Beef Taco Skillet Recipe with Bell Peppers and Corn | Feed Me Phoebe (2024)

For a professional food babe, I’m surprisingly suspicious of kitchen gadgetry. So when my first spiralizing apparatus landed on my doorstep, designed by none other than the doyenne of inspiralization, it took me a few weeks to get up the courage to rip open the package and let the blades go to town on the bell peppers in this beef taco skillet recipe from hernew cookbookInspiralize Everything.

I’ve gotten to know Ali Maffucci over the last year through my #friendsinfood events in New York, and become slightly hypnotized by the volume and beauty of all the squiggly veggies spiraling out of her kitchen. Between that, and being a gluten-free recovering carboholic, you might think I’d have ditched the kelp noodles and jumped on the spiralizing bandwagon sooner. But I couldn’t bring myself to buy the machine.

My gadget skepticism has less to do with usefulness and more to do with faith in my ability to successfully use said gadget.

Since we’re in confession mode over here, I’ll just come out and tell you that I don’t even own a blender. Nope. Not me. I’ve been using the same 3-cup mini Cuisinart for the last decade of my culinary trials and tribulations. For smoothies, for hummus, for soup. For everything. {Monkey speak no evil emoji}.

While that’s a pretty good (and deserved) advertisem*nt for that one particular gadget, the reason is silly. I was gifted thisfancy food processor a few years ago. Itwas too big and heavy to use in my studio apartment, so sat in a closet for most of my tenure in Chelsea. But I had full intention of making the transition once we moved into our big new kitchen in Brooklyn. Somewhere along the way, though, the user’s manual was misplaced. And given my low-tech approach to the kitchen thus far, I still don’t really know what to do with all those blades of glory.After a brief mean-mugging Clint Eastwood stare downwith the Inspiralizer on my countertop, I did something that I rarely do: I read the instructions.

It turns out my fears were unfounded. The machine was incredibly simple to use, and learning the proper ways to do so did not cause me to experience the same mild headache that descends every time I step into an Ikea.

In fact, despite my sweaty palms, the bell peppers easily whirled into ribbons, and once sautéed with onions, they provided a hardy layer to this taco skillet recipe, beefing up the dish in a way that allowed for a much healthier beef to veg ratio. And therein lies one of the things I love most about the recipes in Inspiralize Everything. They’re perfect for flexitarians who want to find ways to add more veggies to their life without completely giving up entirefood groups. (i.e. my balanced diet philosophy to a T). The majority of the recipes are marked as gluten-free, and Ali even has a “dairy optional” label to let you know where it’s easy to turn something vegan or Paleo.

I decided to take her cue for this bell pepper and beef taco skillet recipe and skip the cheese. Instead, I created an easy chipotle cashew cream, using the gadget that had previously, before the Inspiralizer, held first position on my countertop.

For those of you who don’t know the beauty of a Gwynethcashew moment, basically you soak the nuts in hot water for up to an hour (some people will do it for longer, but I find it gets too mealy), and then puree them with a little liquid and whatever flavorings you like to create a creamy sauce. In this Tex-Mex meal,my chipotle cashew creamtakes the place of sour cream, cheese and hot sauce,wrapping them all into one dairy-free treat. What a moment!

For the flexitarians out there, this is a great easy weeknight meal that doesn’t require much more than what’s already in the skillet. Even my carboholic other half was completely satisfied with just some sliced avocado on the side.

If you’re paleo, the only alteration you need to make is to skip the fresh corn. But given the late summer produce vibes, I think you’d be crazy to do so. Gab some peppers, tomatoes and cobs at the market this weekend, set any pre-existing gadgetry fears aside, go forth and spiralize EVERYTHING. Ali’s book should make that mission, should you choose to accept it, that much easier and more enjoyable. And though I have obviously never used any other kind of spiralizing gadget, my experience is evidencethat her machine is the most idiot-proof and well-made around.

From one healthy, spiralizing hedonist, to another,

Xoxo
Phoebe