Roasted Cauliflower and Black Beans Tacos

Roasted Cauliflower with Black Beans and Tahini Dressing

If you are in the mood for Mexican with a twist, try this unique taco recipe.

Ingredients

Taco Ingredients:

• 1 batch Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower (see below)
• 1 batch Black Beans (see below)
• 1 batch Cumin Lime Crema (see below)
• corn tortillas*
• toppings: diced avocado, chopped fresh cilantro, fresh lime wedges, pepitas, and/or thinly-sliced radishes

Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower Ingredients:

• 1 large head cauliflower (about 2 pounds)
• 4 medium garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon each: ground cumin, kosher salt, paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon each: crushed red pepper flakes, freshly-cracked black pepper, ground turmeric

Refried Black Beans Ingredients:

• 1 small white onion
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon each: chili powder, Kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper

Cumin Lime Crema Ingredients:

• 1 small garlic clove, peeled and minced
• 1/4 cup lime juice (about 2 limes)
• 3 tablespoons tahini
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Mexican hot sauce (such as Cholula)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

 To Make The Tacos:

1. Prepare the cauliflower, refried black beans and crema as directed below.
2. To serve, place a layer of refried black beans in a tortilla, top with roasted cauliflower, a drizzle of the crema, and your desired toppings.

To Make The Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower:

1. Heat oven to 450°F.
2. In a large bowl, mix the cauliflower, garlic, olive oil, cumin, salt, paprika, crushed red pepper flakes, black pepper and ground turmeric until evenly combined.

3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat, then place the cauliflower in a single layer on the sheet.  Roast for 25-30 minutes until it is tender and browned, stirring once halfway through.
4. Serve immediately.

To Make The Refried Black Beans:

1. Peel and halve the onion, then slice into half-moon shapes.  Drain the beans, reserving 1/2 cup of the can liquid.
2. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 3-4 minutes.  Add the beans, reserved can liquid, kosher salt, chili powder and black pepper.  Turn the heat to medium low and cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring often and smashing the beans toward the end of the cook time, until most of the liquid has cooked out and the texture is mashed and thick.  Scrape the bottom and sides of the pan as necessary.  Taste and season with additional salt as desired.

To Make The Cumin Lime Crema:

In a small bowl, stir together the garlic, lime juice, tahini, olive oil, hot sauce, cumin and salt until evenly combined.  Add 1-2 tablespoons water if necessary to achieve a creamy consistency.

 

Adapted from Gimmesomeoven.com 

 

Hiking Mount Parker

 

Summit of Mount Parker

 Autumn has officially arrived. With cooler temperatures and fewer bugs it is a great time for hiking. The problem may be, particularly during foliage season in New England, that early fall can also be the most crowded time to it the trails. Fortunately, it is still possible to find solitude it you steer clear of the most popular areas. If you are looking for a great hike in the White Mountains away from crowds, Mount Parker in Bartlett, NH is a good option. 

My friend Sue and I arrived at the parking area around 9:00 AM Sunday morning. Surprisingly, we were the only car in the parking lot. For the entire day, we only saw six hikers, quite unusual, especially since this mountain is one of the 52 With a View. We decided to take the Langdon Trail to the Mount Parker Trail, but there is an alternate approach from the Davis Path. The route that we took has 2,800 feet elevation gain, but nothing too difficult. There were lots of switch-backs on the Mount Parker Trail which helped with the ascent.

 

In addition to the view at the top, there were some interest observations, like this star-tipped reindeer lichen (C. stellaris) growing along the side of the trail. It was very pretty sitting in contrast to the red low bush blueberries.

Star-tipped reindeer lichen

There were several trees with burls on them. A burl is an area of abnormal growth on a tree, typically caused by some type of stress, such as an injury or insect infestation. This one was quite large and can be seen with some fresh as well as older growth. They can be very interesting to look at and are often used in woodworking designs. 

 Lots of different fungi grow on trees, but this was the first time I have seen Hericium or Lions Mane in the wild. Apparently it is not uncommon in the Northeastern forests this time of year. This species of mushroom is often recommended for beginner foragers as it is unique in appearance and is prized by many chefs for its unique flavor which I have heard described as tasting like lobster when cooked.  

A very cool looking Hericium

The Granite State got its name for a reason and hikers will see lots of boulders in the woods. If you take a close look, you will often see many types of growth attached.

The above rock looked like it was covered with dried leaves which was actually Rock tripe lichen (Umbilicaria mammulata)

Although I didn't see many mushrooms on the forest floor, there were several types of shelf mushrooms on logs and trees. The following is an example of Fomitopsis pinicola also known as a Red-belted polypore or conk. It is a commonly found on conifer trees.

Fomitopsis pinicola

 

It's easy to see why Fomes fomentarius is referred to as Hoof fungus. It is also called Tinder conk since it can be used to start fires. I read in the USDA's Field Guide to Common Macrofungi in Eastern Forests and Their Ecosystem Functions that there is also a False Tinder conk (Fomes ignarius) which looks very similar so I am not sure which had taken hold of the fallen tree below.

 

As we were heading out of the woods, there was a bald faced hornets nest hanging from a tree. When I Googled Bald Faced Hornet the first few entries were all about pest control companies. This makes sense since they are probably paying to have their information listed in the beginning of searches. However, it is much better to think of these creatures as beneficial. hey hunt and eat other insects and serve as a pollinator of plants. 

Baldfaced Hornets Nest

 

Most often their nests will be high up in trees. Of course you don't want a nest built outside your front door, so be diligent in the spring when the queen will start building her new home. If you see a small nest starting, go out after dark and knock it down. You may have to do this a couple times, but this will usually be sufficient to encourage her to build a nest elsewhere. 

I am hoping that there are several more nice weekends before the snow and ice arrives so that I can check off several more peaks with views and discover some more surprises found in nature.