Corn Tortillas with Refried Beans, Grilled Veggies & Avocado Salsa

Delicious warmed corn tortillas, spread with refried beans, then piled high with grilled zucchini, peppers, and onion, and topped with a fresh homemade salsa of heirloom tomatoes, avocado, red onions, jalapenos, and cilantro.

This healthy meal incorporates a number of ideas I picked up from perusing the book Ultrametabolism: The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss, namely "double the vegetables" (actually a recommendation for eating out), and for three weeks of his six week program, Dr. Hyman forbids dairy (look Ma, no cheese!), wheat, and gluten to clear the slate on potential allergies. While I don't plan on following Dr. Hyman's diet (it isn't vegetarian), it did get me thinking. Would I feel better if I cut out wheat? (I've never tried it.) While giving up dairy isn't going to happen for me, I'm definitely interested in moving towards less reliance on cheese for protein (and taste).

I have to say I was surprised I didn't miss the sharp cheddar I would normally have grated over this dish. I realize, much as I love the taste of cheese, it covers up the taste of other things. The sprouted corn tortillas were fabulously fresh tasting, the roasted peppers and tomatoes were juicy and flavorful, heck, even the refried beans tasted good without the cheese!

And, although it seemed like a huge plate of food (and I ate the lot), I didn't have the weighed down feeling. In fact, I felt energized.