How do you make healthy recipes even healthier? Its easier than you think. Join Niki Boileau as she takes us on recipe re-adventures in her column Tweak & Eat.
Inspired by an appy on the menu of a tasty new Northern BC restaurant.
I’ve long thought about doing a Tweak n’ Eat take on nachos. I am however, the first to admit that there are a few sacred foods one should never tamper with. For me, weirdly, nachos are one of them. Nachos hold a special place in my heart and therefore I haven’t had the heart to mess with ‘em.
Now, these aren’t exactly nachos – they’re more a cross between a nacho and tostada. DON’T expect stretchy messes of cheese traditional to the nacho or you’ll be disappointed (they’re absent from this dish). But, DO expect a party platter of spicy, flavourful deliciousness!
Did you know? Chipotle peppers are actually smoked, dried jalapenos. They say that the capsaicin in hot peppers can act to increase metabolism, burn calories, improve circulation and more.
Ingredients
1 package corn tortillas
1 – 2 organic chicken breasts
½ bunch cilantro
2 stalks green onion
mixed greens (whatever you have on hand – we used arugla)
goat feta cheese to taste
2-4 chipotle peppers + sauce (look for a can of chipotle in adobe sauce – these are spiiicy so start small and add for more kick if needed)
¾ cup yogurt or ricotta
(use a dairy free option like coconut yogurt if you like - anything creamy will do)
1 clove garlic
juice of ½ lime
sea salt to taste
Method
1. Start by making the chipotle sauce (instructions below) and prepping the chicken by cutting off any fatty bits, slicing into bite-size pieces and marinating in a sauce of your choice. (Or you can opt out of marinating it at all! We went for a chipotle marinade.)
Chipotle Sauce
Combine all chipotle sauce ingredients together in a food processor and blend until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl and let sit.
2. Next prepare your tortilla chips by preheating the over to about 250F. Slice your fresh corn tortillas into triangles and then arrange onto a cookie sheet. Bake until crispy and firm.
3. Prep the rest of the toppings – wash, dry and chop cilantro, chop up the roasted red pepper and green onion and have the feta and greens handy.
4. Sauté or grill chicken until moist but cooked. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
5. Put your tostada plate together by spreading the tortilla chips evenly over your platter. Top with the chicken, red pepper, green onion and some of the feta. Dollop a few scoops of chipotle sauce onto the platter mixture in several areas. Using salad tongs, toss the mixture together – coat the tortillas and other ingredients with the sauce. This will be very imprecise and imperfect – that’s fine.
6. Last – add the fresh cilantro and greens on top as well as any extra chicken, cheese or other ingredients. Serve immediately along with a bowl of the extra chipotle sauce.
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Niki Boileau is a Vancouver-based RHN who loves spending time outdoors and dreaming up as many healthy porridge recipes as possible. Get in touch to talk all things food and health and check out her website for more recipe inspiration!