Pumpkin Tacos - AKA The Tastiest Tacos Ever!

Tacos are a healthy fave and for good reasons: they're incredibly simple, delicious, nutritious and affordable!  What makes this tasty taco recipe stand out from the rest is a mega-healthy, simple, delicious ingredient that I have the tendency to slap in just about everything: canned pumpkin.  

Pumpkin is amazing for:

• Healthy, Glowing Skin
• Healing Scars
• Healthy Digestion - Helps with both constipation and diarrhea.  
• Muscle Health - Loaded with the potassium you need for proper muscle contraction and vitamin A to heal damage.  In other words, pumpkin supports your gains bro!
• Satiety - Due to it's creamy texture and fiber content, pumpkin is a rockstar at keeping you feeling full longer.
• Making food taste absolutely amazing

From this moment forward ALWAYS add pumpkin to your taco meat and chili.  It sounds crazy, but once you do it, you’ll wonder how you ever did without.  Total game changer.

When it comes to tacos, pumpkin gives ground meat the creamy texture we most readily associate with restaurant tacos.  But instead of unhealthy chemicals creating the texture and taste, it’s all natural pumpkin.  Too boot pumpkin provides loads of fiber, vitamin A, magnesium and potassium. You officially know the best secret health and beauty weapon around.

Ingredients
1        Pound                 Lean, Ground Meat (Vegans/Vegetarians use black bean recipe)
1        15 oz. Can          Pumpkin Puree – I recommend going with Libby’s
1        15 oz. Can/Jar    Stewed Tomatoes, No Sodium Added
1         tsp.                    Coriander
1         tsp.                    Cumin
1         tsp.                    Chili Powder
½        tsp.                    Paprika
¼        tsp.                    Garlic Powder
¼        tsp.                    Cinnamon – Yes.  Seriously.
¼        tsp.                    Black Pepper
1         Clove                 Chopped garlic
½        Cup                   Chopped Onion
                                     Taco shells of choice

Taco Fixings
Here's the thing about tacos - you can put whatever toppings you really want on them.  To make them as filling and healthy as possible, strive to have the top 2/3 of each taco filled with produce. This includes salsa as it is produce in disguise.  

As for the sour cream and/or cheese then goes on top of the produce layer. Not much will physically stay up top though... and that's the point. Your dairy acts as flavor not the majority of the dish. Since you're using a small amount you can totally opt for the organic, full fat dairy products and while saving calories and money.

Recommendations
Romaine Lettuce
Spinach
Tomatoes
Black Olives
Cucumbers
Avocado
Sour Cream
Cheese – Not preshredded, as it tends to be coated in chemicals, which is not good.

Instructions

1. Wash and chop all your produce.
2. In skillet brown meat over medium heat.
3. Blend can of tomatoes.
4. Add chopped onion and garlic to browned meat and thoroughly incorporate.
5. Add blended tomato puree and allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Add pumpkin puree and all spices.  Mix thoroughly.  
7. Cook until tomato and pumpkin have significantly reduced giving the meat a creamy texture.
8. Remove from heat.

Healthy, Not Really Refried Black Beans 
This recipe is also part of the LEGENDARY Multi-Layer Game Day Dip recipe.  You can add these amazing beans to your pumpkin tacos or you can even use them in place of the meat mixture if you're looking to cut back on your meat intake or don't eat meat as a whole.  Don't short yourself the pumpkin though! Go ahead and be brave and add a can of pumpkin to this recipe. 

Ingredients
2    15 oz. Cans    Black Beans
1    TBS               Grape Seed Oil
1    16 oz Jar        Salsa Verde

1. Drain BLACK BEANS and place in strainer.  
2. Rinse BLACK BEANS in strainer until bubbles are gone.  Those bubbles rising to the surface of the beans are oligosaccharides, the gas causing agents in beans. 
3. In a medium sized skillet, heat GRAPE SEED OIL to a medium heat.  
4. Add rinsed BLACK BEANS. 
5. Continue to heat black beans until their skins begin to crack open.
6. Add a jar of SALSA VERDE.  
7. Using a spatula smash black beans and salsa together over heat until mixture becomes uniform.  
8. If you're going to add canned pumpkin, now is your chance!
9. Remove from heat.

Cucumber Pico De Gallo
Scrolling through my Instagram feed one day, I discovered that one of my favorite accounts I follow @colorfulfoodie had posted a picture of tacos with cucumbers!  Excited with how simple and delicious this idea was and instantly ran to the store to get everything I needed to test drive the idea out.  Absolutely amazing!  Now my tasty taco recipe includes pumpkin, cucumbers and then tomato puree in place of water.  Talk about a nutritional boost!

Ingredients
1                        Cucumber, Chopped
1                        Bell Pepper, Chopped
2                        Tomatoes, Chopped
1/2                     Jalapeno, Chopped - The whole thing if you're brave. 
1/2                     Onion, Chopped
2         TBS        Olives, Chopped
1/2                     Lime - For the juice.
1/2      TBS        Cilantro, Chopped

Combine all ingredients.  End of story.