RECIPE: Back to school means back to the fridge
Thanks to virtual high school, my kitchen now resembles a 24-hour convenience mart. Bleary-eyed patrons in desperate need of haircuts and better hygiene shuffle through at odd hours, poking day-old pastries and zapping pizza pockets.
To improve our grab-and-go-to-the-next-room options, I made a batch of breakfast burritos. Filled with protein-packed eggs and iron-rich leafy greens, these nutritional powerhouses can be frozen for up to two months. A minute in the microwave restores them to a freshly made consistency, so your people can heat and eat whenever hunger, or the mood, strikes.
Start by sauteing diced onion, and spinach thrown in during the final minute. If green veggies get a pass in your house, any omelet-friendly ingredient works. Think: bell peppers, mushrooms, cooked turkey bacon or chicken sausage. Scramble the eggs, then let all of the ingredients come to room temperature. The wait is annoying, because you’ll want to get on with the burrito rolling. But if your fillings are warm, the steam will freeze, yielding icy-then-soggy burritos.
Standard tortillas can be shockingly caloric. Try the lower-carb tortillas, which offer fewer calories and more fiber. Gluten-free spinach wraps are another healthful option. Corn tortillas might be a little dry. Fortunately, a smothering of low-sodium salsa will save the day. Or the night.
- 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup chopped white onion
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- 6 ounces fresh baby spinach, rinsed
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons butter
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 4 scant tablespoons low-fat feta crumbles
- 4 (8-inch) lower-carbohydrate tortillas
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the onion for 3 minutes, until it softens. Add the cumin, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, a few seconds. Add the spinach and stir until wilted, 1 minute. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Drain the mixture in a colander and set aside.
- Wipe out the skillet and return it to medium heat. Melt the butter, swirl the skillet, and add the eggs. Cook for 1-2 minutes, occasionally pushing a wooden spoon across the bottom of the skillet to softly scramble the eggs. Scrape eggs into a bowl and allow the eggs and the spinach mixture to come to room temperature.
- Divide the eggs evenly among the bottom halves of the tortillas. Top the eggs with the spinach mixture. Sprinkle the feta crumbles on the spinach. Fold the bottom of a tortilla up and over the filling. Fold the sides of the tortilla toward the center and tightly roll the bottom of the tortilla up to the top. Repeat with remaining tortillas. Wrap the burritos in parchment paper, place in a freezer-safe zip-top bag, and freeze.
- To heat, microwave a wrapped burrito on high for 1-2 minutes. Serves 4.
Nutritional information
Per serving: Per burrito: 212 calories (percent of calories from fat, 44), 14 grams protein, 24 grams carbohydrates, 16 grams fiber, 13 grams total fat (5 grams saturated), 197 milligrams cholesterol, 521 milligrams sodium.Read more stories like this by liking Atlanta Restaurant Scene on Facebook, following @ATLDiningNews on Twitter and @ajcdining on Instagram.
