Vegan Tuna Sandwich Wrap & The Florida Keys

Disclosure: I was selected as a member of Honest Cooking for this sponsored post on behalf of The Florida Keys. Some of the content and photos of Florida Keys have been provided by the sponsor.

Sunday was the first day of Spring and it SNOWED!! Oh I wish I was in a warmer place, how about Key West. It sounds just like heaven now. It was a favorite destination for Ernest Hemingway, Jimmy Buffett, and many more.

I have never been to Key West but I have heard a lot about its beautiful palm lined streets, it's distinct mixture of cultures and the island is not only home to a strong seafood scene, but a tantalizing fusion of cuisines. At night, the streets lite up with vibrant sidewalk cafes that lure in passersby with delicious scents of their specialties. Live music and hopping bars are the perfect pairings to watch the sunset into the Gulf of Mexico.

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Vegetarian Rice & Beans Burrito with Queso Sauce

Blogging Marathon# 53: Week 1/ Day 3

Theme: Tortilla based Dishes

Dish: Vegetarian Rice & Beans Burrito with Queso Sauce

For the last day of this week's marathon under 'Tortilla based dishes' theme, I made rice & beans filled burritos. We love Mexican food and I make it at least once a week. I always keep tortillas in stock for quick wraps, burritos or tacos.

Taco Bell happens to be our favorite fast food restaurant and before you start judging me let me tell you that is the only place where we get a decent choice of vegetarian options. Also they keep adding new items on to their menu unlike other fast food chains where we usually exhaust the dishes to try the first time we visit. Other Mexican fast food places we visit are Qdoba & Chipotle. So moral of the story is we love Mexican food and eat it quite frequently at home and outside.

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Vegetarian Fajitas

Blogging Marathon# 53: Week 1/ Day 2

Theme: Tortilla based Dishes

Dish: Vegetarian Fajitas

Second day of tortilla based dishes and today I've some delicious vegetarian fajitas to share. Fajitas happen to be my favorite dish to order at Chili's restaurant. I've never made them at home even though they are quite simple to make.

Vegetarian fajitas are not on Chili's menu, but a nice waitress had it customized for me once and I got totally hooked. Every time I went to this Chili's location, I make sure to order their vegetarian fajitas.

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Vegetarian Sincronizada (Quesadillas)

Blogging Marathon# 53: Week 1/ Day 1

Theme: Tortilla based Dishes

Dish: Sincronizada

We are starting a brand new edition of Blogging marathon today and my theme for this week is 'Tortilla based dishes'. Valli gave us a list of tortilla dishes to choose from to make our lives easy. Tortilla is nothing but the Spanish version of Indian rotis. They are soft and made with finely ground wheat flour or corn flour.

So for the first day, I picked Sincronizada. The name seemed very complicated but making it is not complicated at all. Sincronizada is usually confused with Quesadilla, but they are considered are completely different dishes. Quesadilla is traditionally made with corn flour and is single folded. Whereas sincronizada is made with flour tortilla, has 'ham' as a mandatory ingredient and is usually made as a sandwich.

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Honduras -- Baleadas (Vegetarian Recipe)

BM# 44: A-Z Cooking Series -- Around the World in 30 days
Country: H for Honduras

Dish: Baleadas 

We are going to Central America today to Honduras. Honduras was conquered by the Spanish in the 16th century and they introduced Roman Catholism and Spanish language along with numerous customs that have blended with the indigenous culture. The country became independent in 1821 and since been a republic. Honduras is best known for the production of minerals, coffee, tropical fruit and sugar cane, as well as for its growing textiles industry, which serves the international market.

The reason for choosing Honduras was when I started listing the countries my husband was away on business to Honduras and it ended up on the list. He was the one who suggested the dish too. Baleadas are one of the original and popular foods in Honduras. It is made of a thick wheat flour tortilla that is folded in half and filled with mashed beans and occasionally other ingredients. They are very similar to Mexican burritos in terms of fillings.

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Veggie Nachos

Being a food blogger, one thing that I sure don't do is post recipes ahead of a specific holiday/ festival. I wish I was more planned in that aspect. Coming from apparel retail background, I've seen companies start working on a season at least 9 months in advance, ie., designers start working on Summer designs (that will be in the store some time in April) some time in September of the previous year.
In the same way, there are quite a few bloggers who start posting recipes for summer before the end of spring. While they are thinking ahead, I am usually posting recipes I made at the end of winter (!!!!!!), that is how organized and planned I am.
Well today's dish was meant for Super Bowl Sunday and of course it is a week late. I saw Rachael Ray make this on her show and the use of veggies on nachos sounded tasty and I wanted to make it for my nacho-loving son. I actually served it for lunch (!!!) along with cilantro-lime rice.

These are infact a healthier version of traditional cheese laden nachos. Most of the cheese is replaced with sauteed veggies. My son liked them quite a lot and I'm sure I'll be making these often in the future.

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Aloo Tikki Wrap (Potato patty wrap)

Blogging Marathon# 33: Week 1/ Day 1
Theme: Combo Dishes - Tikkis/ Burgers
Dish: Aloo Tikki Wrap (Potato patty wrap)

After our month long Mega marathon last month with A-Z Andhra dishes, we are back to our regular 3 days a week Blogging marathon this month. My theme for the for the first week is 'Combo Dishes' involving tikkis and burgers. When I signed up I wasn't sure what I would be cooking for this week. After all the planning, cooking and blogging non-stop for a whole month, this week feels so unplanned and on the spur of the moment. I haven't cooked the dishes for next 2 days, hopefully they will be done on time.

My mom and my sister along with my niece are here with us. I'm enjoying the company and my mom's Andhra dishes. In turn I'm trying new recipes on them -- it's a win-win situation for me, not sure if they think so or not :-)

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Vegetarian Chimichanga with Kidney Beans

Blogging Marathon# 31: Week 1/ Day 2
Theme: Mexican Cuisine
Dish: Vegetarian Low-fat Chimichanga

For Day 2 of BM# 31 under 'Mexican Cuisine' theme, I made this low(er) fat vegetarian Chimichanga. 'Chimichanga' is essentially deep fried burrito that is stuffed with either meat and/or beans. Since deep frying is not something I do regularly I decided to pan fry them. I already have a recipe for baked chimichangas that I posted way back in the olden days :-)

Filling for the chimichangas, like any other Mexican dish, is very versatile and can range from meats to beans to veggies. I have made these with different beans (black or red kidney or pinto) and sometimes even mix some TVP (soy granules). But the best I've found is using Trader Joe's Soyrizo and beans cooked with some onions, red pepper and some cheese -- yummy!!

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Grilled Vegetable Quesadilla

Blogging Marathon# 31: Week 1/ Day 1
Theme: Mexican Cuisine
Dish: Grilled Vegetable Quesadilla

We are starting BM# 31 today and Valli had very interesting themes, all starting with the letter 'M'. So for the first week, I picked my most favorite theme, 'Mexican Cuisine'. Mexican dishes feature at least once or twice a week in our household. We all love beans, cheese and spicy food, so Mexican cuisine ranks right next to Indian for us.

So for the next 3 days, I'm going to post some of my family favorites. For the first day, I have quesadillas which are basically Mexican version of grilled cheese sandwich. My cheese loving son loves these. Add some grilled/ roasted veggies or beans and you have yourself a filling meal.

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Vegetarian Tacos with Pinto Beans & Cheese

Blogging Marathon# 28: Week 1/ Day 3
Theme: Kid's Delight - 5 Ingredient Fix
Dish: Vegetarian Tacos with Pinto Beans & Cheese

Today's dish for Kid's Delight - 5 ingredient fix is my son's latest favorite. My 5 year old is slowly getting better at trying ingredients and dishes these days (knock on wood). I was surprised when he wanted me to order 'tacos' at Chipotle and surprised me even more when he liked them a LOT. He especially loved the corn salsa they put on his tacos and now he says that corn is his favorite veggie (not sure how long that will last). Anyway, right now I'm a happy camper because at least he's willing to try something new instead of just saying 'no' for everything.

I wanted to make tacos for him at home and what better day than today, 'Cinco de Mayo' (5th of May) to post them here for Valli's Kid's Delight event being hosted by me this month. 

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Tabbouleh with Guacamole in a Tortilla Wrap

This morning my son, who just woke up, asked me why doesn’t our town have “nowhere”. I was searching for words for a little bit and said there is nothing called “nowhere”. He retorted back, then how did Lightning Mcqueen (the race car in Cars movie) get lost in the middle of nowhere???? Every town should have a "middle of nowhere". I was thinking to myself, how the heck am I supposed to know that, ask the people at Disney who made the movie. Phew, these kids make you sweat sometimes.. 

Well since the day started with a LOT of thinking, I decided not to think too much about dinner and to keep it simple and easy. Keeping with the “Cooking from the cookbook” theme I made Bulgur tabbouleh with guacamole from The Ultimate Book of Vegan Cooking, wrapped them up in a tortilla and called it a day..

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Vegan Tacos

Ok I said I don’t like burritos with tortillas, but I do like tacos with tortillas :-). My tacos are made with soy meat, but you can definitely use crumble tofu or cooked TVP (textured soy protein). I added readymade taco seasoning, but this can be substituted with a mixture of cumin powder, chili powder and some dried oregano or marjoram.

Great for weeknight meals and since I don’t like the fuss of wrapping in tortilla, I cook some rice; top it with the taco “meat” and all the other toppings for lunch the next day. Yumm.

Ingredients:

6” Corn Tortillas - 10

Soy ground meat – 1 pkg (I used Lightlife)

Pepper – 1 small, chopped fine

Onion – 1 medium, chopped

Carrots – 1 small, grated (Optional)

Garlic cloves – 2, minced

Tomato puree – ¼ cup

Taco Seasoning – 2-3 tbsp

Salt – to taste

Toppings:

Avocado – 1, diced

Grape Tomatoes – 10, halved

Scallions – 4, chopped

Lettuce – shredded

(Vegan) Sour Cream – ¼ cup

Method:

• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan; add onions, peppers and carrots (if using) and sauté on medium flame till the veggies are tender, about 8-10 minutes.
• Add minced garlic and cook for another couple of minutes.
• Add the soy meat (or cooked TVP), crumble with back of the spoon and cook for 4-5 minutes.
  
• Next add tomato puree, taco seasoning and ¼ cup water; cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes. If the mixture is too wet, cook uncovered till the extra water evaporates. Season with salt, keep in mind taco seasoning has quite a bit of salt, so adjust accordingly. Keep aside.
  
• Corn tortillas are quite fragile if not warmed before hand. Heat a skillet on medium-high flame and warm the tortillas on both sides until very slightly browned and pliable. Pile all the toppings and enjoy.

This is of to Vaishali for her Its a Vegan World: Mexican event.

Bare Burrito

I like burritos without the tortilla because it is so much more convenient to eat out of a bowl than having to wipe your mouth after every bite, especially when eating in public. These tortilla less burritos sold as Bare Burritos in Baja Fresh and Burrito bowl in Chipotle grill are my absolute favorites. All the fixings of burrito layered in a bowl instead of wrapping a tortilla.. super convenient. Also don’t you think that bowls hold more food than tortillas??

These bowls are layered with flavored rice, beans and roasted veggies; garnished with cheese, sour cream, guacamole and salsa (I had none of these on hand, but they are still super good). I make them for our lunch boxes and also for last-minute guest dinners.

Ingredients:
Long grain Rice – 1 cup

Bean Layer:
Beans – 2 cups, I used a cup each of Black and pinto beans
Salsa – 1 cup, homemade or store bought, I used store bought Mild salsa
Onion – 1 small, finely chopped
Garlic – 2 cloves, minced
Cumin powder – 2tsp
Chili powder – 2tsp
Salt – to taste

Veggie Layer:

Peppers – 2 medium, chopped into 1” pieces (I used green peppers, but any color pepper would taste great)

Onions – 2 medium, chopped into 1” chunks
Zucchini – 2 medium, chopped again into 1” chunks

Method:

• Cook rice with ½ tsp dried oregano and tiny bit of salt. Cool and keep aside.
  
• For the bean layer: Heat 2tsp olive oil in a sauce pan; add onions and garlic till translucent. Add beans, salsa, 1 tbsp chili pd, 1 tbsp cumin pd, salt and ½ cup water; simmer on medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes.
  
• For the veggie layer: Heat a large sauté pan on medium-high heat till very hot; add 1tbsp oil and the veggies; sauté them till nicely browned and cooked through. Season with the remaining 1 tbsp of cumin and chili pds. Try not to crowd the pan with the vegetables, add in single layers and cook in batches if required. Alternatively all the veggies can be grilled for that smoky flavor.
  
• To serve: Spread a layer of rice, top with beans, veggies, rice, salsa and guacamole in that order. Enjoy with sour cream and grated cheese.
  

This is my entry to Vaishali @ Earth Vegan for her It’s a Vegan Month – Mexican.

Potato Quesadillas

This is my entry to Recipes for the Rest of Us-Dinner being hosted by lovely Siri @ Siri’s Corner. This event is started by Ramki @ One Page cookbook and the rules say that the recipe should be easy enough for a 10 year old to make.

I’m sure almost all 10 year olds like potato (I sure did and my DH says he could eat potato everyday even now, so I can imagine how he was when he was 10 J) and they would want these for themselves.

Coming to the recipe, its nothing but spicy aloo bhaji tucked in a tortilla (roti) with lots of cheese.

Ingredients:

Potatoes – 1 medium, cubed

Onions – ½ small, chopped

Red chili powder – a little bit or a lot (depending on how spicy you like)

Garam masala – to your taste

Salt- to your taste

Cheese – you 2 handfuls

Tortillas – 2 (I used sundried tomato-basil flavored, but any flavored tortilla would work. Chapati/ Roti would be great too)

Method:

• First make aloo cury: Heat few drops of oil in a pan, add onions and potatoes; sauté till onions are tender, will take around 5 minutes.
• Add a small glass of water, cover and cook on medium-low flame till potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Add chili powder, garam masala and salt; mix well and keep aside.
  
• To make the quesadillas: Heat a griddle or tawa on medium heat; spray with non-stick cooking spray; add the tortilla and let it brown a little bit on one side; then flip. Add palmful cheese on half the tortilla, and then add half potato curry then another palmful cheese. Fold tortilla in half and press lightly with a spatula, so the cheese melts and sticks. Flip and cook on the other side till brown spots appear. Remove and let cool** for at least 5 minutes and then cut into wedges.

** If the quesadillas are cut when the cheese is still hot, then the cheese oozes out.

Eggplant Wrap

I’m lucky to live at walkable distance from my work. Looking at the sky rocketing gas prices and extremely frustrating traffic jams I’m very glad we made the decision to move closer to work. But the biggest advantage is being able to see my son just minutes after I leave work. That to me is price-less.

Well now I have to confess, I don’t walk to work (ya… ya.. I know I have to), but being this close sometimes spoils you rotten. But on the other hand, I try to come home in the afternoon on my lunch break; prep something for dinner like cook dal, make a quick curry, chop veggies for evening, soak beans or something like that. It’s so much easy to come home in the evening and make some rice and finish up the curry and/or dal. This is giving us time to take our son for a stroll in the evening. I’m loving it..

So today I baked the eggplant and made hummus during my lunch time and put together the warps after we came home. I would include lettuce, roasted red peppers and onions next time I make these wraps.

Ingredients: For Baked Eggplant:
Eggplant – 1 medium, cut widthwise into ¼“ slices
Flour – ¼ cup
Milk – about ¼ cup
Bread Crumbs – ½ cup
Dried basil – 1tsp

For the Wraps:
Whole grain Tortillas – 4
Tomatoes – 2 medium, thinly sliced
Method:

• Layer the eggplant slices in a colander; sprinkle each layer liberally with salt. Put something heavy on the eggplants, so that they release the bitter juices. Leave it for at least 30minutes (or before leaving to work).
  
• Preheat oven to 450°F.
  
• After 30 minutes, (or during lunch time) rinse off the salt and pat dry thoroughly.
  
• Set up an assembly line with 3 plates each with flour (seasoned with salt and pepper), milk and bread crumbs (seasoned with basil, salt & pepper or any other seasonings you like).
• Drench the eggplant in flour-milk-bread crumbs (in the same order). Place them on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet and bake them for 5-7 minutes on each side until they turn golden brown. Remove and let cool.
  
• To assemble, smear the wrap liberally with hummus, lay the eggplant and tomatoes, wrap and enjoy.

For the Hummus (Adapted from Alton brown’s recipe):
Chickpeas – 1 15oz. can drained or 1 ½ cups cooked
Peanut butter – 3 tbsp
Lemon juice – 2tbsp
Olive oil – 2tbsp
Red pepper flakes – ½ tsp
Salt and pepper to taste.

Method: Blend them into a smooth paste in a food processor.

Mexican Vegetable Lasagna

This is a very nutritious and filling dish. I adapted Rachael Ray's Mexican lasagna to suit our taste. I used almost all the different variety of veggies I had in the fridge.

Ingredients:
For the Filling:
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves, minced
Zucchini - 1 medium, chopped
Red Pepper - 3 medium, chopped ( I actually used 1 each of red, green and orange)
Spinach - 3 cups, roughly chopped
Red Kidney beans - 1 15 oz. can, drained and rinsed
Chopped Tomatoes - 1 15 oz. can ( or as required)
Cumin powder - 2 tbsp
Chili powder - 1 tbsp
Salt and pepper - to taste

Other Ingredients:
Tortillas - 3 ( I used large flour tortillas, you can substitute corn tortillas)
Sharp Cheddar cheese - 1 cup, grated
Pepper Jack cheese - 1 cup, grated
Green onions - 2, for garnish

Method:

• In a large pot, heat 2 tbsp oil on medium flame. Add garlic and saute till light brown. Add onions, peppers, zucchini and saute for about 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper; cover and cook for about 8-10 minutes or until the veggies are just tender.
  
• Add chopped spinach and kidney beans. Cook till the spinach wilts, about 3 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes ( make sure that the filling is not too wet), cumin powder, chili powder. Cook for another 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and keep aside.

Assembling the Lasagna:

• In a baking dish (I used a square baking dish), spread just a little filling (about 2tbsp)in the bottom.
  
• Halve the tortillas and layer the filling with 2 tortilla half moons (with the cut side facing outward).
• Spread 1/3 of the filling and cheese over the tortillas. Place another layer of tortillas.
• Repeat the layers with filling and cheese.
• Top most layer should be cheese (add more cheese for a gooey top).
• Bake in pre-heated 425F oven for 10-15 minutes or till the cheese is melted and slightly browned.
• Garnish with chopped green onions and enjoy with a simple salad for a complete meal.
  

* Left over filling is great with rice (white or brown).
* Lasagna can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days; reheats well and is great for lunch
the next day.
* Any veggie or beans can be added like mushrooms, black beans, pinto beans, broccoli.

Tortilla and Tomato Soup

This month's theme for Weekend Cookbook Challenge (WCC) is to cook a recipe from our newly acquired cookbook. This recipe is by Didi Emmons from February edition of Vegetarian Time magazine.

Ingredients:
Onion - 1 large, chopped fine
Garlic - 2 cloves, minced
Chopped fire-roasted tomatoes - 1 28 oz. can
Corn Tortillas - 2 6-inch, cut into quarters
Cilantro - 3 tbsp, chopped
Hot sauce - 1 tsp, optional
Fresh Goat Cheese - 3 tbsp
Plain low-fat yogurt - 2 tbsp

Method:

• Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onions and saute 7 minutes, or until soft, stirring occasionally. Add garlic, and saute 1 minute more.
• Add tomatoes, 2 cups water and tortillas. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low. Cover, and simmer 15 minutes, or until tortillas have broken down into tiny pieces.
• Stir in cilantro and hot sauce, if using, and season with salt and pepper.
• Combine goat cheese and yogurt in small bowls. Ladle soup into bowls, then swirl goat cheese mixture into each serving.