Recipe: 300 calorie breakfast burrito (yeah, it’s small)

A well made breakfast burrito is one of the great pleasures of life.

And yet, the older I get, the harder it is to incorporate these little beauties into a healthy diet.

Especially since I track everything I eat with MyFitnessPal, and am keenly aware of where every calorie comes from. Six days out of seven, I log 1,300 to 1,600 calories (depending how much I exercise that day).

Then every Sunday, I enjoy myself one glorious CHEAT DAY.

I started to permit myself breakfast burritos only on cheat days. Because damn, these are usually calorie monstrosities, easily tipping the counter at over 500 calories.

(Omigod, I remember the old breakfast burritos I used to eat, at Burrito Factory in San Jose, bursting at the seams with refried beans, potatoes, fatty bacon, and sour cream. I would estimate that those burritos were easily over 800 calories. Maybe even 1,000!)

Here’s a lighter version, when you only need a little taste, without being weighed down by the whole enchilada burrito.

300 calorie breakfast burrito

  Ingredients

• 1 La Tortilla Factory Light flour tortilla
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup Kraft Mexican Style shredded Cheddar Jack cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped red pepper or other vegetables you have on hand (onions, spinach, mushrooms, etc.)
• Olive oil cooking spray
• Your favorite hot sauce (I love Tapatio)

  Steps

1. Heat a small skillet on high for 2 minutes.
2. Spray a little cooking spray into the pan, throw in the veggies and saute until cooked (for fresh spinach, about a minute).
3. Crack an egg into a bowl, stir it with a fork, and pour it in the pan with the veggies, making a scramble.
4. Put the scramble back into the bowl, then turn the heat down to medium. Heat the tortilla on both sides, 20 seconds each side, to get it pliable.
5. Place the tortilla on a plate or board, put the scramble in, top with cheese, and roll it up.
6. Spray the pan, turn the heat down to low.
7. Put the burrito back in the pan, press down with a spatula for 1 minute. Flip it over and do the same to the other side.
8. Slather in Tapatio and dig in!

A light meal or snack, filled with fresh scrambled eggs, veggies, and gooey cheese. And it’s grilled. Yum!

  Nutritional information