lettuce leaf for a fun taco-style twist but I prefer this salad presentation to help me get more greens in,
Ingredients
- Cilantro Cashew Crema
- 1 c raw organic cashews, soaked in water 4-6 hours
- 1/4 c distilled water, more if needed
- 1/2 c cilantro
- 1 tbs nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice or apple cider vinegar
- 1 pinch Himalayan salt
- Walnut Meat
- 3/4 c raw, organic walnuts
- 6 organic sun-dried tomato halves packaged in extra-virgin olive oil, drained
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/2 raw jalapeno, seeds removed (more or less to taste)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 pinch cayenne (more or less to taste)
- 1 pinch Himalayan salt
- several twists freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp nutritional yeast (optional)
- 1-2 tsp distilled water, if needed
- Salad
- 6 c organic salad greens (I like a combination of romaine and kale)
- 1 organic tomato, diced
- 1 avocados
- 1/4 c organic cilantro
- 1 tbs organic red onion, minced
Instructions
Prepare Cilantro Cashew Crema
-
- Soak the cashews in filtered water for 4-6 hours. Drain and place in a food processor with water, cilantro, nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar and salt.
- Process until smooth adding more water if needed.
- Set aside 1/2 the crema for this recipe and reserve the rest for later. It can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for several days and makes a great dip for vegetables.
Prepare Walnut Meat
-
- In a clean food processor, pulse the walnuts until they're broken down to a meat-like consistency. Be careful not to over process or they'll quickly turn into paste. A few larger nut pieces are fine. Set aside the ground nuts in a small bowl.
- Add the remaining walnut meat ingredients to the food processor (you don't need to clean it) and puree until a smooth paste is formed, adding water if needed.
- Stir the tomato mixture into the nuts until thoroughly combine. Depending on the flavor of the tomato paste, you may not need to use all of it.
Assemble Salad
- Divide salad greens between 2 bowls. Top each bowl with 1/2 the diced tomato, 1/2 avocado, 2 tbs cilantro, and 1/2 tbs minced red onion. Divide walnut meat between the two bowls.
- Toss with 1/4 c crema (about 1/4 of the total recipe) and stir to combine.
Nutritional Information
Total Carbohydrate 24 g
Dietary Fiber 12 g
Sugars 8 g
Net Carbs 12 g
Protein 22 g
Total Fat 52 g
Saturated Fat 3 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 84 mg
Potassium 732 mg
Vitamin A 43% US RDA
Vitamin C 61% US RDA
Calcium 11% US RDA
Iron 34% US RDA