I think this makes the third or fourth time I’ve featured a recipe for tacos on this blog. Who can blame me though, right? Tacos are just so easy (not to mention versatile, fast and scrumptious)! They’re hard to resist on a weekday night.

This particular recipe comes from my fave cookbook, Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook and what I love, love, love about it is that, unlike our usual route, it doesn’t feature any kind of faux meat. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am not a faux hater – quite the opposite – but I do like to serve it in moderation, so it’s nice to see a recipe that calls for something different and homemade as a base. What that means though is that these aren’t as quick and easy to put together as some of the other taco recipes I’ve featured. They’re still comparatively simple for a dinner though, so don’t let that discourage you!

Lentil Tacos
Recipe courtesy of Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook

Ingredients

4 cups water
1 cup dried green lentils
2 tbs diced white onion
2 tbs olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbs tomato paste
1/2 cup diced cherry tomatoes
2 tbs diced red onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp diced jalapeno pepper
3 tsp lime juice
1 tbs finely chopped fresh cilantro
4-6 corn tortillas, fresh
1 sliced avocado
1/2 cup shredded lettuce

*Super important note: When I make these again, I will definitely add a packet of taco seasoning to the lentil mixture. It was good, but it could have really used a smidge more flavor/spice. I think it would make a big difference.

Directions

• In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the lentils and white onion. Return to a boil and then reduce heat, cover and simmer until soft, 30 to 40 min.
• Drain any remaining water and place half the lentils in a food processor or blender. Process while drizzling 1 tbs of the oil into the mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the tomato paste and puree until combined. Put the lentil mixture in a medium bowl and stir in remaining lentils
• In a separate medium bowl, mix together the cherry tomatoes, red onion, garlic, jalapeno, lime juice, cilantro and remaining oil for salsa. Add salt and pepper to taste
• Heat a small frying pan over low heat and quickly warm the tortillas on each side
• Spread the lentil mixture on each tortilla and top with sliced avocado, salsa and lettuce

Yield: Serves 2-3

I seriously love my cookbooks. I’d have been completely lost without them when I first started eating vegan. I’m a decent cook (much better since I went vegan, actually) but I really don’t have the time or the talent for ground-up, recipe development. And honestly, with these books at my disposal, I don’t really need to.

As you can see, the books I’m talking about are:

• The Kind Diet, Alicia Silverstone
• Veganomicon, Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero
• Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook, Kim Barnouin
• Skinny Bitch in the Kitch, Rory Freedman & Kim Barnouin

I know that four cookbooks doesn’t a library make but I also supplement with recipes I discover online at least as often as I reference one of these books for meal ideas. Additionally, the style of each of these titles (with the exception of the Skinny Bitch books, of course) is pretty different. Even the more traditional recipes in The Kind Diet have a strong “health” focus and tend to be fairly simple. Veganomicon is so huge as to encompass all kinds of foods and influences, but tends to concentrate on traditional, made-from-scratch recipes. The Skinny Bitch books (especially Bitch in the Kitch) often take more liberties with culinary shortcuts and the occasional use of prepared foods.

Veganomicon and Skinny Bitch in the Kitch were the first two books I bought when I went vegan. The Kind Diet came next, followed later by Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook. I’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating: I love all my cookbooks equally but if I had to choose a fave, I’d give it to Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook.

True to its title, this book is best suited to everyday use, meaning you don’t necessarily need to spend a ton of time preparing these recipes and they’re all fairly simple to follow. That doesn’t mean there aren’t some showstoppers here (because there definitely are) but I find it best for day to day use.

I’m certain I’ll add to my collection gradually, but for the time being, these four books (and the internet!) are all I need to keep my kitchen vegan. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be posting a more in-depth review of each book, including a few of my favorite recipes from each.

So tell me, are there any books I’m missing that you couldn’t live without?

I love all my cookbooks, but if I had to pick a favorite, the one this recipe hails from is it. Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook comes from one of the gals behind the Skinny Bitch franchise, Kim Barnouin. It’s a great follow up to the Skinny Bitch in the Kitch cookbook in that it continues the healthy, simple theme of the first book, but expands to include a lot more recipes that are just slightly more involved. This is easily the book I use most often in my kitchen and I’ve had really good experiences with everything I’ve made from it.

This particular recipe is nearly as quick and simple to throw together as the frozen vegetable fried rice from TJ’s I featured a while back. I found it quite tasty, but next time I think I’ll throw in a few more veggies and maybe even a little more garlic. I also think this could benefit from cooking one or two tablespoons of shoyu into the mix in addition to or instead of serving it with shoyu on the side. The flavor that added seemed important enough not to be optional.

Eggless Fried Rice
Recipe Courtesy of Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook

Ingredients

2 tbs Sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup firm tofu, drained and crumbled
2 tbs chopped green onions (white and light green parts)
1 cup corn, fresh or frozen
1 cup snow peas, cut in half
2 cups cooked brown rice
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tsp sesame seeds, for garnish
Teriyaki sauce or shoyu, for serving

Directions

• Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat
• Add garlic and tofu and saute for 30 seconds
• Add green onions, corn, snow peas and stir-fry about 3 minutes
• Add the rice and cook an additional 5 minutes
• Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with sesame seeds and serve with teriyaki or shoyu

Yield: Serves 4