"Healthy" Breakfast Burritos

Soyrizo Breakfast Burrito

Even before I decided to try to be a vegetarian I liked "soyrizo." Actually, when I first heard of it I fake gagged and said "deeeeesgusting!" But then I was tricked into eating it under the premise that it was real chorizo. Not even my dad could tell the difference. I've pretty much never gone back. Josh was already boycotting chorizo because he accidentally read the ingredients. Big mistake! I, on the other hand, have always held that it doesn't matter what's in it, if tastes good I'll eat it. Much like my mom's mantra It doesn't matter if it feels good as long as it looks good! Unfortunately neither of those arguments really hold much water as I am now scrutinizing every label with a magnifying glass and my mom is wearing orthotics! (Don't tell her I told you!)

Anyway, back to my burritos. On our honeymoon to Maui Josh and I ate breakfast at this cool little restaurant called Soup Nuts and Java Jazz. Such a funny name. Turns out it was a coffee shop by day and a jazz club by night. I ordered the chorizo breakfast burrito, which was the size of my head! It had chorizo and eggs, black beans, and a load of cheddar. It was so so good! I thought it such a strange concoction with the black beans, served on a bed of Spanish rice. Oh my. That was seven years ago and I still dream about it!

With a few changes I would venture to say my version of this burrito is quite healthy. Lots of breakfast protein and healthy carbs, not to mention veggies and beans! I went ahead and substituted soyrizo for the real deal. I almost always add baby spinach to my eggs, so I included that in this recipe too. If you chop the spinach small and add it to the scrambled eggs before you cook them you will not even taste it! (This is pretty much the only way I can get Jer to eat spinach!) If you like a stronger spinach flavor, you can saute it before adding the eggs to the pan. Here is my healthy version of this delightful burrito.

"Soyrizo" Breakfast Burrito
1 Tbsp Olive oil
1 package Soyrizo -- I like the Trader Joe's brand.
6 Eggs -- You can use more if you'd like more burritos. I'd say up to 10.
A couple large handfuls of Baby Spinach, chopped small, and some extra to add later
1/2 cup Black Beans, drained and rinsed
6 Whole Wheat Flour Tortillas -- You may need more or less depending on how full you like your burritos.
A sprinkling of Cheese -- Right now I have a Mexican blend that I've been using, but you can use whichever kind you prefer, Cheddar is tastiest.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Remove the Soyrizo from the package and add to the pan. Use a masher or wooden spoon to break it up and let it cook for about a minute or so before stirring. Since it's already "cooked" your goal is just to brown it up and add flavor. Stir every couple of minutes or so till browned.

Meanwhile scramble the eggs with salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add chopped spinach to the eggs and whisk it all together. Add the egg/spinach mixture to the soyrizo once it is browned. Let it sit for a moment to begin cooking, then use long strokes with a wooden spoon to mix.

Once the egg is mostly cooked through add the black beans. Continue cooking for another minute or two till the beans are heated through.

Now you can begin assembling your burritos! If you have a gas range you can heat your tortillas right on the stove top, otherwise you'll want to preheat a pan or "comal" (cast iron skillet) to warm them up. I like to heat one tortilla at a time, then make the burrito before I heat the next. You could heat all the tortillas and place them in a (lintless) kitchen towel to stay warm, then assemble the burritos all at once.

Here's the lineup: tortilla, light layer of baby spinach (you can leave this out for kids or picky eaters as I did here), soyrizo and eggs with black beans, sprinkle cheese; wrap! If you've never wrapped a burrito before you'll want to fold the bottom end (and top if you'd like) then roll from one side to the other. Make sure you're tucking all that yummy goodness inside as you go.

That's it! Enjoy!!! (With a sprinkling of hot sauce of course! My fave bottled kind is Tabasco Chipotle.)

P.S. If you're having a cheat day or just want to be a little decadent go ahead and use real chorizo and white flour tortillas. Don't forget to load up on Cheddar too! I could die happy after eating this...

Super Easy Black Bean Soup

Black Bean Soup

Ah Sunday. Sundays are a bit hectic and a little bit of a cheat day every week (even if we've already had one). We usually have coffee and snacks for the choir and band between church services. Usually someone brings a lot of yummy, sugar-laiden treats, and possibly some fruit. Today I got to bring the snacks so we had a variety of bagels and cream cheese, and grapes. I had a cheese bagel and cream cheese, and creamer in my coffee. So, yeah, not quite up to par, but my only cheat for the day. We had Chipotle for lunch -- sofritos (tofu) salad bowl with brown rice, black beans, grilled peppers and onions, salsa -- delish! For dinner I made this delightful black bean soup, which we will be eating twice more this week.

I love black bean soup...it's thick and bean-y and delicious. Usually it's also bacon-y...mmm...bacon. But alas all that bacon is behind me and I have found a pretty delicious black bean soup recipe sans the meat-candy. It's from a show called "Let's Dish" on The Live Well Network. It's not a show I watch very often but I was fortunate to catch this episode. I immediately looked up the recipe and this super easy black bean soup has become our go-to. Even today when it is 100 degrees outside I am making it because we love it and it is good for you!

You can find the recipe here, but I'll share my modified version.

Black Bean Soup
2 cups diced onions
2 Tablespoons canola oil  -- I just used enough to coat the bottom of the pot
2 green bell peppers, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 28 oz. can black beans
2 15 oz. cans refried black beans
12 oz. vegetable broth
1 15 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
10 oz. cooked brown rice -- I used the microwave kind from Trader Joe's
1 Tablespoon chile powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaf

In a large saucepan, brown onions and bell peppers in oil over medium high heat (about 10 minutes). Add garlic and spices and cook for another minute. Adding the spices here will intensify the flavor, so if you'd like it a little milder just add them after the garlic with the rest of the ingredients. Add remaining ingredients and warm through. You can let it simmer for awhile till it thickens up a bit. Taste for seasoning and serve with whatever garnishes you like on top -- tomatoes, cilantro, avocados, lime, cheese, sour cream.

I did try my hand at making black beans myself instead of using canned. They came out perfectly and were super easy to make, just a little time consuming. Also if you can't find refried black beans you can just refry them yourself, and this way you leave out much of the fat that is added. I simply heat and mash. You're really only adding them to thicken the soup so the extra oil is unnecessary.

If you try this recipe I'd love to hear how it turns out!

Chilaquiles Verdes

For some  reason I don't recall eating chilaquiles growing up.  (Pronounced: chee-lah-key-less... not chilli-killies as I have heard them called! lol)  I'm sure I had them. Or maybe I refused them. Either way it's a sad story because they're so stinkn' good! In college we had "Stir-fry Fridays" and every once in a while these were on the menu. Of course they were covered in oil and super-deliciously greasy and tasty.

Funny thing about chilaquiles is that they are a vegetarian meal, but as you may know they have no vegetables, unless you count whatever chiles were processed in the making of the sauce, or the optional salsa topping. Anyway, this is not a healthy recipe nor should you try to make it any healthier because it wouldn't be nearly as delicious. This recipe is for your cheat day. Or in our case as the last hurrah of a cheat weekend. We ate these with beans and salsa. Delicioso!

Chilaquiles Verdes
7 Corn Tortillas
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
5 Eggs, scrambled
1/2 c or so Green Enchilada Sauce - I make Chile Verde in the summer when the New Mexico chiles are in season, but when they aren't I just use a can. We like Las Palmas.
1 c Cheddar, shredded - you could use whatever kind of cheese you want, Pepper Jack would be amazing, I just happened to have cheddar on hand.

First thing is to heat the oil in a large sautee pan or skillet over medium high heat.  Cut the tortillas into triangles. Just use a sharp knife and cut straight through all the tortillas at once.

Drop the tortillas into the pan and toss to coat with oil. I used tongs to turn them all around and make sure everyone was nicely coated. You may want to adjust the oil. The recipe on the can of enchilada sauce I used called for 4 cups of oil! I guess those ones are deep fried! This way the tortillas get crispy but not deep fried by any means and you can use much less oil. Give the tortillas a few minutes on the first side then start flipping them over and moving them around to make sure everyone gets browned and toasty. You can start by checking one or two pieces. You'll notice if they're not browned up yet they'll be limp and then they can tear apart easily so be careful. This is the most tedious part about this recipe but it's totally worth it! Here's what they should look like about halfway done. Starting to brown nicely.

Once the tortillas are crisp pour the eggs over them being sure to cover all the chips. You can turn the pan to move the eggs around so everything comes together. Allow them to cook for a minute, then with a spatula scoop up and turn over a portion at a time to cook the eggs through. Once all the eggs are cooked pour the sauce all over everything. Now listen to the sizzle! Yum! Turn the pan a couple times to allow the sauce to combine with the eggs and chips. Turn the heat off. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and cover.

Let it sit for about 2 minutes or so till the cheese is sufficiently melted and gooey. Serve it up!

This was enough for Josh and Jeremiah and I. Like I said we had refried beans on the side and some salsa on top. You could even put beans on top or underneath and eat it all together. All the measurements here are to taste so feel free to experiment. I have also made this with Carne Adovada, which was Uh-Mazing!

Tomato Sauce Chicken Tacos

 

One night we had some left over shredded chicken and nothing planned for dinner. Josh is big on making sure the chicken isn't dry so I was wracking my brain trying to figure out how to re-cook the chicken without over cooking the chicken. Then it hit me: A little chicken stock and tomato sauce would perk that chicken right up. Season it and slap it in a tortilla. Tomato Sauce Chicken Tacos! Yum!

Tacos are great because they're quick and easy. Plus you can put just about anything in them. They are also a simple way to incorporate veggies, like peppers and onions.

Tomato Sauce Tacos
1 lb left over Chicken - If making fresh I usually boil or poach it. You could also buy a roasted whole chicken.
2 tsp Olive Oil
1/2 cup Tomato Sauce
1/4 cup Chicken Stock
Goya Adobo Seasoning with Cumin - You can find this in the Hispanic Foods aisle at your grocery store or your local Mexican market.
S & P
Yellow onion, sliced thin
1 each Red & Green Bell Peppers - or whatever color you have. This is really dependent on your preference. Slice 'em thin!
Corn Tortillas

Begin by shredding the chicken. I like to use two forks. This helps if the chicken is hot, but it is also much quicker than by hand, I think. Use one fork to hold the chicken and the other to tear it up.

Heat 2 tsp olive oil in a 10 in. sautee pan over medium high heat. Add the onions and peppers and cook until they start to brown and begin to soften. Season with Goya seasoning. If you've never cooked with it take it easy but don't under-season. A nice even sprinkling over the pan should do it. Seasoning each step along the way will build layers of flavor, but it can also lead to over seasoning, so watch it! (If you want extra garlic flavor this would be a good time to add a couple cloves minced garlic and let it cook out for about 30 seconds. Mmmm garlic!) Once the peppers and onions have cooked out add the chicken and season with Goya again. Then toss together to coat the chicken with olive oil. Now you can add the tomato sauce and chicken stock. Mix it all up and bring to a simmer. Cover and allow the chicken to heat through. This last step shouldn't take long, a few minutes maybe. Here's what it should look like:

Make sure to taste your chicken, then add S & P as necessary. You may find you need nothing extra or you need a lot more seasoning. I like a little extra kick of pepper at the end.

Leave the meat mixture covered on low heat while you heat your tortillas. You can do this over an open flame on a gas stove or on a comal, which is a cast iron griddle. If you have neither of those just use a large flat pan and make sure it's nice and hot. Either way they'll turn out delish! Once mine have heated through I fold them in half and put them on a plate, then cover with a dish towel to keep warm. If they break apart when you fold them they're not hot enough.

Once your tortillas are ready fill 'em up! I only made five tacos this night but I think you could probably get about 12 tacos out of this much meat. Then top with your favorite toppings. We used cheese, salsa, and guacamole. Well, Josh used guacamole. I still can't stand it!

I heart Tacos!