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I had the rare opportunity to go grocery shopping with my son, who, while interested in all of the ‘food products’ that I would not even call food, never wants to shop with me because I won’t buy any of that stuff. We were perusing the produce aisles, trying to figure out what would go well with a tart cabbage salad that I wanted to make.

We came across plantains and I decided I would make some tostones! He really wanted me to fry up some ripe ones to make sweet fried plantains, but I convinced him that fried food is bad and we settled on buying some green plantains instead.

Actually, he rolled his eyes at me and I grabbed a few green plantains.Green Plaintains

I came up with this recipe, which is actually a couple of recipes, but I figure it is really nice of me to give you an entire meal instead of just one component and make you think of the rest. Don’t worry, they are ALL super easy and pretty quick- just my style.

For the Tostones:
2 green plantains, peeled and cut into rounds about 1/2 inch thick
2 T Avocado oil, divided
Flake sea salt

Add 1 T of the avocado oil to a sheet pan, spread it around so the whole surface of the pan is covered. Put the pan in the oven and then turn the oven on to 400. Let the pan heat up in the oven. Meanwhile, peel and slice the plantain and put them in a bowl. Add the remaining oil and sprinkle them with salt. When the oven is to temperature, place the plantain slices onto the hot sheet pan and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and carefully smash each plantain until it is flat. I had my husband do this part and he used the bottom of a small Ball jar. Flip them over, sprinkle with a little more salt, and bake for 15 more minutes.

Taco MeatFor the meat:
1 pound grass fed ground beef
1 T Chili Powder
1 tsp each of Cumin, Oregano, Coriander, and salt
¼-½ tsp cayenne pepper
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced

Add a little bit of water to a saute pan over medium heat on the stovetop. When it is simmering, add the onion and cook until soft. Add garlic, and stir until fragrant, then add the beef to the pan. Cook the beef all the way through, stirring often, then add in all the spices and mix well.

 

For the Cabbage Salad:
1 purple cabbage, chopped
Yellow cherry tomatoes, halved (you can use any color, but I love the purple and yellow together)
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
2 T Apple Cider Vinegar
Olive Oil

Simply combine all of the ingredients and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper.

This is a super easy, simple, and yummy dinner. It only takes about 30 minutes to get everything cooked and on the table.