Wraps: Trader Joe's Brown Rice Tortillas

All this week I'v been packing Greek salad wraps for lunch.  (I prefer to pick one thing and pack it all week - makes prep so much faster and there's no extra "What should I pack?" time wasted.)  It's worked pretty well, but I've learned a thing or two about using the Trader Joe's brown rice tortilla wraps to make sandwich wraps.  They are gluten free, of course, and like most bread-like-products that are gluten free they don't fold.  So, even if it's been sitting at room temperature for a few hours, it still needs to be microwaved for 10-15 seconds in order to actually wrap your sandwich without it cracking and making a mess.  There are a couple logistical issues with this.  You have to wrap your sandwich right before you eat it, so the tortilla has to be carried to work flat.  I carried mine in a gallon size zip top bag and slipped it into the outside magazine pocket of my work bag.  The wrap must be warmed, so you have to have a microwave at work.  And of course, you have to have the space to assemble your sandwich.  I do this at my desk since our shared pantry grosses me out.  Who knows what's been on that table!

(I didn't actually try wrapping at home and packing the sandwich pre-wrapped, but I'm pretty sure that once refrigerated again, the wrap would be just as dry and crack and fall apart, leaving you with a salad with tortilla pieces mixed in.)

1. Have all sandwich fillings ready to go.  In my case, this was baby greens "herb" mix, chickpeas, feta, olives, red onion, cucumber, and tomato. 
2. Microwave tortilla in bag for 10-15 seconds.  (Yes, micrwaving in a plastic bag is probably going to kill me.  Eventually.)
3. Place on napkin, add filling, roll, then wrap with paper towel to hold it all together and fold paper towel over the bottom to hold filling inside. 
4. Enjoy!

Monday night: California Tortilla - yum!

Tuesday night: pan fried potatoes with onion, garlic, and collard greens.

Wednesday night: sauteed garlic, carrot sticks, onions, mushrooms over brown rice, with a fried egg. Topped with your choice of sesame oil, gomasio, tamari, sriracha, chili paste.

Thursday night: avocado-chickpea tacos with homemade tortillas. Topped with cheese, sour cream, salsa, and a squeeze of lime.

Quick, easy, and so much tastier than anything you can buy in the store, homemade tortillas form the basis of many quick-and-easy meals around here. That tortilla press, added to the wedding registry on a whim? Best.Decision.Ever. Seriously.

Avocado and chickpea tacos made based on this recipe from Vegetarian Times.

Mexican Eggs

A quick and easy dinner, made of things we usually have on hand.

Serious Eats recipe for Mexican Eggs

We served it with a can of Whole Foods refried pinto beans with chili and lime, roasted potatoes with a dash of cayenne, and lots of cheese, cilantro, tomatoes, and sour cream. I have to try and remember that those refried beans are not spicy, even though the label says they are.

No photo, because we had company over.

It's Good to be Back in the Kitchen

Improvised Black Bean Vegetarian Chili

I had a container full of sauteed vegetables (onion, zucchini, portabella mushroom, butternut squash and black beans) in the fridge from making veg and goat cheese enchiladas a couple months ago. I let it defrost in the fridge for a couple days and then improvised chili tonight.

Here's what I did:

Saute about 1/4 cup diced red onion and 2 cloves garlic in about 1 Tbsp olive oil.

Add 2-3 cups of leftover chopped veggies out of the freezer, thawed in fridge and drained of any excess liquid.

Add about 2Tbsp tomato paste, squeezed from tube. Cook a few minutes over med-high heat to heat the veg and cook off any extra water out of the previously-frozen vegetables.

Toss in about 1tsp ground cumin and 3-5 shakes of cayenne pepper. Salt and pepper.

Stir in slices of an ancho chili pepper straight out of the freezer, along with a can of black beans (rinsed and drained) and one large can fire roasted tomatoes, undrained. I added them whole and tried to break them up with the spoon later. Next time I would chop the tomatoes before I add them to the chili.

Stir and let simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Serve with toasted tortillas, cilantro, lime wedges, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and pickled jalapeno.

Tortillas, etc. - Tostadas

Toast tortillas until crisp in toaster oven. Top with refried black beans, cheese, tomato, pickled jalapeno, sour cream, and if you're feeling crazy - an egg. Bonus if the yolk is runny. These will probably make an appearance again some weekend for breakfast.

Quick Quesadillas

Perfect for a quick and easy Monday night dinner. Tortillas, Trader Joe's refried beans, shredded cheddar, sliced onion, diced tomato. Served with tortilla chips and Wholly Guacamole (doctored with salt and cilantro). Toast on skillet over medium heat (or toast in the toaster oven).