Cheesey Crunch Tacos
This recipe brings back all the nostalgia feels from my childhood. If you grew up in America in the 90’s, there’s a large chance you have crossed paths with the large fast food giant, the Bell of Tacos you could call it. Growing up, we had one right near our house, and my family would eat there at least twice a month. My favorite meal was the stacked taco called “Cheesy Gordita Crunch.”
If you are unfamiliar, it was a hard shell taco filled with ground beef and pico de gallo, that’s wrapped up with another slightly larger soft shell taco with a hefty melted cheese layer in between. It was heaven for a 12 year old on a Saturday with friends. The whole idea is very far from plant based, but the recipe technique itself is legendary even to this day. I haven’t had one in literally over a decade, and I was really craving the idea of one.
I put some thought into it and am thoroughly excited on how this recipe turned out. All vegan, gluten free, dairy free, and packed with so many flavors and textures your taste buds won’t know what do do with themselves. Cheesy, crunchy, spicy, sweet, all at once. I used walnuts, mushrooms, and Mexican spices to create the inside, along with my secret ingredient coconut aminos. Crammed it with cheese, and topped it with avocado and salsa.
Each bite you will be fall more and more in love, until it’s all gone….only then you’ll have to make another one and repeat the love affair over and over again. Enjoy!
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Makes about 6 tacos:
The Goods:
For the filling:
1 tsp olive oil
3 green onions, sliced
2 cups crimini mushrooms, finely chopped
1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp granulated garlic
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup Big Tree Farms coconut aminos
For the tacos:
6 crunchy hard taco shells
6 soft gluten free flour taco size tortillas
1 1/2 cup vegan shredded cheese (about 1/4 cup per taco)
For the Garnish:
favorite salsa of choice
1/2 cup chopped spinach
avocado slices
2 green onions, sliced
The Method:
Grab a large sauté pan, and heat olive oil on medium high. Once hot, add your green onions, pinch of salt, and sauté for 2 minutes.
Next add in your mushrooms, walnuts, cumin, coriander, garlic, paprika, salt, pepper. Stir until everything is coated and sauté for 3-5 minutes. As the mushrooms shrink about half their size, and are looking perfectly cooked, add the coconut aminos. Stir and cook for 1 minute and then remove from heat. Set aside.
Preheat your oven on broil. Grab a large baking sheet pan and lay out your six soft tortillas. Add about 1/4 cup vegan cheese to each and broil for 2-5 minutes, or until the cheese is just starting to melt. Bai’s Tip*** - You don’t want to make the tortillas crispy, you just want the cheese to be melty.
Once the cheese is starting to melt, remove from the oven broil. Quickly grab one cheesy tortilla and place a crunchy hard shell inside, and fold it over so they are stacked. (Soft shell, cheese layer, and hard shell in the center) Repeat until all the cheesy crunch tacos are stacked.
Now fill the tacos with the mushroom and walnut filling. If you have tacos holders, this will be a great time to use them to keep them upright. Otherwise, you can just lay them sideways on a plate stacked in a line.
Garnish with a few leaves of chopped spinach, a dollop of salsa, a couple slices of avocado, and a sprinkle of green onions. Boom! Your favorite fast food taco, just veganized!
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