Meatless Wednesdays: Vegetarian Tacos

Lots of people make New Year's Resolutions and probably the most common one has to do with losing weight or eating healthier or exercising.  So in an effort to jump on this band wagon ourselves, we have decided to have at least one meal a week that is vegetarian.  We've come a along way since Yumma Yumma first started almost a year and a half ago.  When I started this blog Superking and I were pesca-vegetarians...meaning the only meat we ate was fish and seafood.  While we still aim to be animal welfare-and-environmentally-conscious by choosing organic and local whenever we can, we have definitely broadened our horizons on the meat front, always looking for the strange and unique.

Now we've come full-circle...almost...not getting any younger and wanting to be healthier we have introduced Meatless Wednesdays into our lives.  I really wanted it to be Meatless Mondays because I love alliterations but the Monday thing wasn't working out so well with our crazy schedules. So Meatless Wednesday it is.

Our first go-round at a meatless meal was vegetarian tacos.  Some people might wonder what are you going to put in a taco thats not meat and still have it be filling? One of my favorite fast-food restaurants (and one of the handful I actually still go to) is Chipotle.  I love their tacos and burrito bowls and all their fresh ingredients.  And what's the best form of flattery? Be a copy cat! 

I tried to mimic their rice (which I love) by cooking plain white rice, then adding a chipotle lime finishing butter from the grocery store, a squeeze of lime, and a few sprigs of fresh cilantro.  A little different twist with the butter but it added a nice little kick. Cilantro and lime...you can never go wrong with that!

I picked up a couple small avocados and made some fresh guacamole with a little chopped red onion, fresh cilantro, another squeeze of lime.

We also whipped up a batch of pico de gallo (of which you can see my full recipe for here). Diced roma tomatoes, chopped red onion, whatever kind of peppers you like (I used yellow Hungarian wax peppers and green anaheim, neither of which are very spicy because I'm a spice whimp but I always get Superking a jalapeno on the side which he can then add himself), salt and pepper, cumin, garlic (freshly minced if possible or garlic powder is fine), and of course cilantro and lime.

We also had black beans and vegetarian refried beans, soft shell tacos and hard shell tacos.  Since we had both kinds of shells we made double decker tacos.  Take the soft shell, slather on a layer of refried beans, wrap it around the hard shell.  Not only is this yummy, it protects the hard taco since it will inevitably break when you put the toppings in, but it won't matter because the soft shell layer with the beans will still hold it all together.

Fill the shell with some rice, black beans, pico de gallo, guacamole or sour cream, a little shredded cheese ( a great white sharp cheddar works well), and dig right in!! Believe me, with all those flavors you won't miss the meat!

La Mexicana Bakery y Taqueria

If you're near Alexandria, VA and you're looking for an authentic Mexican restaurant, you need to go to La Mexicana Bakery y Taqueria.  Its a little off the beaten path but its totally worth the drive.  Its a very humble place in the middle of a low-key shopping center off Rt 1.  The food is also very simple but man is it good!

Superking found this place a few months back and had heard really good reviews for it. He was in the area one day and stopped in for lunch.  He had tacos de lengua (beef tongue) and said they were really good and since it is also a bakery, he brought me home some of their cookies which were pretty good too.  But I was like, "you went on a food adventure without me?"  :(   "You have to take me there very soon!!"

breads...cinnamony and salty

So last week we were out and about and found ourselves looking for a place to have lunch.  Superking starts driving and says he wants to surprise me. I have no idea where we are or where we are going until he pulls into this kind of dumpy looking shopping center parking lot.  That may sound bad but I was excited, because yes, it may look a little dumpy on the outside but right in the middle of the shopping center was this shining gem called La Mexicana Bakery y Taqueria!!

brownies

cakes

I was little nervous but excited all the same to try these tongue tacos!! And as I waited for them, I explored their refrigerated cases full of cookies and pastries and cakes and breads all freshly made there! So pretty!

sweet rolls

cookies...very large cookies

And I also I tried a special drink called horchata.  Its a rice milk drink flavored with almond and lots of cinnamon!  It was really yummy and creamy, almost like a milkshake but not as thick.

can I take a swim in that?

Then the tacos come out...corn tortillas filled with small cubes of beef tongue slightly charred and crispy on the edges, fresh cilantro, diced onions, and a lime wedge on the side.  At first, I was thinking, "tacos without cheese?" But even as much as I love my cheese, these tacos certainly did not need it.  The meat was so flavorful and tender and since the other flavors were very light it allowed the beauty of the meat to really shine through. It was super delicious!!

a couple of hot sauces too

beautiful!

On the side was served some rice and refried beans which were also very simple yet delicious! And I couldn't resist taking home a big piece of tres leches cake!! I am such a chocolate peanut butter fiend but I seriously love a good piece of tres leches cake!! I even made my own once, which turned out not too bad.

some cherries on top

Anyway,  La Mexicana Bakery, te amo and your tacos de lengua! Can't wait to come back!

Vermillion

Ok, last installment of our Restaurant Week January 2011 food adventures. :(   Last night we went to dinner at Vermillion, located right on King Street in the middle of Old Town Alexandria.  The night streets were lined with lighted trees dancing on the edges of the sidwalks and the nightlife traffic was bustling.  So bustling in fact that we had to circle the block several times and even call the restaurant to hold our table so we could find a place to park and not lose our reservation. Luckily we eventually found a spot not too far away from the restaurant, thankfully, because it was FREEZING outside last night!!

We finally made it inside the restaurant where it was warm and cozy.  Brick walls with a mixture of modern lamps and gas lanterns lined the cozy tables and the bar scene was bumpin!  We were seated upstairs where it was slightly quieter and we were greeted by a wall of wine bottles at the top of the stairs.

the nightlife

The food here was not particularly unique but it was very yummy!  To start, we were brought a complimentary tasting from the chef.  Miniature Greek Meatballs with a cauliflower puree.  So yumm! I wish these were bigger and more of them! They even made the cauliflower taste good! We practically licked the cute little bowls they were served in.

For the first course, I chose Rock Shrimp and Atlantic Squid.  You kinda expect squid to be a little chewy, even when cooked well.  Not this time! It was so soft and perfect! The shrimp and squid were served on top of a bed of 3 different kinds of beans mixed with salsa verde and thai chilies all piled on top of a slice of toasted focaccia drizzled with olive oil. It was nice and light and savory.

Hubby's first course was, of course, the Carpaccio of Wagyu Beef.  Its hard for him to pass up wagyu because you don't really see it very often. And it really is so succulent! This wagyu was served with tiny little pumpernickel croutons, baby watercress, a spicy mustard vinagrette, and a couple little pieces of parmesan cheese. Again, very light tasting for a beef dish.

For the second course, I chose the Wild Mushroom Ravioli. This was served with Swiss chard, fresh pomegranate seeds, chunks of roasted sweet potato, dollops of goat cheese, and a sage brown butter.  Oh sooo good!  The Swiss chard I found interesting because not long ago I had a bad experience with it and decided I didn't like or want to try it again.  But, I figured I would be brave.  Maybe I would like it in a different setting.  And surprisingly it wasn't too bad with the ravioli.  I mean, you'd be hard pressed to make mushroom ravioli with brown butter and goat cheese taste bad.  I'm a sucker for goat cheese and this did not disappoint.  It combined nicely with the other flavors and the pomegranate gave a nice sweet pop.

Hubby's second course was the Duroc Pork Loin.  It was cooked medium well so it was still slightly pink and served on top of caramelized 3 herb spatzle and pickled cabbage.  It took us a while to figure out what the spatzle was.  Hubby said it tasted like eggs and I thought it tasted like some kind of cheesy pasta.  Turns out we were both right.  Spatzle is a kind of egg noddle often served in German and Austrian cuisine.  Either way it was very tasty and worked well with the sourness of the cabbage and the sweet tender porkiness of the meat.

Then came dessert.  There were only 2 to choose from so I got one and hubby got the other.  Mine was the Bittersweet Chocolate Bombe.  Sounds decadent and amazing right? It was!  Bittersweet chocolate mousse combined with dulce de leche and topped with espresso ice cream and a couple cocoa tuilles (which we learned about from Masa 14) and the plate was shmeared with a sticky caramel sauce. I thought I might be too full already to finish such a decadent dessert but somehow my tummy found the room!

Hubby's dessert was no slouch either.  A Cider Roasted Bosc Pear.  It looked like a little steaming teepee of deliciousness when it arrived.  (There was literally steam coming out of the top!) It was served with caramelized maple ice cream, granola, cranberries, and a piece of sesame brittle for decoration.  The maple in the ice cream was pleasantly subtle and made the perfect companion to the hot juicy pear, the crunch of the granola and brittle, and the tartness of the cranberries.

Once again, an awesome meal at an awesome restaurant in the DC area.  I'm sad to see the week come to an end.  There were so many restaurants we still wanted to try! So much food and so little time. :(   I guess we'll just have to make plans for the next Restaurant Week!