Air Fryer Burrito

@airfryerburrito

  • Josey Baker’s Adventure Bread

    I heard about this SF-based gluten-free “adventure bread” on a podcast, and looked for a recipe. I found this write-up (with recipe) about the bread, and decided to try it. I toasted the seeds, mushed up the dough, and stuck it in the fridge overnight. The next morning I baked it and let it cool for a couple of hours.

    Then I tasted it, and I was angry. I’ve made 3 or 4 breads like this — basically nuts, seeds, and whole grains with psyllium husk as a binding — and they were a lot of work. See my Thermomix bread post, for example. They involved soaking overnight, food processing, and complicated instructions.

    And yet, without any of that, this bread tasted really, really good. The toasted seeds give it great flavor, and oats, which don’t need soaking or anything special, give it a great texture. Eating it does sometimes feel like you’re biting into a mouthful of seeds. I might chop everything smaller next time.

    I especially enjoyed it with cashew butter and jam, or tuna and tomato.

  • Review: Miss Jones Baking Co. Paleo Blueberry Muffin Mix

    I’ve been looking for almond-flour-based baking mixes to speed up my snack prep for the week. This blueberry muffin mix was okay, but I wouldn’t buy it again. I made the muffins according to the directions, just adding in some fresh blueberries, and the yield was 8 muffins — not even the 9 muffins promised on the bag. They were very light, with a cakey texture. I’ve gotten a much more muffin-like texture from the Simple Mills mixes (although they also yield less than advertised).

    The search continues…

  • Mix ‘n’ Match Meal Prep

    I’ve been trying a different “mix and match” method of prepping food for the week. You cook a few components like proteins, vegetables, and sauces, and then reheat and rearrange them to create different meals. Here’s my method, inspired by the Downshiftology approach:

    1. Pick 2-3 proteins, a few vegetables, and at least one sauce to prepare. I also like to bake a snack.
    2. On Sunday, do your cooking.
    3. During the week, eat one protein, some vegetables, and some sauce with a starch. Change up the starches and proteins to create variety.

    Meal plans so far:

    Week 1

    Week 2

    • Cooked: Instant pot ground turkey, sheet pan vegetables, cubed sweet potatoes, morning glory muffins.
    • Dinners: Ground turkey and pasta, ground turkey and mashed potatoes, ground turkey and nachos, tinned fish and pasta, burgers from the freezer.
    • Lunch: Black bean and sweet potato rice bowls and burritos.

    This week I made balsamic chicken (pictured) and vegetables, plus marinated tofu to air fry another day, and blueberry muffins. I really appreciate how flexible this approach is. A protein / pantry staple like black beans doesn’t need cooking — just opening a can. I can also switch to a store-bought sauce when I have less time. There’s less waste, and it’s a relief not to worry about what’s for dinner.

  • Fishwife Review

    Fishwife Review

    Fishwife sells responsibly-sourced tinned fish: sardines, anchovies, mackerel, trout, and salmon — with tuna on the way. Their focus is on both source and flavor. Most of the fish is smoked or combined with flavors like hot pepper and lemon, to make recipes (or eating it out of the can) easy.

    I bought a few cans to try and made a couple of their recipes. The ones I’ve really enjoyed so far are Pesto Anchovy Pasta and Trout Orzo. I tweaked the recipes slightly (I can’t be doing with olives), but they came together quickly, included a lot of fresh ingredients, and just tasted good. The anchovy pesto was just the right kind of salty. The smoked trout added bursts of flavor to the orzo.

    The best part is that I probably wouldn’t have tried cooking with these fish otherwise — Fishwife has definitely added to my quick dinner options.

  • Weekend salmon cakes

    My mom was craving salmon cakes, so we made these salmon croquettes and tartar sauce. The result was just okay. Lessons learned:

    1. Always buy boneless skinless canned salmon for this type of recipe. We forgot about that and ended up picking out bones for an hour as a first step before cooking.
    2. Expect any recipe involving a mixture and frying to take double the time listed. The added bone-picking time was on us, but the chopping and cleanup take forever.
    3. Make your cakes thin. We left ours too thick and the middle tasted like tuna salad.

  • Air fryer grilled cheese

    1. Coat both sides of two slices of crusty bread with mayo.
    2. On one piece of bread, layer cheese, filling, and more cheese.
    3. Cover with the other piece of bread, place in air fryer basket.
    4. Fry at 350 F until browned on one side, then flip and fry on the other side.
    5. Cut diagonally and serve with chips or tomato soup.

    The possible fillings are endless. Apple slices and kimchi (pictured), leftover chicken, avocado, bacon, pear…anything that tastes good with cheese.

  • Great interview on Impromptu Journal

    Veta: “As I dedicate myself to Mie Ayam Pak Sarmintul and have the business sustain my employees’ lives, it becomes something that I constantly fight for.”

  • Heyday Canning Review

    “Tonight’s dinner plan? Open this can!” is Heyday’s tagline. I’ve found it to be true. Yes, it’s a can with beans and sauce in it. But the genius of Heyday is the sauce selection plus their recipe blog, Shelf Life. I’ve found new ways to turn a can of beans into dinner, or lunch for the week.

    The Coconut Curry Chickpeas are probably my favorite. I first used Ali Slagle’s recipe for combining them with cauliflower, stuffed wraps with it, and air fried them (which is where the idea for @airfryerburrito came from). I’ve also tried this sweet potato combo (pictured).

    The Harissa Lemon Chickpeas are a close second. They’re slightly spicier, but versatile and zingy. I like them with couscous and yogurt. I’ve also used them as a shortcut in pasta recipes, like the one pictured above with mushrooms, shells, and cheese.

    My only gripe is that the recipe blog hasn’t changed in a while and could use an update. More dinner plans please.

  • Homemade yogurt + granola + fruit

    I’ve been making my own dairy yogurt for the past couple of months, following the kitchn’s Instant Pot method. It’s time-consuming and inconvenient, even with the Instant Pot, but the result is so much better and fresher than store-bought.

    I usually start it in the morning by pouring a carton of whole milk into the pot and putting on the Yogurt > Boil setting. Once it finishes, I check the temperature with a meat thermometer. It’s always 10 degrees short of where it needs to be (180 degrees F), so I turn on saute normal and stay close. It usually takes less than 5 minutes to get to 180, and then I take the inner pot out and let it cool on the counter. In the meantime I get out a clean measuring cup, ladle, and whisk. I take my few tablespoons of yogurt starter out of the fridge.

    I check every 20-30 minutes until the temperature is back down to 110 degrees F. A skin forms, which you can either eat or discard. I put the inner pot back into the Instant Pot and the starter into the measuring cup. Then I ladle about a cup of warm milk into the starter, whisk, pour it into the pot, and then whisk there. Then I start the Yogurt > 8 hour setting.

    After 8 hours I cover the pot and put it in the fridge overnight. The next morning, I use a Greek yogurt maker to strain the yogurt for a few hours, until it’s thick and creamy.

    I eat the yogurt with Cookie + Kate’s homemade granola, which I add toasted coconut flakes to, and fruit. Amy Chaplin‘s fruit compotes (apple and blackberry pictured above) go great with fresh yogurt.

  • Fridge-clearing rice bowl

    I’ve made so many versions of this rice bowl that I’m no longer sure where I learned it from. This time I managed to work in chunks of purple sweet potato. It’s different every time, but there are some steps I always follow:

    1. Cook 2 cups of rice (I use my Instant Pot).
    2. Cool the rice in the fridge while working on the next steps.
    3. Chop up some vegetables (like peppers, onions, anything else in your fridge) and cooked protein (like chicken, tofu, etc.). You can roast the vegetables if you like them more tender than they’ll get in the pan.
    4. Heat a few tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat in a skillet.
    5. Cook your vegetables if needed. I also add minced ginger and garlic for 30 seconds. And sometimes frozen add-ins, like pineapple and peas. Cashews also taste great in this (they can toast in the pan).
    6. Add more oil and the rice.
    7. After a few minutes make a hole in the rice and crack an egg into it.
    8. Mix the egg with the rice as it cooks.
    9. Add tamari, sesame oil, any other sauces and mix.
    10. Remove from the heat and add toppings, like scallions and sesame seeds. Add in the chopped protein.
    11. Enjoy!