Sunday, January 4, 2009

'dilla idea

If you've been following this blog for awhile, you probably know how I feel about burritos. The vegetarian burrito is my go-to dinner when I am either too-tired to cook, looking for an inexpensive treat, or, most likely, simply craving a burrito. I never really gave much thought to the caloric content of a burrito, because I always figured it was relatively healthy. Hey, beans, rice, a little avocado--what could be bad? Then I found this. and wanted to cry. My "relatively healthy" burrito--though not from Chipotle, but containing the same ingredients--contains over 1000 calories. More than half the calories I need for the day. Now, I love burritos, but not enough to spend the entire day at the gym to merit consuming them, so yesterday, I set about creating a new go-to meal that is quick, satisfies my burrito cravings, and, most importantly, won't cause my waistline to expand or my arteries to give out.

After puttering about my kitchen playing with different techniques and ingredients, I came up with the following recipe. I won't totally abandon taqueria burritos, but hopefully this will help me limit my habit a bit.

By the way, you'll notice I call for a Mission low-carb tortilla. I highly recommend these. Not only are they lighter and higher in fiber than traditional flour tortillas, but they mysteriously become flaky and crisp when cooked in a pan.

You'll need:

1 Mission low-carb tortilla
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup cooked black beans, drained
1 T chopped cilantro
1 T chopped white onion
1/8 avocado, mashed
1 T light sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
Tapatio or other hot sauce to taste
1 t olive oil

1. Drizzle the olive oil in a medium-size frying pan. Turn heat to medium-high.

2. Meanwhile, lay your tortilla flat on a clean surface. Layer cheese first and then beans. Fold in half and transfer to your now-hot frying pan. Cook 1-2 minutes on each side until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is golden brown.

3. Once your quesadilla is cooked, transfer to a cutting board. Carefully open it and add the onions, cilantro, avocado, hot sauce, and sour cream or yogurt. Cut into halves or quarters and transfer to a plate. Delicious with a light Mexican slaw or salad.

4. Feel smug about how virtuous you are.

5. Repeat when craving strikes again.

Love,
Gabi

3 comments:

Gabe Russell said...

I had the same reaction to that same site a couple months ago. I suppose it explains why I get mildly comatose after eating a Chipotle veggie burrito.

I think it's the serving size that's out of whack. 2/3rds of a 13" burrito is plenty. Time for small/med/large options.

Unknown said...

Dude. There is no way that a burrito that you or I make is anywhere near the calorie level of a Chipotle burrito. There is probably oil and fat and crap and more fat in practically every ingredient chipotle has ~ as opposed to plain beans or the smaller portions of rice, sauteed (I have no idea how to spell that...I apologize, oh Great Goddess of the Kitchen) veggies, and whole grain tortillas. I am a huge burrito bum and when I make my own I know that I am putting something healthy, filling, and well-balanced into my body :) If you ever do a blog solely on burritos, can I be your guest?

GLM said...

Totes, Alyssa. :)