Holly Yzquierdo

Mango Salsa

June 7, 2019 by Holly Yzquierdo 3 Comments

Are you looking for something that will bring the WOW back to your regular favorites? Try adding this Mango Salsa to your salads, tacos, burritos and more!

I’ve been a fan of fruit salsa’s long before I ate plant-based. There is something about the sweetness and spiciness mixed together that I find irresistible. Fruit salsas, especially Mango Salsa, will elevate your favorite recipes to a whole new level.

It’s no secret that I love salsa. I have salsa almost every day. Mexican food is my favorite and we almost always have something I can pour salsa on. In the summer when my favorite fruits are in season, I might go a little overboard with all the wonderful salsa combinations.

Today, I’m going to focus on this incredibly easy Mango Salsa recipe!

Trust me, if you bring this to a potluck or share it with friends, they will devour it and want the recipe. It doesn’t’ matter if they are plant-based, they will love it.

You can serve it on salad, my Mango Black Bean Salad is very similar to this, just add black beans and greens. In fact, I’d rather have Mango Salsa than any salad dressing!

Mango Salsa

If you like mango, you are going to love this super simple Mango Salsa. Feel free to change it up to suit your taste.

Ingredients

1 pint grape tomatoes, or your favorite tomato
1 Large mango, diced (approximately 1 Cup)
1-2 Jalapenos, finely diced (depending your heat preference, remove the seeds for a milder heat)
1/3 Cup Red Onion, diced
½ Cup cilantro, chopped
1 Lime, juiced (1/4 Cup juice)
Pinch of salt

Dice tomatoes, place tomatoes in a medium sized bowl, then add the remaining diced ingredients and give it a gentle stir.
Add the chopped cilantro, lime juice and a pinch of salt. Mix well and serve.

This salsa is perfect immediately but it can also be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 5 days. I love it after the first day when all the flavors have gotten a chance to meld together.

You can serve this salsa with just about anything! If you need some ideas, try it with tortilla chips, Lentil Tacos, Breakfast Tacos, Taco Salad, Veggie Burger, Tofu Scramble or Southwest Tofu Scramble, or anything else you can think of.

I’d love to hear how you enjoy this Mango Salsa! Don’t forget to pin this recipe and add it to your meal plan! I’ve pinned it in my “Favorites” board.

Mango Salsa

Try adding this Mango Salsa to your salads, tacos, burritos and more!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 pint grape tomatoes, or your favorite tomato
1 Large mango, diced (approximately 1 Cup)
1-2 Jalapenos, finely diced (depending your heat preference, remove the seeds for a milder heat)
1/3 Cup Red Onion, diced
½ Cup cilantro, chopped
1 Lime, juiced (1/4 Cup juice)
Pinch of salt (optional)

Instructions

Dice tomatoes, place tomatoes in a medium sized bowl, then add the remaining diced ingredients and give it a gentle stir.
Add the chopped cilantro, lime juice and a pinch of salt. Mix well and serve.

Notes

Plant-Based Meal Plan

June 3, 2019 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

This week our Plant-Based Meal Plan has a lot of our family favorites. I’m planning to use leftovers to cut down on cooking. Of course, I’ll use my Instant Pot so I can make easy meals while I’m busy.

Now that the kids are out of school for summer break, they are having all three meals at home. I will be sharing lots of lunch ideas for kids and have already started a blog post about it. You can check out this pin for a quick and easy lunch box reference. I’m working on them being more independent so we are keeping it simple.

When they first get up they will usually make themselves something like toast, cereal or fruit. Then mid morning, I’ll make all of us a smoothie. We typically eat an early lunch or leftovers or easy meals like beans or oatmeal. Mid afternoon they are hungry again and will start looking for snacks. Sometimes it’s fruit, granola, popsicles, etc.

My husband takes his lunch and snacks to work. This week I once again made his favorite, One Pot Broccoli Rice Casserole. There are 3-4 servings in the fridge ready for him. He also takes a lot of fresh fruits and veggies to snack on.

Plant-Based Meal Plan

Monday

Breakfast: Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats

Lunch: Plant-Based Mediterranean Bowl

Dinner: Busy Night Pasta

Tuesday

Breakfast: Banana Bread and Smoothies

Lunch: Plant-Based Mediterranean Bowl

Dinner: Lentil and Rice Salad

Wednesday

Breakfast: Instant Pot Breakfast Rice

Lunch: Veggie Filled Pita with Hummus

Dinner: Easy Mexican Casserole (Instant Pot Version)

Thursday

Breakfast: Leftover Instant Pot Breakfast Rice

Lunch: Leftover Mexican Casserole

Dinner: Southwest Tofu Scramble

Friday

Breakfast: Leftover Tofu Scramble

Lunch: Leftovers

Dinner: Enchilada Casserole

We have a few treats planned as well. Last week I made my No Bake Chocolate Bites, they are kinda like a peanut butter and chocolate oat ball. They were a big hit with my 10 year old and he isn’t very adventurous with food. I also made my Banana Bread and a new Double Chocolate Banana Bread recipe that I’ll be sharing soon.

In other news, my husband and I celebrated our 14th anniversary last weekend. A lot of our friend’s kids were graduating over the last couple weeks. It reminded me that my own high school graduation was 20 years ago. Then an old friend from high school found me on social media and we’ve been catching up. So fun!

Plant-Based Eating Q&A

May 27, 2019 by Holly Yzquierdo 2 Comments

Today, I held a Facebook Live to answer your questions about plant-based eating. I answered everything from questions about what I eat, what to eat if you don’t like beans or veggies and so much more.

If you have questions, feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. All of these questions came from people who get my weekly plant-based emails. There is a sign up form at the bottom of this page.

If you sent in a question that I didn’t get to, I’ll answer it in a future video, email or blog post.

Plant-Based Meal Plan

May 20, 2019 by Holly Yzquierdo 1 Comment

Do you ask your family what they want in your weekly meal plan? I do! I’m a big proponent of getting buy in from the family. If they help create the plant-based meal plan, they will be more likely to be supportive and maybe even happy with the meals.

I asked my 10 year old what he wanted and he requested salad with leafy greens, croutons and balsamic vinegar. He also asked for cream of wheat.

My 8 year old asked for olives, make your own pizza, celery and refried beans.

My husband has already put in his request and I made it this weekend. His favorite, a big batch of One Pot Broccoli and Rice will be lunches this week.

As for me, I just want quick and easy meals and for my husband to do the dishes. Haha! Can you relate?

Plant-Based Meal Plan

Monday

Breakfast: Cream of Wheat

Lunch: Broccoli and Rice

Dinner: Breakfast for dinner! Southwest Tofu Scramble with flour tortillas and fresh fruit

Tuesday

Breakfast: Smoothies and Blueberry Muffins

Lunch: Broccoli and Rice

Dinner: Veggie Pad Thai

Wednesday

Breakfast: Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats

Lunch: Broccoli and Rice

Dinner: Enchilada Casserole (this one has refried beans, we will have some on the side too)

Thursday

Breakfast: Smoothies and Strawberry Banana Muffins

Lunch: Broccoli and Rice

Dinner: Leftover Enchilada Casserole

Friday

Breakfast: Instant Pot Oatmeal

Lunch: Mediterranean Bowls

Dinner: Make Your Own Pizza Night with salad

I’ve been working on some new meals and I got a request for more snack recipes! Do you make snacks? Most of ours are fruit or smoothies, veggies and dip, chips and salsa (sometimes with beans), muffins or banana bread and during the summer, lots of popsicles!

Now that summer is almost here, and my boys only have a few more days of school, I’m sure we will have to revisit snack ideas many times. What are your favorite summer snacks?

Southwest Tofu Scramble

May 17, 2019 by Holly Yzquierdo 7 Comments

I love a hearty, filling, hot breakfast. This Southwest Tofu Scramble is one of my favorite vegan breakfasts!

I recently shared my simple tofu scramble. It’s a quick and easy version that isn’t spicy but still delicious. This version is for the people who like a little spice!

Adding the beans to this tofu scramble really helps fuel you longer than the veggies alone. I also like to add potatoes and avocado to tofu scrambles but I didn’t here because those don’t reheat as well. This version with beans and peppers is a meal prep dream because it reheats like a dream. Stick your potatoes and avocado on the side if you want them.

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If you are new to tofu, check out my Tofu Starter Guide. I use extra firm tofu for this recipe. It’s found in the refrigerated section where vegan products are stored, usually near the dairy area.

For most recipes I use my tofu press but I don’t for tofu scrambles. I like to pull pieces apart with my hands because it looks more like a regular scramble.

Hearty Tofu Scramble

You can choose whatever types of veggies you want. I choose onions, bell peppers (I used half red and half yellow), and jalapenos.

These also make great Breakfast Burritos! Choose your favorite burrito-size tortilla, scoop in the Southwest Tofu Scramble, I like to add salsa, then fold it up.

Southwest Tofu Scramble

Ingredients

1/4 cup onion, diced
1 bell pepper, yellow or red, diced
1 jalapeno, sliced, de-seed if you don’t want it spicy
1 block organic , extra firm tofu
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/4 cup water
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro, more or less if desired

In a hot skillet, I used nonstick, cook diced onion, diced bell peppers and sliced jalapenos. Stir regularly until veggies are tender crisp.
Next, use your hands to pull bite-sized pieces of tofu apart. Squeeze out excess water, then place it in the skillet with the peppers and onions.
Sprinkle the salt, spices and nutritional yeast over the crumbled up tofu. Give it a stir then add the 1/4 cup water and stir again.
Continue to cook until all the water has cooked out and the tofu is hot.
Add the drained and rinsed black beans, stir and cook for a few more minutes. Just long enough for the beans to get hot.
Then add the cilantro, cover with a lid and remove from heat. The cilantro will steam quickly but the flavor will be delicious!

Serve this with potatoes, fresh veggies like tomatoes or avocado and a side of toast. I always eat this with salsa. When I’m in the mood for something a little more awesome, I’ll wrap it into a tortilla!

Yield: 4