Enchiladas with Zucchini, Kale, Tofu, and Black Beans

Over the weekend, I found out my friend has breast cancer. Oh, and she's 6 months pregnant. What an unbelievable nightmare. Today's post is dedicated to her. After reading The China Study, I couldn't ignore the implications of diet and disease. As a result of losing both of my parents to cancer, I want to do whatever I can to make sure I'm around for my kids. At times, I struggle with eating vegan and allow myself some wiggle room. However, if giving up animal products allows me to live to see my grandkids, you bet I'm going to try my hardest to stick to it. Educate yourself about the food you are putting in your body. It is probably the single most important thing you can do for your health.

A lot of what I eat is based on what I used to eat, just veganized. This recipe is a good example (sorry the photo is not so great). I like it because I feel like I'm eating something indulgent, but it's actually really healthy. I'm not a huge fan of vegan cheeses, but in enchiladas or on pizza there is so much other stuff going on I hardly notice the difference (and neither does anyone I cook for). Make sure you read the labels on the cheese. Just because it is soy or rice cheese doesn't make it vegan. I'm not sure why, but some manufacturers put casein (milk protein) in their non-dairy cheese. You want to avoid that. Also, not all vegan cheeses are equal. Some are much better than others. I like Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet cheeses. They melt really nicely and have a pretty good flavor. Also, you can swap out whatever veggies you want in this: spinach instead of kale, add some mushrooms, any kind of squash. And the whole wheat tortillas are nice and hearty, so try to go for those.

1 teaspoon EVOO

1 organic zucchini, chopped

1 ear of organic corn, kernels sliced off

1 cup chopped organic kale

1/2 package organic tofu, chopped into 1/2" cubeo

1 can organic black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can/jar red enchilada sauce

1/4 cup chopped organic cilantro

4 oz vegan cheddar, grated (or jack or mozzarella, or mix, whatever you prefer)

6 organic whole wheat tortillas

Preheat oven to 375F. In a large pot, heat the oil over med-high heat and add the zucchini and saute for a couple minutes. Add the kale and cook another minute. Add the corn, tofu, beans and about 1/3-1/2 of your sauce. Cook for a couple minutes more, then remove from heat. In a medium baking dish, put a couple of tablespoons of sauce in the bottom and coat the dish. Take a tortilla and spoon your veggies in, drop in a pinch of cilantro and a sprinkle of cheese, then roll it up in the dish, seam side down. Repeat for all tortillas. When finished, pour the remaining sauce over the whole thing and sprinkle with any remaining cheese. Cover with foil and bake about 30-35 minutes. Remove, let cool a few minutes, then sprinkle any remaining cilantro on the top.

Serves 3-4