The Burrito Dilemma

I don't crave a lot of foods, but the two that I long for, lust for, at least once a week is sushi and Mexican food. Luckily for me, sushi is rather healthy, so it's a guiltless indulgence, but Mexican...well, that's a whole different taco all together.

When I do crave Mexican, I usually want a burrito. The chewiness of a gigantic flour tortilla, the creaminess of the slightly spicy refried beans, the juicy shredded chicken and melty, glorious cheese - I wantitwantitwantit now. But if I ran out and got this meaty cheesy goodness every time I had a craving, I'd be looking like a stocky stuffed burrito (more than I already do - ha!).

So I have found a solution. Make a healthy version of the food I crave. In this case, I start off with one, Trader Joe's brown-rice-flour tortilla (gluten and wheat free for those of you with celiac) and a slice of jalapeno Veggie Slices cheese.

The start of healthy burrito greatness

Put those in the micro for a sec, to let the "cheese" melt. Then add one, heated (micro for one minute) Dr. Praeger's Tex Mex veggie burger and a few pieces of chicken - in my case, it's the already-cooked "Just Chicken" from Trader Joe's - to the tortilla/soy cheese. The Tex Mex veggie burger has a very bean-y texture, and the spices are just perfect for Mexican food. Nuke for another minute to heat up the chicken.

I then add some red onions and salsa, plus a good amount of Tapatio, then roll up the tortilla and secure with a toothpick. I eat it with some Mary's Gone gluten-free crackers and more salsa. You can eat it with baked tortilla chips, which I would have preferred, but I only had these crackers in the pantry.

Needless to say, my burrito craving was satiated. No, it's not authentic by any stretch, but it got me through one dinner and it saved me about a zillion calories. So it's all good.

Breakfast for Dinner - a Quickie

Last night, I was craving a poached egg. That soft, pillowy exterior; the rich, golden yolk...there are few things I crave more than this. I toasted up some gluten-free brown bread, and layered the top with leftover grilled asparagus and plopped a beautifully poached egg right on top.

It's magically delicious!

The combination was a good one - the salty, peppery asparagus against the yolky, rich egg - and it made for a quick and satisfying dinner. OK, it's more snack-size, but I wasn't that hungry last night.

Sorry for the short post today...I shall post more tomorrow :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

P.S. My best friend Cat informs me that not THAT many people know the song, "Rainy Days and Mondays" by the Carpenters (bah!!). This is bad news for me, since the name of my blog and the tagline is a play off the song and its lyrics. SO, just to clarify, the said lyrics are: "Hanging around, nothing to do but frown, rainy days and Mondays always get me down."