I don’t know about you but I am always in the mood for Mexican food, tacos & burritos. During the week I don’t always have every meal planned ahead, so tacos or burrito bowls are my fall back. The good news is they can be super healthy!
Well if it isn’t Taco Tuesday again, color me shocked! Ha! Every day can be Taco Tuesday if you try hard enough, so while you can certainly celebrate today, feel free to eat these Turkey Burrito Bowls any day of the week. While you could, in theory, make this into a burrito, I find a bowl much more satisfying and doesn’t make me feel weighted down.
Many of my clients struggle with getting enough vegetables in their diet. I get it, vegetables can be incredibly boring and bland. Well, that’s when they are cooked incorrectly of course. Add the right spice, some butter or oil, and believe me, vegetables become enjoyable. Besides that, if you make old favorites with more vegetables, you might get more takers. Why?
Well everyone loves when you say tacos are for dinner, fewer people enjoy when you say cauliflowerand tomatoes are for dinner. Change it up to meet in the middle and tell people cauliflower rice + turkey tacos with salsa are for dinner, and suddenly you are making people eat food they love in a healthy manner.
Cauliflower Rice
Okay, I know cauliflower is so overdone right now, I get it. Cauliflower cannot replace bread, pizza, rice or baked goods 1-to-1, it just cannot. That being said it can replace one empty caloric food for a more nutrient-dense food. Now, that may mean nothing to you, but believe me, it’s important over time. Rice is not a bad food, it’s actually really easy to digest. However, rice doesn’t contribute all that much to your health as far as vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients go.
Why is cauliflower good for you?
It has >70% of your daily Vitamin C, great for your immune system
There is 20% of your daily Vitamin K, good for bone health (yes, cauliflower can do a body good…) in there
With >10% of Folate, it is good for heart health, reproductive health and much more
It has a good amount of B vitamins, & other antioxidants, good for energy and overall health
And as Mark Twain once said, “Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.” So I guess you could say it’s a pretty okay vegetable, ust don’t confuse it with pizza, it’s not the same thing.
Protein Goals in a Burrito Bowl
Enought attention given to cauliflower, what about the protein goals of this burrito bowl!?
Ah, good ol’ protein! One of the 3 macronutrients and one that is often neglected and forgotten about. Why? Because protein is tough to prepare in a pinch. Unless of course, you stock your kitchen with high protein items like meat, eggs, beans, yogurt, etc. That’s my trick to getting enough (errrr close to enough, I struggle here too) protein in my diet.
Wondering how much do we need? It depends.It depends on your height, weight, sex, activity level, goals and much more. However, I can tell you that more likely than not you are eating less than you probably need. And no, if you are a healthy human being, eating protein will not damage your kidneys. Unless of course, you read this as EAT ALL THE PROTEIN IN THE WORLD. There is a limit but many of you are not close, so if you are wondering, use a tracking device (like MyFitnessPal) one day and see where you fall.
In the meantime, stock your kitchen with things like meat (freeze it and buy in bulk), eggs, canned fish, canned beans, nuts/seeds, nut butter, etc. to increase your chances of hitting your goals. Protein will fill you up, support lean body mass (i.e. muscles not fat) and will help you recover from exercise, injury and some stress. This bowl has 37g of protein per bowl, that’s some powerful stuff right there! #proteingoals
Turkey Burrito Bowls
Alrighty, here is what you came for, the Turkey Burrito Bowl. I get it, education is boring, so here is the food, the real reason anyone would want to come here anyway. Enjoy the burrito bowl and pat yourself on the back for making an old favorite delicious and nutritious.
Pro tip: prep everything in advance that way you can just assemble when needed. If you need to, get pre-sliced vegetables and canned beans/corn if that means you will eat healthily, I’m okay with it!
Ps. I’ve created a quick shopping list below if you want to know exactly what you’ll need
1 head cauliflower (or 1 bag of riced cauliflower)
juice of 1 lime, optional
Turkey Filling
2 tsp Taco Seasoning
1 lb ground turkey
1–16 oz. jar of salsa (your choice!)
Red Pepper Greek Yogurt Crema
1/2 cup greek yogurt (any fat % is okay)
juice of 1 lime
1/4 tsp paprika
1 Tbsp water
Toppings
Black Beans
Corn
Radishes
jalapenos,
Cilantro
Instructions
Combine spices for taco seasoning in a small bowl, set aside.
In a separate small bowl, whisk together ingredients for Crema, set aside.
In a large skillet over medium heat, add olive oil, peppers & onions, cook for 3-5 minutes until onion starts to become translucent.
Add in cauliflower rice and 2 tsp taco seasoning, saute for 5 minutes to cook down, squeeze in lime juice, stir, and remove cauliflower mixture from skillet, set aside.
Place skillet back over medium heat, add turkey & remaining taco seasoning, saute for 5-8 minutes until turkey is cooked through.
Add jar of salsa and continue to cook for 3 minutes to blend flavors.
Assemble burrito bowl with ~1-1/2 cups cauliflower rice, 1/4 of the turkey salsa mixture, and toppings of choice. Finish with a drizzle of the Crema.
Notes
Macro Info: 37g Protein, 28g Carb, 9g Fat
Nutrition
Serving Size:1 turkey burrito bowl
Shopping List
Produce
1 head Cauliflower (or 1 bag of pre-riced cauliflower)
1 bell pepper
1 red onion
2 limes
Optional: radishes, raw tomatoes, cilantro, jalapenos, lettuce
Other
1 lb ground turkey
1-16 oz. jar of salsa
1/2 cup greek yogurt (or ~5.3oz)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
Optional: canned beans & corn
Spices: chili powder, paprika, cumin, oregano, garlic powder, salt, pepper
These bowls pair nicely with my Strawberry Jalapeno Margaritas, but what can I say, I think they probably pair nicely with anything this time of year. This type of dish is one of my go to on a busy weeknight. Double the recipe and you’ll have leftovers for lunch & dinner, win-win-win.
