Making Love in the Kitchen

A few things you may not know about me.

For one, I’ve never in my life had a McDonald’s Hamburger. Now, this is not because even at the age of 5 when I was going to McD’s birthday parties I knew they were filled with toxic filler and the food equivalent of toxic waste. It’s because I was sure they also caused Chicken Pox. I’ve never had either and somewhere in my weird, creatively eccentric child mind, there was a connection.

I also didn’t like the way it looked when you bit into it. The same obviously went for burritos. In Winnipeg, where I grew up, there was one Mexican themed restaurant called Chi Chi’s. Does this still exist? I am pretty sure I never ate there though did puzzle over how ice cream was deep fried (their signature dessert).

The most popular option for “Mexican Food” I suppose is Taco Bell. And you know I didn’t eat there. Namely because I thought it weird that ground beef should come out the same machine that also made Slurpess and coffee. Well- they look the same.

Check out this little nugget of a video I found!

So what I am saying here is that up until last Monday when we did our recipe creation and testing, I had never had a burrito in my life. And maybe because of this, my virgin burrito self was completely open to everything I read about them, how they could differ from each other, what the salsa and filling options were and how to create the greatest ever veg happy burrito (Another thing you may not know about me- I despise the label ‘vegan’. It turns off meat eaters who want to eat more vegetables and that’s not a good thing).

Now, I must say that the Spicy Sweet Potato and Mixed Bean Burrito combined with a Corn Salsa and Cashew Sour Cream is maybe the greatest burrito to ever exist. If the beans just don’t cut it for you and you still want the meat in there- I highly recommend you head off to your local butcher and watch them grind the meat before your eyes. Ground beef seems to be a popular place to hide really weird stuff.

Alright- so you ready for the VERY BEST VEGGIE BURRITO RECIPE EVER?

[print_this]

Spicy Sweet Potato + Refried Bean Burrito

Burrito Filling
2 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp cumin, ground
1 tsp coriander, ground
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch of cayenne
1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped

2 cups Black Beans
1 cup sweet potato, coarsely chopped
6-8 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup water, if needed

1 tsp sea salt or more to taste

• Heat oil on medium heat in large skillet or medium sized pot and add cumin, corriander and cayenne. Cook until fragrant (but not burning).
• Add garlic and cayenne and cook for another 2 minutes.
• Stir in red onion, black beans, sweet potato and tomato and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add small amounts of water if beans start to stick.
• Sea salt and additional cayenne to taste.
• Once sweet potato has softened, removed from heat and allow to cool slightly.
• Using a potato masher, mash until desired consistency is achieved.

Additional Filling Options
1 red pepper, julienned
1 avocado sliced
1/2 cup lightly packed cilantro leaves
2-4 cups, shredded lettuce

Burrito Assembly

• Steam corn tortilla for 2-3 minutes just until softened.
• Dollop about 1/4 of Refried Bean filling into centre of tortilla, spreading it vertically through the middle.
• Add additional optional toppings including lettuce, avocado, red pepper, and cilantro.
• Option to add corn salsa inside or layer over top.
• Carefully wrap in one end, and then both side, leaving opening on top.
• If eating salsa on top, layer it across the top of the rolled burrito and add another dollop of cashew sour cream.

[/print_this]

[print_this]

Corn Salsa

2 cups sweet corn, cooked
1 cup tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch finely chopped cilantro
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt to taste

• Mix all ingredients together.
• Place in fridge to let flavours mix for about 1 hr before serving.

[/print_this]

[print_this]

Cashew Sour Cream

1/2 cup cashews, soaked
1/4 cup sunflower seeds, soaked
1/4 cup red pepper, chopped
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
3/4 tsp sea salt

• Place all ingredients in blender or food processor. Process until smooth

[/print_this]

Question Of The Day: What’s your fave ‘fast-food’ made healthy?