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Bell Pepper and Beef Taco Skillet with Chipotle Cashew Cream

This recipes is adapted from Ali Maffucci's beautiful book Inspiralize Everything. I changed a few things. First, I used my own taco seasoning blend because I already had it on hand. Pick up a copy of the book to get Ali's! I also added the corn to the skillet with the other veggies instead of par-boiling it separately. As you know, I hate dishes. To make it dairy-free, I omitted the cheese and topped the taco skillet with a chipotle cashew sauce. To make fully Paleo, simply omit the corn!
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 4
Author Phoebe Lapine

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon taco seasoning (see note above)
  • 1/2 cup raw cashews
  • 1/2 pound lean ground beef
  • Sea salt and pepper
  • 3 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, sliced
  • 2 large bell peppers (I used yellow and orange), cored and spiralized (use blade A of the Inspiralizer, if using)
  • 2 roma tomatoes (I used 1 pint cherry tomatoes), seeded and chopped
  • 1 large ear of corn, kernels removed
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
  • 1 chipotle pepper from a 7-ounce can of chipotles in adobo sauce

to serve

  • 1 avocado thinly sliced
  • 1 lime, cut into wedges
  • 2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro leaves and/or chopped scallions

Instructions

  • Mix together the taco seasoning ingredients together in a small bowl.
  • Place the cashews in a medium heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak for 30 minutes, or until you're finished with the skillet.
  • Place a large 12-inch skillet (preferably, cast iron) over medium heat. When water flicked onto the skillet sizzles, add the beef. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the meat begins to brown, breaking it apart with the back of your spoon to form bite-sized chunks. Add the garlic and oregano and sauté for 3 minutes more, until very fragrant. Remove the meat mixture to a bowl and set aside.
  • Add the olive oil to the skillet. When it shimmers, add the onion and bell peppers. Sauté over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften. Return the beef to the pan along with the tomatoes, corn kernels, and taco seasoning. Toss together and cook for another 5 minutes, or until the tomatoes have begun to release their juices. Remove from the heat.
  • Meanwhile, drain the cashews and puree them in a food processor or blender with the lime juice, chipotle and 1/3 cup of water. Add more water by the tablespoon until the nut sauce is smooth and you reach the consistency of ranch dressing. Season to taste with salt.
  • To serve, drizzle the skillet with the chipotle cashew cream, garnish with avocado slices, lime wedges and cilantro leaves, and serve with the remaining sauce on the side.

Notes

If you don't own a spiralizer, you can simply chop the pepper by hand. But I loved how the veggie ribbons beefed up this skillet recipe even more.

Nutrition

Serving: 4g