Spicy Red Lentil & Roasted Cauliflower Vegan Taco Bar
This vegan taco recipe includes a variety of taco toppings that are healthy, easy and designed for a crowd! Spicy red lentils and roasted cauliflower serve as the main ingredients, while homemade fresh tomato salsa, avocado crema, corn salsa, toasted pumpkin seeds and quick pickled red onions make this vegan taco bar the best vegan dinner option ever!
Ingredients
Quick Pickled Red Onions (*Do This First)
- 1 medium red onion sliced thin
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp salt
Spicy Red Lentils (you can find the recipe here)
Chili-Roasted Cauliflower
- 2 heads cauliflower washed and broken into small florets
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 1/2 tbsp cumin
- 1/2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp salt
Avocado Crema
- 2 ripe avocados
- 1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise
- 1 lime, juice and zest
- 1 tsp salt
Corn Salsa
- 1 28 oz can sweet yellow corn
- 1/2 jalapeno deseeded and finely diced
- 1 tbsp red onion finely diced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
Toasted Pepitas
- 1 cup pepitas
- 1 tsp grapeseed oil
- flaky salt to taste
Tomato Salsa with Fresh Cilantro
- 2 cups grape tomatoes roughly chopped
- 6-8 cilantro leaves julienned
- 1 tbsp red onion finely diced
- salt & pepper to taste
Other Ingredients
- corn tortillas
- 1 bunch cilantro washed and torn
- 1 jalapeno deseeded and sliced
- 2-3 fresh limes washed and quartered
Instructions
Quick Pickled Onions
- Thin slice the red onion and pack into a glass mason jar, leaving about an inch at the top of the jar.
- Bring the apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and salt to a boil in a small saucepan. Once boiling, remove from heat and pour over red onions until the onions are fully submerged. Allow to sit on the countertop for an hour.
- After an hour, you can serve or put the lid on the red onions and refrigerate. The longer you allow them to sit, the stronger the pickled flavor.
Spicy Red Lentils
Chili-Roasted Cauliflower
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
- Wash the cauliflower heads and break them into small, bite-sized florets. You want these to be small enough to fit into a street taco along with other ingredients.
- Toss the cauliflower with the avocado oil and sprinkle on the cumin, chili powder and salt.
- Spread the cauliflower out on two baking sheets (you want some space between pieces) and roast for ~30 minutes until browned, stopping to turn at 15 minutes.
Avocado Crema
- Combine the avocado, mayonnaise, lime juice and salt in a food processor and blend until smooth. Top with lime zest.
Corn Salsa
- Combine the sweet corn, jalapeno, red onion, olive oil, salt & pepper in a small bowl.
Toasted Pepita Seeds
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Spread 1 cup of pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) on a baking sheet and stir in 1 tsp avocado oil.
- Spinkle with salt and roast until browned (about 6-8 minutes). Keep an eye on the seeds as they go from browned to burned very quickly.
- Allow to cool on a clean paper towel to absorb any extra oil.
Tomato Salsa with Fresh Cilantro
- Combine the tomatoes, cilantro, red onion and salt and pepper in a bowl.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!