Dishing Up the Dirt

chickpea and avocado collard green tacos with tahini sauce

collardtacos4

Tumbleweed Farm has been experiencing a frost every night for the past two weeks. We were almost an hour late to our last CSA drop off because we were harvesting all of our veggies first thing in the morning and everything was still covered in ice. I spent a lot of time in the car blasting heat on my hands and feet which is why we were so late!  We have learned the hard way that we need to pick our greens the day before our drop off this time of year.  Nobody likes a cranky farmer who can’t feel her hands or feet dropping of their produce. Lesson learned!

collards!

Despite the cold weather, the sun has been shining and our collard greens, kale, carrots, parsnips and brussels sprouts are sweeter than ever. Nothing like the first frost to bring out the sweetness in some of my favorite crops!

mekale!!!

I’m not exactly sure why, but collard greens have been a tough seller for us at the markets this season. I think they traditionally get a bad reputation for being extremely bitter, but this time of year there is no denying how delicious and sweet they really are!

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give collards a chance

Usually my favorite way to prepare collard greens is to sauté them in a little olive oil with plenty of garlic and crushed red pepper flakes. They taste really good prepared this way with a side of mashed parsnips. I will have plenty of recipes for collards and parsnips coming your way soon.  Until then, this is my newest obsession.

collardtacos

When I told Taylor I was going to prepare a “taco” meal using raw collard greens as the shell he looked at me like I had gone totally crazy.

“I’ll try it, but don’t get mad at me if I run to the brew pub for lunch afterwards.”  I gotta give the guy credit for always trying my newest creations.

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The verdict? Taylor went back for thirds and did not need to go to the brew pub for anything (except a beer later that evening!) We have made this same meal three times now.

If you are a fan of falafel I think you will enjoy all of the flavor combinations going on here. This meal is so stinking delicious you wont even believe it’s healthy! Besides, it takes less than 10 minutes to prepare. Who can beat that? Trust me, if Taylor went back for thirds you will LOVE this! Dig in!

Chickpea and Avocado Collard Green Tacos with Tahini Sauce

Prep Time: 10 mins.    Cook Time: 0 mins    Serves: 2-4

  • 6 collard greens, tough stems trimmed
  • 1 15 oz can organic chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 ripe avocado, mashed
  • 1/3 cup parsley, tough stems removed and finely chopped
  • 1 small red onion, diced
  • 3/4 cup shredded carrots
  • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • Salt and Pepper
For the Tahini Sauce
  • 1/4 cup raw tahini
  • 1-2 cloves of garlic, minced (only use 1 for a mild flavor)
  • 1 TBS fresh lemon juice
  • 2 TBS minced Parsly
  • pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
  • 3-6 TBS water (add more if sauce is too thick)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Extras:
  • Sriracha sauce for drizzling
 

Preparation

  1. Comine all ingredients for the tahini sauce together in a blender or with an immersion blender. Process until smooth and set aside.
  2. Combine all ingredients (except the collard greens) into a bowl and lightly mash/combine until everything is well incorporated.
  3. Scoop a healthy portion of the mixture into each collard wrap. Drizzle with the tahini sauce and a little sriracha sauce if you desire. Enjoy!

Notes

Use this recipe as a guide. Adjust measurements and ingredients as necessary.


Leave a Reply

20 thoughts on “chickpea and avocado collard green tacos with tahini sauce

  1. Simply Life says:

    oh wow! this looks incredible- what a great meal idea!

    1. Andrea says:

      It really is delicious. You could even swap the collard greens with lettuce, chard, or kale! It would all taste amazing.

  2. Collards are delish! The sign you made for ’em is too cute.

    1. Andrea says:

      Glad you love collards as much as we do!

  3. collard green tacos… brilliant!! these would be good with some cilantro and maybe some crushed peanuts too! mmm 🙂

    1. Andrea says:

      the crushed peanuts sound amazing! I’m trying that next time!

  4. These look great! I just harvested the last of my collards from the garden yesterday. I will have to make these tacos. I love tahini sauce.

    1. Andrea says:

      Let me know how yours turn out!! everything tastes great with a little tahini sauce 🙂

  5. I love your sign. I will definately give them a chance. I’ve been stealing kale from my pops garden lately 😛

    1. Andrea says:

      I hope you do give them a chance. This is a great first recipe if you haven’t had them before!

  6. Julia says:

    I’m not sure why collards get a bad rep either…sure they taste different than iceberg lettuce, but they’re still damn tasty once you get the hang of them! Your collard wraps look delicious! Light, refreshing and full of flavor! I’ll give your collards a chance!

    1. Andrea says:

      thanks lady!

  7. Sounds like you guys are probably eating a lot of collard greens! Love the “I’ll try it but don’t get mad at me:” bit – I get that same thing quite often. If anyone could make collards into the most delicious meal ever, it’s you! These look super easy – definitely going to have to whip some up.

    1. Andrea says:

      It’s so funny trying to feed the men in the house.. Glad you can relate!

  8. Alex says:

    Made this tonight but had to use red cabbage as my taco as I couldn’t find collard (I don’t even know if we have it in Australia!). Super tasty but the raw garlic in the sauce was a bit too overpowering based on the subtly of flavours in the main mix – I think next time I’ll try put the lemon juice in with the main ingredients and skip the sauce (with the avo it is already moist!).

  9. Lisa says:

    We made these last night- they were delicious! Thank you!!

  10. Britta says:

    I had these wraps today and they were very delicious! I used chard and added a bit of kohlrabi because I had some left over.
    The tahini dressing is one of my faves, though I used only one clove of garlic and added some sesame oil.
    Thanks for the great recipe!

  11. Serene says:

    First recipe I tried on your site and our family’s favorite dinner! Thank you!

    1. Andrea says:

      I’m so happy you loved them! Thanks for the lovely comment.

  12. Ingebelle says:

    Is there a substitute for avocado? I am allergic.

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