Easy, Healthy Mexican Bowl

During the week, I like to come home for lunch. I'm lucky enough to live within walking distance of campus, and I'll go out to dinner a few nights a week, so lunch is when I really try to eat at home. 


This isn't so much a recipe, as an assembly of ingredients that happens to be one of my all-time favorite and quickest things to eat. It is low in calories, has lots of protein and even a good amount of fiber. One of the best ways to consistently eat lunch at home is to always have certain favorite items in stock. 


For me these items include:
- a cooked grain/carb (brown or black rice, quinoa, even baked or roasted sweet potatoes)
- some form of protein (either eggs, tofu or veggie sausage)
- veg (greens, tomatoes, bell peppers, whatever really)
- canned beans (I like garbanzo, refried, kidney and black beans)
- salsa (I'm obsessed. It's delicious and fat-free!)
- whole wheat tortillas (I used them for everything) 


Having these items on hand usually means I can scrounge together something to eat. 

Looks like a big ol' mess; tastes amazing.

Easy, Healthy Mexican Bowl
1/3 cup wild rice, cooked
1/3 cup refried beans
1/2 cup non-fat yogurt (I like Fage)
salsa (I use about 1/2 cup but for most 1/4 cup would suffice)
diced mango (yum! I'm obsessed)
onions, sauteed (optional)
1/3 veggie sausage (I use Tofurky)*
1/2 tomato, diced (optional)


Place the rice, beans, yogurt, tomatoes, salsa and mango in a bowl. Saute the onions in a little oil or broth, add the Tofurky and pan sauté until browned. Add the onion/sausage mixture to the rice bowl. Mix and enjoy! 


This took me about 7 minutes to put together, maybe less. It is delicious and nutritious. Honestly, I was craving Chipotle today and almost went there instead of coming home, but then I realized I had all these amazing ingredients on hand to make my own, healthier bowl. This dish has good carbs (wild rice), protein (beans, sausage), veg (salsa, tomatoes, onions), fruit (mango) and calcium and probiotics (yogurt). Had I had avocado on hand, I obviously would have added that too for some good fat. 

Nutrition Info

Calories: 290

Fat: 6g

Carbs: 38g

Fiber: 8g

Protein: 23g

*I try to stay away from super processed products such as Tofurky veggie sausage. I really don't recommend it, being that it has so many hard-to-recognize ingredients. However, I'll let myself have some once or twice a month. If I have it, I eat it, so I don't buy it too often. But if I have to choose between pig sausage and the veggie kind, obviously I'd rather the non-'Babe' kind.