Lately I have found myself pretty disappointed. Disappointed in quality, standards, and people in general. We have mistaken simplicity with ease, and we have mistaken easy with "I barely have to try at all." With practice comes ease, and simplicity naturally follows. Our ease of understanding or doing does not directly correspond (or correlate) to a limited amount of effort, or a limited amount of energy to perform a task.
When a recipe touts "just 2 ingredients," I scoff. Not because it might not taste good, but because they are lying, and it is blatant. There is not one recipe that takes two ingredients except for drinks like chocolate milk (add chocolate syrup to milk and stir), tea (add hot water to tea bag and steep), or coffee (add grinds to hot water and press). And who needs a recipe for that? So, when I see a recipe for bread that takes just two ingredients, it's impossible! Seasonings add flavor and depth and mixing dough with yogurt is only 2 ingredients, but it sure isn't the WHOLE recipe.
Can we stop accepting marketing lies, half-truths, and things that are "less than?"
Sustainability Spotlight: I use recipes as an exemplification (and simplification) of the issues with "buzz words," "fads," "viral (anything)," and "hot" right now labels. They are intended (and were invented) for us to consume. To manipulate facts, and to ensure that we click, enter, view, hover, engage, or otherwise look at the information being provided to us. A ploy. A stunt. A way to get you and me to be interested.
But interest is no longer translating into reality. I call it the "faux movement" and it includes highly staged (or even false) visualizations, manipulated words / language, and overly edited content that barrage (and plague) our society. Artificial intelligence backed by algorithms and data collection systems have changed how we view reality. It's true. Think about that person on social media that you have loved and known for longer than you can remember that puts into words or visuals how "great" their life is online, but tells you the opposite when you meet for coffee. How about that most amazingly stunning photo that prompted you to take a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the locale only to find that the reality is overcrowded, highly commercialized, and the photo you admired was taken at an angle that highlights the "beauty" of only a square foot of space taken at just the right time of day?
It's happening with the sustainability movement too - it's called "greenwashing." "Greenwashing" or "Green Sheen" "...is when a company purports to be environmentally conscious for marketing purposes but actually isn't making any notable sustainability efforts." (www.businessnewsdaily.com). These companies are being very simplistic in their marketing efforts by saying things like "we care about the environment." That may be true about their employees, but their actions might speak otherwise. My "favorite" lately has been campaigns of net zero carbon emissions, but the company is simply by buying the offsets and not actually changing their business model to reduce the carbon emissions. Greenwashing is using simple statements that are easy to make, but certainly not substantive, sustainable, or really exhibiting any effort at all.
Let's require ourselves and others to do better - don't believe everything you see or hear. Do your research. Think for yourself. Question things. Most of all, don't rely on simple to be "good." That's for the world, that's for sustainability and that's for recipes.
I know, the list of ingredients is "long" below (psst - most are spices / pantry items) and you might do an eye roll and think: "Really? It's just tacos for goodness sake." Yep, it's just tacos. Taco are still simple; you don't need any "special" ingredients to make them, but they are worth some effort. All of our meals, decisions, actions, and interactions are worthy of some effort.
So, do better, be better - question things; don't confuse simple with easy and don't confuse facts with half-truths. Make the world a better place through actions and demand reality from all aspects of our life - both online and not.
Ingredients:
Tacos:
1 cup crackers (plain)
1/2 tsp of each of the following spices:
chili powder
garlic powder
onion powder
smoked paprika
salt
pepper
cumin
coriander
furikake (Japanese seaweed seasoning)
2-3 firm but ripe avocados
Flour tortillas (warmed - microwave or over open flame!)
Hot sauce (whatever's your fav; I like Cholula Chipotle)
Brussels Slaw:
1 tbsp avocado oil
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 lime (juiced)
6-7 brussels sprouts (trimmed and shredded)
2 extra large radishes (sliced thin - mandoline Level 2)
1 small jalapeno (diced)
1/4 red onion (quarter moon, then slice thin)
1 large handful cilantro (chopped)
Garlic Cream Sauce:
1/4 cup sunbutter
1 lime (juiced)
1/4 cup filtered water
3 garlic cloves (chopped)
1 tsp agave syrup
1 pinch of salt
1 tsp stone ground mustard
2 tbsp avocado oil
Directions:
Blitz crackers with all seasonings in Tacos above in the bowl of a large food processor. Empty contents to a shallow bowl (or plate) and roll pieces of avocado into the crackers. Set aside.
Add oil through lime in the Brussels Slaw above to a large bowl to combine. Add remaining ingredients and stir (pulling spoon up through the veggies from the bottom to coat in the dressing). Set aside
Add all ingredients of Garlic Cream Sauce above to a personal blender and blitz until smooth. Set aside.
Warm tortillas (I like to put them directly over my gas burner till it puffs slightly and gets that lovely char, but you do you!)
Assemble tacos by layering your warmed tortilla, topped with your avocado "fish," followed by a ton of slaw (my personal preference), and finished with a drizzle of the garlic cream sauce and hot sauce (if using). Wrap, fold, cut, however you want to eat it & enjoy!
With love & hope for a better future for all of us.