Veg-Head Chimichangas

This post is about more than my third Meatless Monday recipe, so please stick with me!  First, I just finished reading this little book called 7 by Jen Hatmaker.  I follow her blog, so you can click on her name under my blog list on the right hand side of the page to read more about her and this book.

It's the only book I've read that is both laugh out loud funny and brutally real about the ridiculous excess that surrounds us yet never seems to satisfy.  It may not be life changing for you, but it's a topic that's been bugging me for a while, and I can't leave it.   I think you should read it... trust me.

So in the first month of her mutiny, Jen chooses only seven foods she can eat for the next 30 days.
B-R-U-T-A-L, which she fully acknowledges.  She lives in Austin, Texas and I happen to have a church friend who transplanted here from Texas with her husband who is in his surgical residency here in Cincinnati, Ohio.  She messaged me today, having just read the first month of the book, saying she wants to take me to a restaurant called the Hula Hut in Austin someday, so I would fully appreciate the sacrifice Jen made when having to sit at this restaurant and not eat anything off the menu.  (I'm getting to my point here, I promise).

I decided to look up the Hula Hut and check out their menu (isn't the Internet amazing)?  And holy cow, just the menu descriptions had me drooling through the screen.  Check out their website to see what I mean... http://www.hulahut.com/  Knowing that today is Meatless Monday, the Hula Hut's grilled veggie pipeline enchiladas spoke to me.  I tend to do this a lot... I'll see items on menus, either at restaurants I've eaten at or just happened upon on-line and make my own interpretation of a dish they describe.  It's fun!

I'd made a run to our Trader Joe's a few days before, so I had their brand of taco seasoning, hand-made tortillas, tomatillo (green) salsa, and fat-free sour cream on hand.  It had the makings of a healthy meal, but the only mexican-style cheese I had was Velveeta queso blanco (leftover from a dip I'd taken to party a couple of weeks before).  Now here's where the lady logic comes in... tons of veggies, salsa, and fat-free sour cream, so of course I can flavor it up with the luscious creaminess that is Velveeta.  Don't judge!  It's kinda like when I ordered a caramel latte with skim milk, but still wanted the whipped cream.  I'm still saving SOME fat grams.  OK, finally, here's the recipe.  I have no idea what the Hula Hut's taste like, but these were G-O-O-D!

Veg-Head Chimichangas
6 burrito-size tortillas
1/2 sweet onion, minced
1 c. white mushrooms, stems removed and minced
1 c. zucchini, small dice
1 c. red or yellow pepper, small dice
1/2 c. carrot, small dice
1 can black beans, drained
1/2 pkg. taco seasoning (I used Trader Joe's brand)
dash of ground chipotle pepper
salt and pepper to taste
1/3 c. Velveeta cheese, cut into cubes

Heat a large pan coated with cooking spray and one tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat.  Add all the veggies and seasonings.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until veggies have reduced in size, browned, and softened.  This will take at least 10 minutes.  Add beans and heat through for a couple of minutes.  Reduce heat to medium low and stir until cheese is melted.

Divide mixture evenly among 6 tortillas.  Roll and place, seam side down, in a 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Use a pastry brush to coat tops of tortillas lightly with olive oil.  Place under broiler until tops are nice and toasty brown, about 5 minutes.

To serve, top each baked chimichanga with tomatillo salsa (I mashed up an avocado and stirred in some fresh lime juice and salt into mine) and fat-free sour cream.  (I will say the Trader Joe brand tastes about a million times better than your typical grocery brand of fat-free sour cream -- everyone should have access to a Trader Joe's!)