these tostadas are veggie gold.
the awesomeness starts with the magical process of roasting garlic.
if you don’t know how to do this – let me enlighten you! it’s crazy easy AND requires very little time on your end!
all you do is take a head of garlic, chop the tip off to expose the tasty cloves + then douse the cloves in olive oil!
next, simply seal that sucker up in a tinfoil package of perfection + roast it for about 35 minutes.. when the time has elapsed you’ll have roasted gold that you can spread, schmear or eat by the handful garnish with as you wish!
this recipe is one of my weekday favorites because the ingredients can be adapted to whatever your fridge has to offer up thus making it a recipe of the ‘clean out your veggie drawer’ variety.
don’t fret, i’ll equip you with my suggested veggie line-up down below – but feel free to swap in or out to accommodate to whatever you have on hand.
the biggest rule you’ll want to adhere to is: whatever veggies you choose – cut ‘em in as even size as possible!
be it diced super small {lower cook time!} or be it chopped into larger chunks {longer cook time = more candy crush playing hand’s off time!} – just keep ‘em cut as close as possible to their fellow roasters!
now, uh kelly, i took french in high school, what the heck is a tostada?!
well, imaginary voice in my writing head, so glad you asked!
tostada is a is a spanish word meaning “toasted.”
easiest way to look at the tostada is as a flat taco! a crunchy taco base for towering toppings if you will!
the internet told me that the tostada avoids waste when tortillas are not fresh enough to be made into tacos, but fresh enough to be eaten.. i think that’s a fun way to look at it!
as an avid taco fan {we’re talkin’ tortillas folded up + around the goodies inside} i was always a bit confused on when + why people choose tostadas over tacos. BUT if you look at it as a way to stretch those nearly stale corn tortillas, then it not only makes sense but it turns dinner into a fun little food-saving adventure!
here, we are going to ‘fry’ our tortillas in a skillet to get that crispy base the tostada calls for.
but! you could totally serve the roasted garlic veggies taco style or in a burrito bowl situation.. no matter how you do it, your tastebuds will thank you for it.
- 1 head of garlic
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 sweet potato, cubed into ¼ inch pieces
- ½ red onion, cubed into ¼ inch pieces
- ½ red bell pepper, cubed into ¼ inch pieces
- ½ hatch green chile pepper, cubed into ¼ inch pieces
- 1 cup baby bella mushrooms, chopped into ½ inch pieces
- 1 ear fresh corn, kernals removed {frozed may be used. thaw + pat dry}
- kosher salt + pepper, to taste
- corn tortillas
- for the roasted garlic:
- preheat the oven to 375º
- slice off the tip of the garlic head to reveal cloves.
- set the head of garlic in the center of a piece of foil, large enough to fold up + over the head.
- pour roughly 1 teaspoon of olive oil per clove.
- wrap the foil around the head of garlic to seal + roast in the oven for 35 minutes, or until golden brown.
- for the roasted veggies:
- line a baking sheet with aluminum foil + spray with nonstick spray.
- in a large bowl, combine you veggies + drizzle with 2 teaspoons of olive oil, sprinkle with salt + pepper, then toss to coat.
- spread in an even layer on the baking sheet + roast for 20 minutes.
- after 20 minutes, toss the veggies with the balsamic vinegar + stir to coat. then roast an additional 15 minutes.
- while the veggies are roasting, heat a skillet over medium-high heat.
- brush each tortilla {front + back} with olive oil, then place one at a time in the skillet until crisp on each side {about 2 minutes per side}
- remove tortillas to a wire rack to cool.
- remove veggies from baking sheet + add back to the bowl.
- squeeze out the roasted garlic cloves + mix thoroughly into the vegetables.
- build each tostada with veggies atop it + the toppings of your choice! enjoy!
for toppings, i went with a drizzle of homemade lime crema + diced avocado.
here’s my go-to crema recipe:
→ combine 1/2 cup of sour cream, juice of 1 lime, 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro + 1/2 teaspoon of sugar together. adjust taste with salt + pepper to taste!
we talked about swaps in the post – the veggie world is your oyster here! just don’t skip the roasted garlic – it’s a must-have! but a fun shortcut option is to buy the roasted garlic cloves from the olive bar at your local market.
these make for a GREAT appetizer! a fun way to make them bite-size is to use a small bowl to cut your tortillas into smaller circles! then top ’em with the veggies + leave some fun topping options for your guests to customize with!
the easiest way to drop cals here is to adjust the tostada base. try serving your veggies over a bed of a super grain – like quinoa! or omit the frying step all together + serve with a handful of your favorite low-carb tortilla chips.
the roasted veggies will hold wonderfully in an airtight baggie or container! as for the tostadas, they will taste best fried up to serve!
garlic is pretty awesome for you. here are some fun things the internet taught me:
• garlic is highly nutritious, but has very few cals!
• garlic can combat the common cold
• the active compounds in garlic can reduce blood pressure!
• garlic improves cholesterol levels thus lowering the risk of heart disease!
• garlic was one of the earliest ‘performance enhancing’ substances! crazy right!? studies suggest that expercise-induced fatigue may be reduced with garlic.
• garlic may have beneficial effects on bone health in women!
• garlic can help detoxify heavy metals in the body!
this recipe is adapted from, in my opinon, one of the best bloggers out there – jessica from how sweet it is!
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Absolutely delicious! I made a bunch of vegetables that I have plenty leftover. I’m now marinating a flank steak in the chili rub recipe you posted to have a meat version for dinner tomorrow night!
yay! thank you josh! let me know how the steak + veggie combo goes! =) -k
Absolutely delicious!