All growing up it seemed like we would have 1 of 2 lunches every Sunday. The first was good ol’ grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup, the second were our version of a burrito! They were so good and super easy to make! Not long ago I had a flashback of this meal and whipped it up for my kids to eat one busy Sunday afternoon…they LOVED IT! I was a little hesitant to feed it to them at first because they aren’t huge bean fans, and well, this recipe has lots of beans. But they all surprised me and downed those puppies in no time!
To make a good burrito, it doesn’t take much. But I do have a couple of secret ingredients I like to throw in there that help with flavor AND aid in digestion, nutrient absorption, and improve your gut health! Are you ready to know my secrets??? Here they are!
Busy Weeknight Burritos
10 almond flour tortillas (I love the brand from Siete)
15 oz can of organic refried beans or sprouted pinto beans
1.5 lbs ground meat (turkey, beef, chicken)
½ cup sauerkraut
¼ cup salsa
¼-½ cup cilantro, minced
¼ cup organic whole fat plain Greek yogurt (or dairy free sour cream)
1 tsp cumin
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish with:
Guacamole
Lime
Salsa
Directions:
In a large frying pan, cook your ground meat. Once cooked through, turn the heat on low and add the remaining ingredients, stirring frequently so as to not burn the beans on the bottom of the pan.
In a separate frying pan, warm up tortillas. Place on a plate covered by another, to keep the tortillas warm and soft. Fill each tortilla with approximately ⅓ cup of bean/meat mixture. Fold in edges and roll up! Secure with a toothpick to keep it from separating.
Serve immediately with an easy side of steamed veggies and your favorite seasonal fruit!
Easy Guacamole
3 ripe avocados
2 Tbls sauerkraut juice
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
Salt and pepper to taste
In a medium mixing bowl combine the first 4 ingredients together and mash together until guacamole is at your desired consistency. Add salt or pepper to taste.
Let’s look back up to the ingredients list. I choose to use almond flour tortillas because I have recently discovered I am allergic to wheat (facepalm). No, I don’t have celiacs and I actually can tolerate gluten, but for some reason wheat just causes all sorts of problems. So, I eat almond flour tortillas and I’m not mad about it. If you are going to buy a tortilla, look at getting tortillas that don’t include inflammatory or gut harming ingredients. We were lovers of Tortilla Land tortillas (uncooked tortillas you can find everywhere, including Costco). They are so good! However, if you turn the package over and read the ingredients they include canola oil and sugar. Both of which are harmful to the gut biome…another reason I love the Siete brand’s almond flour tortillas. These tortillas ingredients are: almond flour, tapioca flour, water, sea salt, xanthan gum!
Is it a big deal to buy organic refried beans vs any other refried bean? Here’s why I buy organic refried beans; a lot of refried beans include inflammatory oils such as lard and hydrogenated oils and sugar! When you buy organic you’re avoiding any processed or artificial oils and sweeteners, which is kind of a big deal when you’re trying to heal your gut. I will often use sprouted pinto beans if I have planned ahead of time. Sprouted beans are much easier to digest because which in turn is a lot easier on your tummy…leading to less bloat and gas. When beans are sprouted it breaks up the phytic acid within the actual bean (this is what causes bloat and gas). With the sprout, it also makes many other nutrients more readily available! The sprouted bean essentially becomes a superfood!
Why do I add sauerkraut to my burritos?? Sauerkraut is a fermented food, which means it has a lot of naturally grown probiotics! I can’t get my kids to eat straight sauerkraut, but whenever I have the chance to sneak it into foods I will. Be sure to buy refrigerated, non-processed sauerkraut. When it’s processed and in a can it means that the jar had to be heated at extremely high temperatures, which in turn kills the probiotic bacteria. We don’t want that.
Cilantro is a chelating herb, which means it helps our body detox heavy metals. Canned foods, drinks, the dirt we walk on, tin foil, they all contain levels of heavy metals. Our body will naturally detox these on their own, but it’s always a good idea to help it out whenever we can. Cilantro and many other dark leafy greens help with this. I add it to as many dishes as I can as well.
Whole fat plain Greek yogurt is another fun food to throw into the mix. Originally I would add sour cream, but, since yogurt is high in probiotics as well, I like making the swap to help with promoting better gut health in my family's bellies! If you’re dairy free, there are some great dairy free sour cream swaps, but honestly, this dish provides enough flavor that it would be delicious without this ingredient. We want to pick a whole fat yogurt because the fat and protein combo make it much easier on our guts to digest. Oftentimes we drink or eat low fat dairy products and our stomachs will hurt afterwards. Most of us assume we are sensitive to dairy, when in fact, a protein that isn’t accompanied by a fat will typically make it harder on your stomach to digest. Don’t be afraid to eat whole fat dairy products.
These are all simple and easy swaps that you can make to help your guts heal and thrive. Just because this recipe is a quick and easy one to throw together, it doesn’t mean that we need to eat unhealthy foods that won’t serve our bodies in any way.
If you’re struggling to know which foods will help your body heal quickest, how to feed a family of picky eaters, or want to use a more holistic approach to heal in ways such as anxiety, depression, weight loss, thyroid issues, balance your hormones, and more, check out Intro to Learning Nutrition!
This is a 4 week course I have created JUST FOR YOU!! It will walk you through which foods will give you the biggest bang for your buck when it comes to better health and healing, how to eat in ways to serve your body, what foods to avoid to obtain optimal health, and provide simple, easy food swaps to ease the burden of searching for them on your own.
Happy Cooking!
Love,
Danielle
P.S.
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I love this and can’t wait to try this recipe! How do you sprout your pinto beans?