Author Spotlight
Libby Marsh
As a burrito-fanatic, I took the excuse of National Burrito Day on April 6 to eat sigh yet another wrap.
While I could’ve easily gone to the closest Mexican restaurant and ordered a chicken burrito, I decided to think outside the box (or the tortilla) and cooked atypical wraps.
Sushi has always been a go to meal for me. I love getting a freshly sliced California roll for lunch, but I wanted to experience this food in a new way, so my first stop was Hen House to grab sushi burrito ingredients — sushi rice, nori sheets and kimchi.
Once the prep work of chopping the carrots, peppers, avocado and herbs was done, all that was left to do was roll up the burrito.
I first attached two nori sheets, spread the sushi rice over it, added the vegetables, sriracha, smoked salmon and herbs. However, instead of rolling it like regular sushi I made it burrito style.
Before even taking a bite I was impressed — I just made sushi, or a sushi burrito. The bright colors of the carrots, peppers and avocado as well as the combination of the rice and nori wrap gave the impression of a freshly made sushi roll, in burrito form.
The first thing I noticed when digging in was the fresh taste of the herbs and the crunch of the peppers and carrots. Each bite had a taste of every ingredient giving a nice combination of fresh flavors.
Despite the classic flavor, it was hard to bite through the tough seaweed sheets. However, that wasn’t enough to stop me from eating the entire thing.
This Japanese version of a classic burrito tasted just like something you could order at a local restaurant and looked like an uncut sushi roll.
Next on my list of new burrito recipes to try was the Korean Bar-B-Que burrito. This Korean-Mexican fusion recipe tasted just like a rice bowl wrapped in a tortilla.
Much like the Sushi dish, this meal required rice and kimchi piled on top of Korean BBQ beef marinated in soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar and a pear. Before rolling it up I topped the filling with a drizzle of sriracha mayo sauce for an added spice.
At the first bite I was hit with a range of flavors from salty to sweet to even garlicy. The kimchi and soy sauce brought the salt, but these flavors were balanced out by the sweet taste of the brown sugar. Plus a spicy kick from the sriracha mayo and garlic.
While the brown sugar worked to balance the saltiness of the beef, the soy sauce still overpowered many of the other ingredients, restraining me from a five-star rating.
To finish off my day of burrito exploration I had to add in a dessert — yes, it was a necessity.
The first step in preparing this cookies and cream dessert was making the “tortilla” or crepe batter. While the batter was resting in the fridge I whipped up some frosting to layer in the burrito using butter, powdered sugar, milk and vanilla extract. The prep work was fairly simple and quick compared to the other recipes — plus I got to eat a couple extra Oreos.
Next up was making the crepes. After two attempts (one ended up on the floor and the other an unrecognizable mess), I managed to make nearly ten successful crepes. I then layered on some frosting, crushed Oreos and two scoops of cookies and cream ice cream. Finally I rolled up the crepe, careful not to tear the wrap. For a final touch, I added a scoop of Cool Whip and a drizzle of chocolate sauce.
The cold ice cream melted in my mouth and the creaminess of the frosting and cool whip helped to cut through the frozen treat. Pieces of crunchy Oreo added a new texture to the dish. The crepe helped to hold the whole thing together while also balancing out the sugar loaded dish.
This dessert was hands-down my favorite of all of these recipes because of the contrast in texture and flavor and my general love of Oreos.
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