Catfish Out of Water

I have officially run out of Thanksgiving leftovers. This has been my new obsession this year! With Mashed Potatoes and Cranberry Sauce abound, I have been making burrito after burrito with all of the flavors of the holidays. Until Christmas, though, I am on my own making actual food. Plus, I am going to a socially distant as Covid-safe friends house as we can muster and I need to make something that everyone who doesn't necessarily want a bunch of hot peppers can eat! So, I decided to pair all of these flavors into Pumpkin & Tomato Rice and then make burritos! And voila! Pumpkin Burrito!

Usually topped with sour cream and sometimes Guacamole, because I randomly found a bunch of ripe avocados at Costco and now have more guacamole than I know what to do with...

Nevertheless, this amalgam of scenarios from running out of Thanksgiving leftovers to needing to make something less spicy than my usual varieties and endlessly buying too much food at Costco... I have come up with something, though, that is festive, easy to make, and entirely delicious! There sometimes is no better comfort food sweet and savory rice wrapped in a tortilla shell and lightly toasted.

Still, I did add some hot sauce because I can't really eat anything these days without a little bit of heat! But this is entirely optional. And, as always, add or subtract anything to what you have on hand or your own personal preferences.

Gallery

Variations of Pumpkin Burrito

Burritos are one of my favorite things to make this year. It's been a fun transition between summertime burritos with fresh produce to fall favorites with Thanksgiving leftovers.

Burrito w/ Roasted Pumpkin & Cranberry Curry

Pumpkin Lentils & Runny Egg Burrito

Burrito w/ Pumpkin Rice

Burrito w/ Banana Peppers & Pumpkin Rice

I keep making pumpkin rice just so that I can make burritos with them! They're my new obsession and absolutely delicious. This rice recipe combines freshly roasted pie pumpkin purée, banana peppers, roasted garlic, and tomatoes with a dollop of sour cream and hot sauce. For one of the variations I also added guacamole, instead of sour cream. This might sound like a particularly odd choice, given the general wintry holiday nature of the burrito. But it is after all a burrito! And guacamole is never truly out of place.

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Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Latin American

Servings 1 serving

Equipment

• Skillet w/ Lid (Preferably Cast Iron)
• Stovetop

Ingredients

  

Pumpkin Rice

• 3 cloves roasted garlic (or 2 cloves unroasted garlic)
• 1/2 pie pumpkin peeled & cubed
• 2 medium tomatoes cubed
• 2 banana peppers diced
• 1/2 shallot minced
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 lime juiced
• dash cumin
• dash coriander
• dash smoked paprika
• dash cayenne pepper
• dash salt
• dash pepper
• 1 c. brown rice
• 1 ½ c. vegetable broth
• 1 ½ c. water

Guacamole

• 3 avocados
• 3 limes juiced
• 3 cloves garlic
• dash salt
• dash pepper
• 1 ½ large tomatoes quartered
• 1/4 red onion halved

Burrito

• 1/4 c. pumpkin rice
• 1 tortilla shell
• splash water
• dollop sour cream (optional, omit or substitute for vegan recipe)
• dollop hot sauce (optional)
• dollop guacamole (optional)

Instructions

 

Cook Rice

• Cook Pumpkin & Tomato Rice. This takes about an hour and requires a rice cooker or stove. You can also easily create a different flavor profile or utilize the produce that you have on hand. I almost always keep a batch of rice or quinoa in the fridge for exactly this purpose.
• In this recipe, I also added Guacamole. You can buy this in stores, but I much prefer to make it homemade! It's incredibly simple only takes about 15 minutes to prepare.

Cook Tortilla

• Preheat the pan on medium-high. If you aren't using cast iron, make sure to lightly oil the pan to prevent sticking.
• Wet both sides of the tortilla and add to the preheated pan. Cook for 4-6 minutes, or until the bottom begins to brown.
• Remove the tortilla from heat and turn the stove off. Add toppings and fold the burrito.
• Turn the stove back up to medium and add the tortilla to the skillet immediately, before it preheats. Cook for about 4 minutes, or until the bottom begins to brown. Rotate until all sides are cooked.

  The first side will likely take longer to cook than the subsequent sides, which may toast in as little as 2 minutes. Adjust the temperature if it's cooking too quickly and burning or too slowly and cracking.
• Top with sour cream and hot sauce of choice. I like to use Greek yogurt because it's oftentimes healthier than sour cream and pairs well with a lot of the same flavor profiles. Omit or substitute with a vegan alternative for an entirely animal-product free recipe.
• Serve immediately. You can reheat burritos by lightly wetting them and reheating, but they are never quite the same as they are fresh!

Tips, Tricks, & Notes

• For a more in-depth article on burritos, check out my article on The Fundamentals of Making Burritos. I highly suggest using cast iron and there is precise temperature that works best for cooking at that may vary slightly depending on your stovetop and type of skillet. If you're having trouble rolling the burrito without cracking, there are solutions for this as well!