Healthy snacks that are dense in nutrients AND that taste great are often hard to come by. When you do find them in the health food aisle, they can be excessively expensive. $6 for a small bag of organic kale chip crumbs?! Oy vey! The great news is you can turn something you might otherwise compost from your garden into deliciously crispy chips that will satisfy your salty snack cravings and leave your body feeling happy and healthy.

Enter romanesc broccoli leaf chips smothered in nacho "cheese" sauce, then baked or dehydrated until they are light and crispy.

You can make these with any brassica leaves - curly kale, cauliflower leaves, collard greens - packed full of fiber and detoxifying minerals great for scrubbing out your system. When you add a cheesy sauce made from sprouted organic cashews - a wonderful healthy fat that's easy to digest when soaked - and coconut oil - rich in immune-boosting, energizing and inflammation-reducing properties - you've got a winning combo. The nutritional yeast adds cheesy flavor and nutrients, along with red pepper and spices for that familiar spicy nacho taste you'd expect in a much less healthy snack.

You can store these in an airtight container for up to a week, though they've never made it longer than a few hours in my house. No guilt about it. Time to get snacking the Vivacious way!

Vivacious Dish & Good Neighbor Gardens Urban Sharecrop are coming at you from San Diego's urban center with a garden chat about how to grow food in your own backyard, and a demo of how to turn romanesco broccoli leaves into crispy and delicious nacho "cheese" chips. Join us!

nacho "cheese" romanesco broccoli leaf chips

YIELD: 2 cups (6 servings)
PREP: 20 mins
COOK: 1.5 hours
READY IN: 2 hours

Crispy, crunchy and oh so cheesy broccoli leaf chips make the perfect nutrient dense snack to satisfy all your salty munchies.

Ingredients

1 large bunch broccoli leaves (about 5 leaves) or other brassica (kale, cauliflower leaves)
2 cups raw cashews, soaked in water 4-8 hours then drained
1/2 organic red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 organic lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp organic garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp cayenne
Pinch crushed red pepper to taste

Instructions:

Preheat oven to lowest temperature (around 155 degrees F) or prep dehydrator.
Wash, dry and tear broccoli or other brassica leaves into bite size pieces, about 2 inches in size.
Place soaked cashews, bell pepper, yeast, lemon juice, coconut oil and all spices except red pepper flakes in high powered blender or food processor and blend until smooth and creamy.
Pour "cheese" sauce over torn leaves and mix with your hands to evenly coat.
Lay leaves out in a single layer on parchment lined baking sheets or dehydrator trays and bake/dry for anywhere between 30 minutes and 2 hours until completely dry and crispy. Check every 15 minutes or so for desired dryness.
Sprinkle with red pepper flakes and enjoy.

Nacho "Cheese" Romanesco Broccoli Leaf Chips