Insane Jackfruit Nachos, and Tutu Pelé Reclaims Her Land

I must send blessings: to my good friend visiting the big island in Hawaii now, and all the residents in and around Puna and in the path of Kilauea - I’m praying for your safety. Tutu Pelé is reclaiming her land. Aloha people of Puna, please be safe and let the fire goddess do her thing. Aloha ‘Āina.

If I’m going to speak the truth, Pelé gave everyone more than four years to pack up and leave the Puna side. Easier said than done, I know. But there were warning signs, and why did everyone think She was Pau? We must remember to whom the land belongs. The Earth is not ours, and she must periodically remind us of that. At some point, we must listen. And bumbai we learn.

Check out this homemade goodness: inspired by Herbivores café in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, a vegan eatery a friend recently visited and raved about, we made jackfruit nachos last night, and they blew my mind.

I’m not sure how I missed the jackfruit trend in veganism, but I’m glad I found it. Young jackfruit, like tofu, has a slightly nutty flavor that readily assumes the flavor of whatever sauce or spice is added to it, making it the perfect meat substitute in any recipe.

But jackfruit is better than tofu, in my humble opinion. Jackfruit trumps tofu in that it has a meaty texture and toothsome firmness that really, really satisfies, and it performs exactly like meat. Emulating Herbivore’s jackfruit nachos as best as we could, we used a rich barbeque sauce with our jackfruit nachos.

My husband said it tasted exactly like pulled pork – something I’ve never eaten, but I’ll take his word for it. He loved it, and that’s good enough for me.

These nachos are an amazing combo of spicy and rich and crispy and fresh. We used Edward & Sons organic young jackfruit, sourced in southern India, on farms that are organic to U.S. standards. Just heat it in a skillet for a few minutes, and it’s ready to go.

We loaded up our nachos with plenty of fresh, raw veggies like tomatoes, red onions, lettuce, arugula, and sliced jalapeno peppers, then added taco sauce and drizzled a vegan ranch dressing over the top.

And I’m having the leftovers for lunch today. New addiction. I don’t know if these nachos are as good as the nachos at Herbivores, but who cares. They are completely insane. Another example of how awesome vegan food is. Compassion tastes amazing.

This morning, I noticed that the beach rose bush my husband and I bought at Martha’s Vineyard several years ago has not only matured into a fine, large, healthy specimen, it has also produced two keikis nearby. 

This week or weekend, I’ll carefully dig them up and move them to a spot where they’ll have room to grow. It will be at least three years before they’re large enough to bloom, and that’s fine. We may not be living here when that finally happens, but I’m just thrilled that there are two new beach roses in the world.

And the papaya seeds I planted just a week ago have germinated! We ate a delicious papaya last week, and I decided to save the seeds. I just sowed them in a small tray and placed it outside in the sun. Last night, I saw several seedlings. But this morning, it was obvious that chipmunks saw them too, and had dug many of them up, looking for the seeds beneath the soil.

So, in a retaliatory act, our dog killed a chipmunk this morning and placed its little body on the deck for us to admire. Not cool. I had to bury the poor thing in the garden before I could do anything else. I know dogs are predators, and our dog has a keen predatory instinct, but this always breaks my heart.

I covered the remaining papaya seedlings with a dark green glass cloche to keep chipmunks away. If even a few make it – and I think they will because these seeds are strong - I’ll be psyched. I know just the spot for a small grove of papaya trees.

Barbie xo