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Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Game Day Nachos

Delicious dairy-free, meat-free, wheat-free nachos


The Super Bowl is coming up soon and while some of you really care about who's in it and who wins it, I'm on team Super Bowl Snacks, which win every time.  I'm a big fan of tortilla chips, and an even bigger fan of dousing said chips with tasty Mexican condiments.  Condiment doused tortilla chips a la nachos feature ooey gooey cheesy sauce, and since I'm trying to veganize recipes where I can, I've replaced the cheese with this healthier, tastier "Low-Fat Chipotle Nacho Sauce" from Miyoko Schinner, author of Artisan Vegan Cheese.

My go-to chips are the white corn, all natural ones that you can find at the supermarket for $1-$2/bag.   Place a handful or two of these on a  dinner plate or platter.
Spoon some beans* over the chips.
Spoon some fresh cooked corn (off the cob + grapeseed oil, s&p) over the beans.
Sprinkle some diced, roasted fresh chiles (charred on the stovetop) over the beans, along with some salt and pepper.


Pour the hot, creamy nacho sauce over the beans and chips, like they do at your favorite restaurant.
Spoon fresh salsa (Roma tomatoes, scallions, garlic, lime juice, hot sauce, s&p) and diced avocado over the top of the sauce.

Garnish with fresh cilantro, unless you hate cilantro.
Grab your favorite big game beverage, lots of napkins, and start scooping. Score!!

*I used a mixture of black beans and blackeyed peas, cooked in water and fresh garlic.

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Low-Fat Chipotle Nacho Cheese Sauce by Miyoko Schinner
Low-Fat Chipotle Nacho Cheese Sauce
(created by Miyoko Schinner)

1 cup cooked/mashed butternut squash (I used delicata)
3/4 cup plain, unsweetened (this is key) coconut or soy yogurt
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup brown or white onion, quartered
5 Tbsp. nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 cup raw cashews
3 Tbsp. tapioca flour
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, divided in 1/2
1 tsp. salt or 1 Tbsp. miso paste

Combine the squash, yogurt, water, onion, nutritional yeast flakes, cashews, tapioca flour, 1/2 the chipotle pepper, and salt in a blender, and process until smooth and creamy.

Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until thick and gooey.  Taste and add the remaining chipotle for more heat, and also additional salt if necessary.
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Whisk until you get that great, thick but slightly runny, ooey, gooey nacho sauce consistency and then pour over the already assembled nacho ingredients.

(Note:  Leftover sauce made a delicious, quick mac 'n cheeze.)

Be sure to check out www.melissas.com for lots of delicious, healthy, game day ideas!


9 comments:

  1. What an unique version of nacho sauce. I love that you used squash.

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    1. The squash is creamy, and with the addition of the nutritional yeast you get a nice, mild cheesy flavor. With the sauce also having great "nacho cheese" color, and the rest of the embellishments, this is a darn good stand-in for the real cheese original.

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  2. So happy to find your post. Your nachos are so colorful and sound delicious! Where do you get tapioca flour and nutritional yeast flakes? Also, what do the flakes contribute?

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    1. Thanks Faye! You can definitely get tapioca flour and nutritional yeast at Whole Foods. Nutritional yeast adds a light Parmesan-y cheese flavor. The kind I used, from the bulk bins at WF, are actually a powder, not flakes.

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    2. Thanks, Nancy. good to know it's available in bulk. I like the idea of making the sauce from cooked squash (I have lots of yummy kabochas now) + chipotle. I might cheat on the yogurt; had trouble finding good unsweetened nondairy yogurt when we looked for it for an article. Maybe I'll use unsweetened soy milk instead and add a bit of lemon juice for the tangy flavor.

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    3. There was an unsweetened, plain soymilk yogurt under the Whole Soy brand but they stopped production 6 months ago. Now I'm using Soy Delicious' plain coconut milk yogurt that has very low sugar which is easily balanced with the savory seasonings.

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    4. I used Soy Delicious' plain coconut milk yogurt which is very lightly sweetened, but this is offset by the savoring seasonings. Available at Whole Foods.

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  3. Hi Nancy, thanks for posting this vegan cheese. I am very happy to find vegan cheese that tastes good. I love how the orange squash gives the color of cheddar cheese. I want to get Schinner's book thanks to your introduction. Best, Dana

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    1. You're very welcome Dana. I just made vegan mac 'n cheeze for our FBLA e-book using Follow Your Heart vegan cheddar shreds - omg, amazefest!

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