Mexican Cabbage Boats

Can you believe that summer is winding down? I sure can't. The season just flew by. Yesterday, I was wearing my warm wool socks around my apartment because it was so chilly! In all honesty, I'm pretty excited. I really like autumn and I especially like making soups and warming, nourishing foods.  I've been reading some awesome new cookbooks and nutrition books lately and I've been really inspired by them all, so expect some more amazingly delicious and super healthy meals coming soon. Wow, I'm getting ahead of myself here...these Mexican bowls, my friends, are what I'm here to talk about today.

I've been sitting on this recipe for almost two weeks now, which is bad because we're nearing the end of the summer season when raw meals like this are not typically served. But summer produce like corn, tomatoes, and peppers are still rolling in, so you still have time to make these little Mexican bowls of deliciousness if you want. I have to say, they're as delicious as they are beautiful. Just look at those colors! Antioxidants galore, my friends. They're almost completely raw, because I threw some cooked black beans in the mix, and they are just full of flavor. The sweet corn and juicy heirloom cherry tomatoes are just divine. And top them with my favorite condiment ever, homemade guacamole, and you have a nutrient-packed bundle of  bliss.

Mexican Cabbage Boats
Basically, for this recipe, you just prepare all of the "fillings" and serve them in red cabbage leaves. To easily remove the leaves off the cabbage, cut three inches or so off the stem end of the cabbage. Gently peel the leaves off one by one. Fill each bowl with your desired amount of fillings. The amounts for each filling will make at least 6-8 bowls.

Corn and Black Bean Salad
3 ears of corn, kernals removed with a sharp knife
1 cup cooked black beans, drained and rinsed very well
half of a red onion, finely chopped
2 handfuls fresh cilantro, chopped
1 small clove of garlic, finely minced
juice of two limes or one lemon
3-4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
sea salt to taste

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and let sit 15 minutes or so to allow flavors to blend. Set aside.

Fresh Raw Salsa (from My New Roots)
Ingredients:
1 cup chopped cherry tomatoes (I used a mix of red and yellow)
½ red bell pepper, chopped fine
½ orange or yellow bell pepper, chopped fine
½ red onion or 4 green onions, minced
¼ cup chopped cilantro
½ clove garlic, minced
juice of ½ lime
1 tsp. raw honey
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
pinch of sea salt

1. Whisk the garlic, lime juice, honey, olive oil and sea salt in the bottom of a bowl and set aside.
2. Cut up the veggies into rather small pieces, chop the cilantro and add everything to the dressing bowl. Fold to combine and let sit for at least 10 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
 

Guacamole
2 ripe avocados
¼ red onion, finely chopped
1 small tomato, chopped
large handful cilantro, finely chopped
juice of half a lime
sea salt, to taste

1. Mash avocados with a fork in a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Serve immediately.

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