Breakfast Burritos

Dallin and I made a big batch of breakfast burritos this morning. We are going to freeze them so that him, Amanda, and Dad can have a fast and easy breakfast in the morning. I hate making breakfast during the summer (actually, I haven't liked it much since I got pregnant with the twins . .. Just too tired). Breakfast burritos is one of those things that can either be really healthy or one of the least healthy things to eat. It is all about how you make it.

1. Tortillas- Most store bought tortillas have hydrogenated fats in them! The 2 that I have found that do not are : Tortilla-land uncooked tortillas. You can buy these at Costco. My Smith's also carries them. They are made with canola oil. You put them in a frying pan and cook them yourselves; no oil needed. You have to keep them in the fridge. Also, Carb Chopper's whole wheat tortillas. They have a non-wheat one as well, but the wheat one has 3 grams of fiber in them for only 70 calories. Remember, a good guide is if it has at least 2 grams for every 100 calories. For more on Hydrogenated fat, see my banana post from May.
   
   
2. Eggs- You need about 1 egg/breakfast burrito. Free range eggs are best. This means that the chicken eat the grass/weeds that grow from the ground. This gives your eggs lots more omega-3 fatty acids. Other chickens are kept in cages and fed grain. They don't have as many nutrients in them. Costco sells Omega-3 eggs. They are vegetarian fed (doesn't say cage free though). The Costco ones also say on the egg carton that they have 10x more vitamin E than regular eggs. Beware of egg cartons that just say Omega-3 eggs and nothing else. They can just put Omega-3 eggs on any label. If it says cage-free then you are probably safe. Eggs really are good for you. Especially kids. One extra large egg only has 80 calories, and 7 grams of complete protein. When you pair eggs with toast, skim glass of milk, or another low fat food, it balances out the fat in the egg. Do you ever notice that the mornings you eat an egg it stays with you so much longer than a bowl of cold cereal?
3. Cheese- Good source of calcium and protein.
   
   
4. Beans- We used canned pinto beans. We drained them and rinsed them before we put them in. Beans are a complete protein along with the other stuff in the burrito. They also have 6 grams of fiber for 1/2 Cup.
   
   
5. Meat- We used ham. Beware of lunch meat though. Lunch meat is full of sodium nitrites. Sodium nitrite is found in almost all lunch meats, hot dogs and sausages. Consuming processed meats (those with sodium nitrates, or sodium nitrites) increase your risk of pancreatic cancer by 67%! I am planning on doing a separate post on this, so I will save the rest for later. We used Hormel Natural Choice Honey Deli Ham. Cost more, but has no sodium nitrites or nitrates in it.
   
6. Salsa, Hot sauce or Taco Sauce- Just spicy veggies. Most choices are great. We love the organic Kirkland salsa from Costco. (I just got back from Costco and realized that I forgot to buy some!!!!!)

Put is all together in the tortilla and then fold up the tortilla and put in individual zip lock bags. Then put them in the freezer and heat them up in the microwave when you want one.

A few breakfast facts:

• Children who eat breakfast perform better on standardized achievement tests and have fewer behavior problems in school.
• Eating breakfast keeps you thin. People who skip breakfast tend to eat more calories during the day.
• Kids who eat breakfast have been found to be more likely to participate in physical activities and tend to eat healthier in general.

I added up the calories of the breakfast burritos I made that had about 1 egg, 1 whole wheat carb choppers burrito, 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 2 T pinto beans and some salsa and hot sauce.



Calories: 275
Fiber: 5 grams
Fat 11 grams
Protein: 15 grams
Calcium: 19% of your daily amount needed

They are a little high in fat, but for kids this shouldn't be a problem unless they have some extra fat on them. If you just use less cheese, you will be fine.



Enjoy!