Blue Ribbon Grilled Portobella Mushroom Tacos with Salsa Verde

This recipe for tacos and the salsa verde scored very high marks at the Iowa State Fair to earn a First Place Ribbon in the Vegan Main Dish contest.

Blue ribbon for tacos on the right.

Here is what the judges said: 

Taste: 73.25/75 points
Appearance: 23.25/25 points
Total: 386/400points
Comments:

"Excellent taste. Great combination of ingredients"

"Very good combination of flavors and textures.  Sauce very good and does not overpower.  Enhances flavor of avocado."

"Very tasty vegan dish that non-vegans would enjoy because of the mushrooms.  You wouldn't miss the meat.  Wonderful Mexican seasoning.  Healthy and fresh."

"The salsa is delicious.  Perfect punch of spice.  The mushroom adds great texture.  The cabbage adds crunch. Wonderful alternate for a vegan. Perfect flavor balance."

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Tacos with Salsa Verde

Servings: 6

Prep time: 45 minutes

Ingredients & Directions: 

Marinade  6 large portobello mushroom caps in:

⅓ C. Olive oil
1/4 C. Balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. Ground black pepper

Salsa Verde

4 Tomatillos, chopped (or 1 C. canned)
1 Large green bell pepper chopped
1 Large bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1 Medium onion, chopped
3 Cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. Olive oil
1 tsp. pepper
½ tsp. salt

Ingredients in my trusty Osterizer

Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender, and process til smooth. 

Salsa Verde

Tacos

6 6-inch soft corn tortillas
2 avocados, sliced
2 cups chopped tomatoes
3 cups shredded cabbage
Vegan sour cream, optional

Directions

Grill mushrooms 3 to 5 minutes per side. Cool until easy to handle, then slice into strips.

Pour the salsa over the mushroom strips and let set for 10 minutes for the flavors to mingle.

Lightly warm tortillas 15 seconds per side in skillet.

On a plate, fill tortillas with sliced mushrooms, avocado slices, tomatoes, and cabbage.

Put Tofutti brand vegan sour cream on the side.  Garnish all with fresh cilantro. Enjoy!

Vegan Cheese Cake

I warned my meat eater this was not like regular cheesecake, but the closest I've come to developing something like it over the last ~ 10 years I've been experimenting.  He agreed, it wasn't quite like cheesecake, maybe more like custard -- but -- it was wonderful!

Vegan Cheesecake with Berry Sauce

Servings: 10
Prep time: 1 hour
Ingredients:

1 Keebler, pre-made, graham cracker crust
1, 8 oz. Container, Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese
1/2 pkg. Firm silken tofu
3 T. Lemon Juice
2 T. Maple syrup
3 T. Cornstarch
1 T. Vanilla

Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until creamy and smooth.  Pour into graham cracker crust. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 50 minutes, or until cracks appear at in the center of the top of the cheesecake.

Berry Sauce

1 1/2 C. Sugar
2 C. Strawberries, sliced
1 C. Blueberries
Splash red wine

Cook all ingredients in saucepan over med-high heat. Let boil for 5 minutes then remove from heat and cool.

 ***

Remove cheesecake from oven, let cool completely and refrigerate at least 1 hour or over night. Put one slice on a plate and pour Berry Sauce over it and serve.

Delicious!