The Red, White, and Green

There are two complaints I frequently hear from people who are willing to give Meatless Monday a shot, but can’t seem to make it through a whole day of vegetarian eating:

#1 Meatless meals aren’t satisfying; and

#2 healthy meatless meals are too time-consuming to prepare.

I admit, I sort of agreed with this statement to a certain extent, but have been willing to work through the occasional hunger pang (raw veggie wraps), gastrointestinal distress (tofu chili), and time commitment (soaking beans) in my quest to find a mostly meatless diet that I can not only live with, but actually be excited about. Notice I say agreed, in the past tense; all of that changed when I came up with the recipe for these easy/healthy/filling Cal-Mex style Lean Bean Tacos, now a Meatless Monday standby.

I know, bean tacos sound kind of boring — not to mention a far cry from the real deal I’ve become greedily accustomed to, living just a short drive from some of the best taco trucks in Los Angeles — but I swear, these are truly delicious in their own right. So much so that I crave them even when I’m not trying to eat vegetarian. And at less than 15 minutes to prepare from start to finish, there’s no excuse not to whip these up for your healthy Meatless Monday dinner tonight.

Lean Bean Tacos (adapted from Cooking Light‘s Chipotle Bean Burritos)

Serves 2

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons water
1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained (I recommend Eden Organic — BPA-free and easy to digest, thanks to the addition of kombu seaweed)
2 tablespoons salsa
4 corn tortillas
1/3 cup pre-shredded Mexican blend cheese
1 tomato, chopped
1/2 avocado, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons sour cream

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in chili powder, cumin, and salt; cook for 30 more seconds. Add water and beans; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove pan from heat and stir in salsa. Using a fork, lightly mash beans.

Place tortillas in a small pan over low heat; cover pan and warm tortillas for a couple minutes, until steaming. Place two tortillas on each plate, and divide the bean mixture among the tortillas. Top each taco with shredded cheese, chopped tomato, avocado, and sour cream. Serve with hot sauce.

–Jennifer Grayson

Do this now: Need more inspiration for fast and healthy vegetarian meals? Check out the Quick-Fix Vegetarian.

More Meatless Monday posts:
Forest Whitaker’s slimmed down Oscar look: He’s a vegetarian!
Meatless Monday: Farmers market enchiladas

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