vegan kale caesar burritos

Plant-based never tasted so delicious! Plus updates!

These burritos are a bit of a secret weapon. I came up with this take on burritos during the pandemic when we were craving something hearty, handheld, creamy, and indulgent. The combination quickly became a household favorite. I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long write it up but after mentioning them in my real-life weekly meal plan, I received many requests for the recipe.

They feel like a special treat but are packed with superfoods like kale, sweet potatoes, hemp seeds, legumes, and whole grains—making them incredibly healthy.

You can prepare the filling ingredients and the dressing ahead of time, but I recommend mixing the filling with the dressing just before serving for the best flavor.

On a personal note, I’m currently on summer vacation in my home province of Newfoundland with my family. We try to spend a month here each summer, enjoying the best of the East Coast and taking a break from the sweltering subtropical heat of Taiwan.

This summer is a bit different, though. It was our first time making the nearly 28-hour journey with a full-fledged toddler—what an adventure! And, being 5 months pregnant didn’t make it any easier...

Yes, that’s the big news—we’re expecting another baby! I’m due in December, and everything is going well.

The early months were tough, though. I experienced intense nausea and a severe aversion to almost every food except oatmeal for about 10 weeks. It made recipe development and cooking nearly impossible—you might remember my unplanned month-long hiatus over the winter. Even peeling a banana made me queasy! Thankfully, that phase has passed, and I’m hungrier than ever!

These caesar burritos are a meal I crave regularly. I don’t know if it’s the bold, umami dressing or the filling combination of rice, sweet potatoes, and chickpeas but it’s a meal I can’t get enough of. I hope you love these too!

And finally, I’m taking the next two weeks off! You’ll get your next recipe from me in the middle of September.

Baked Kale Caesar Burritos

Makes 6 small or 3 large burritos

These burritos are a family favorite. They’re stuffed with superfoods, flavor, protein, and fiber. I usually make these when I have leftover grains and steamed sweet potato on hand. The briny caesar dressing is a staple sauce in our house too — use it on anything!

INGREDIENTS

Filling

1 cup (200 g) cooked brown rice

1 cup (200 g) steamed cubed sweet potato (peel on or off)

1 large bunch curly kale, destemmed, washed and spun dry (~200 g kale leaves), torn into bite-sized pieces

1½ cups (250 g) cooked or canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Salt and pepper to taste

½ English cucumber thinly sliced

¼ to ½ red onion, thinly sliced

Vinegar-based hot sauce, optional

6 whole wheat, sprouted grain, or brown rice 8-inch tortillas

Caesar Dressing

¾ cup (105 g) raw cashews, soaked in hot water for 1 hour

¼ cup (40 g) hemp seeds

¼ cup (35 g) drained capers

3 tablespoons (45 ml) lemon juice

Zest of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon (15 ml) reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce

1 tablespoon (15 g) Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon (15 ml) apple cider vinegar

2 teaspoons (10 ml) maple syrup

1 garlic clove, crushed and peeled

½ cup (118 ml) water, plus more if needed

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HOW-TO

First prepare all the filling ingredients — cook the rice, steam the sweet potato, wash the kale and tear it into pieces, rinse the chickpeas, prepare the cucumber and red onion. You can use the cooked ingredients (rice and sweet potato) at room temperature or hot off the stove.

Next make the dressing. Drain the cashews, discard the soaking water, and add to a blender along with all the other dressing ingredients. Blend on high until completely smooth. Add more water if needed to loosen the dressing. You want the consistency to be thick but pourable. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400ºF and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place the kale in a large bowl. Add about ¼ cup of the dressing and massage the leaves between your hands for 30 to 60 seconds until the kale has softened and shrunk a little. You don’t want to massage until it reaches the point of wilting. Next add the rice, sweet potato, and chickpeas and another ½ to ¾ cup of the dressing and mix until everything is coated and creamy. Taste and reseason with salt and pepper.

Now it’s time to assemble the burritos.

If you’re making large burritos, you’ll need two tortillas per burrito. Place the first tortilla flat on your work surface. Take the second tortilla and overlap it with the first by placing it so that one-third of the second tortilla covers one-third of the first tortilla. The overlapped area will be about 2-3 inches wide. If you’re making small burritos, just use one tortilla and follow the rest of the recipe as written.

Place a heaping scoop (about 1 cup for a small burrito and 2 or more for a large) of the kale mixture in a line across the center of the overlapped tortillas. The line of filling should run perpendicular to the overlapping seam. Arrange the cucumber and red onion across the surface and drizzle with hot sauce if using.

Next fold and roll the burrito up. Start by folding the sides of the tortillas inward, covering the ends of the filling.

Then, fold the edges of the tortillas closest to you over the filling. Tuck in the filling as you begin to roll the tortillas away from you, rolling tightly while keeping the sides folded in to create a snug burrito. Continue rolling until you reach the end of the tortillas, making sure the seam is on the bottom.

Place the burrito seam-side down on the sheet pan. Repeat with remaining tortillas. Put the burritos in the preheated oven for 5 to 10 minutes until the tortillas are golden and crispy.

Remove from the oven and serve.

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Printable Recipe

Kale Caesar Burritos

55KB ∙ PDF file

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NOTES

Leftover dressing can be used as a salad dressing or sauce for any grain or bean-based dish. It will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.

You can also serve the filling as is and skip the burrito and tortillas.

You can swap regular potato (or any other steamed or raw veggies for that matter) for the cooked sweet potato.

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Have Any Zucchini?

This time of year many of us have an abundance of zucchini in the garden, fridge, and CSA boxes! And the need for zucchini (aka courgette) recipes is at an all-time high! Here are some of my favorite plant-based for the summer’s most famous veggie: ZUCCHINI RECIPES!