Black Bean Burrito Bake

Burritos as big as your...foot? // Instagram @kguymon

God, how I love the fact that the sun is out an hour later than normal. Matt got home in time to take Aves on a quick walk around our 'hood, and that gave me just enough time to whip up tonight's dinner. Gotta say, I was feeling pretty proud of the fact that I was able to get our black bean burrito bake (say that five times fast) on the table so we could eat together. That doesn't happen around here very often. Granted, my daughter poked at her rice and only ate a few bites of banana, but we sat together, gosh darnit.

So, I took a risk and upped the number of chilis in the stuffing mixture from one to two, and unless both you and your dinner guests were born as fire breathing dragons (like me), I don't recommend that rebellious move. Matt had smoke coming out of his ears, but he assured me that this recipe is a keeper. I concur.


Black Bean Burrito Bake [adapted from My Recipes]

-1 7 oz. can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce 
-1/2 cup low-fat Greek yogurt 
-1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed, drained, and divided 
-1 15 oz. can whole kernel corn, rinsed and drained
-4 8-inch whole wheat tortillas 
-1 cup salsa
-1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Remove one chile from can. Chop chile. Reserve remaining adobo sauce and chiles for another use. Combine Greek yogurt and chile in a medium bowl; let stand 10 minutes.

3. Place half of beans in a food processor with a little water; process until finely chopped. Add chopped beans, remaining beans, and corn to the Greek yogurt mixture.

4. Spoon 1/2 cup bean mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas; place, seam side down, in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Spread salsa over tortillas; sprinkle with cheese.

5. Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Taco Soup

You gotta love a tried and true slow cooker recipes for those busy work days or lazy weekends. This flavorful taco soup is a perfect alternative when you're chilli-ed out.


 Taco Soup [adapted from Allrecipes.com]
-1 onion, chopped
-1 16 ounce can chili beans, rinsed and drained
-1 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
-1 15 ounce can whole kernel corn, drained
-1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
-1 12 ounce can or bottle of beer
-2 10 ounce cans diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
-1 package taco seasoning
-2 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts
-shredded Cheddar cheese
-sour cream
-crushed tortilla chips

1. Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 5 hours.

2. Remove chicken breasts from the soup, and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with shredded cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips, if desired.

A Cinco De Mayo Fiesta

Photo by Katie Guymon

Last Saturday, Matt and I had a small get together of friends to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. I mean, what other day of the year is it acceptable to drown your baked goods in tequila? And eat tacos for lunch and dinner? Well, okay, in my book, these things are okay every day of the year. But, especially on May 5th.

Margarita Cupcakes [recipe courtesy of Brown Eyed Baker]
Let's go ahead and start with dessert first. There are many versions of a margarita cupcake out there on the Interwebs, and while I was tempted to take the easy road and pick a recipe that used a box mix, I went ahead and did everything from scratch. You know, because I really wanted to practice using my piping bag again. And, I'm a masochist. Anyhow, I really enjoyed these cupcakes. They are super light, with just the right amount of lime flavor. I followed every step of the recipe exactly. However, instead of garnishing the cupcakes with lime zest and a slice of lime, I added two drops of green food coloring and one drop of yellow to the frosting.

Guacamole Salad [recipe courtesy of Barefoot Contessa]
My friend Lindsay is a huge Ina Garten fan, just like me. She brought this deconstructed guacamole salad to the party, and I loved it. Then I got really angry I had to share it with everyone else.

Jicama-Orange Salad [recipe courtesy of Epicurious]
Lisa picked this incredibly refreshing salad recipe because sometimes you just wanna eat some jicama, you know? It was the perfect balance to all of the rich guacamole, spicy salsa, and salty tortilla chips that we munched on for eleventeen hours.

Restaurant Style Salsa [recipe courtesy of Pioneer Woman]
I first made this salsa last summer, and Matt complained that it wasn't spicy enough. So, I used two jalapeños instead of one this time and, whoa baby, it was-uh spicy meatball. I can totally take the heat, but if you're not so hip to the fire tongue, watch your peppers.

Beergaritas
I first tried this drink when Matt and I closed on our house last summer. Lindsay and Seth brought over a pitcher to celebrate, and no one told us to sloooooow down. You've been warned.
-frozen limeade concentrate
-your favorite tequila
-2 beers (we use Tecate or Corona)

1. In a pitcher with ice combine, the limeade concentrate, an empty limeade container's worth of tequila, and two beers.

2. Mix well and enjoy!

Skirt Steak Tacos
-2 lbs. skirt steak
-1/2 teaspoon of cumin
-1/2 a white onion, coarsely chopped
-1 lime, juiced
-1 clove of garlic
-1/4 cup of olive oil
-a big pinch of kosher salt

1. In a food processor, combine the cumin, onion, lime juice, garlic, and salt. Pulse a few times to combine.

2. Slowly pour the olive oil into the food processor while it's running to emulsify the marinade.

3. In a plastic bag, pour the marinade over the skirt steak and keep in the fridge overnight.

4. Grill the steak to your preferred level of doneness and let it rest for ten minutes.

5. Cut the steak against the grain and serve in warm tortillas with all the fixins.

Homemade Guacamole

Photo by Katie Guymon

A few summers ago, I decided it was high time that I create a signature guacamole recipe. I mean, who doesn't have one? This process required me thumbing through a ton of other guacamole recipes, picking and choosing the ingredients I liked, and then figuring out the best proportions.

There are obviously a million ways to make The Big Green Condiment, but here is the recipe, after lots of experimenting, I've decided I like the best.

Guacamole

-4 ripe avocados, peeled, seeded, and diced
-1 lime
-1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
-1 tablespoon garlic, minced (roasted garlic is nice, too)
-1 large tomato, seeded and diced
-1/2 large white or red onion, diced
-1 cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped
-1 teaspoon kosher salt (or to taste)




How to prep your avocados: 
1. Use a knife to halve the avocado. Twist the two halves of the avocado until the fruit is open.

2. Use the knife to "chop" into the seed with one swift motion. Only go about 1/4 of an inch into the seed. Twist the knife until the seed comes out.

3. Very carefully, use a paper towel to remove the seed from the knife blade.

4. Dice into small pieces.

How to make the guacamole:
1. In a medium mixing bowl, squeeze the juice from both halves of a lime onto the diced avocados. Add the garlic and salt.

2a. For chunkier guacamole, use a fork (or other utensil) to mash the avocados to just above the preferred consistency. Add the remaining ingredients and do a little more mashing.

2b. For a smoother guacamole, add the remaining ingredients and use a Smart Stick or food processor to blend. You can do more rough chops on the ingredients if you go this route. I like the Smart Stick for easier clean up.

3. Wear a sombrero and drink a Corona or five.

4. Also, eat the guacamole with your favorite tortilla chips.

Restaurant Style Salsa

You guys. I just started reading The Pioneer Woman obsessively. This is no good. I could spend hours scouring through her recipes and checking out her photographs. Hours that I should be grading papers or reviewing some band's album or getting on the treadmill.

But, I have to say, The Pioneer Woman, bless her heart, pushed me out of my comfort zone yesterday. See, she posted a recipe for restaurant-style salsa, and the end result looked so good (I mean, not to toot my own horn, but the picture above is Exhibit A. Aren't those two tortilla chips so artfully placed?) that I had to try it. The biggest problem was that I had never used my food processor before. Yes, the food processor that Matt and I were was gifted at my bridal shower in August of 2010. That machine sat in my cupboard for well over twelve months...until yesterday.

See, I am intimidated of what I don't know how to do. Hey, that's just me. After Matt bought me the best birthday present ever (my DSLR), it sat untouched until I had the guts to sit down with my copy of The Nikon D90 For Dummies and start putting two and two together. The learning curve can be a little...too much. My mother has admonished me on several occasions for leaving the Cuisinart untouched in the cabinet, but now, there's not a darn thing she can say. 'Sup now, Jude?

Granted, there was some leaking involved. And a loose blade. But, nothing a husband can't fix after some good, old fashioned cursing from his wife.

PS - I made the salsa by following the recipe exactly. It only called for one jalapeño, but next time, I'd probably use two. And, I think I would get rid of some of the liquid from the can of tomatoes. The salsa is a titch too liquid-y for my personal taste. However, this salsa is really so very yummy, and it's a great alternative in the winter when lovely, ripe tomatoes simply do not exist.

PPS - I did not intend for I Used to Vacation to morph into a food blog. I'll try to do some other exciting things and write about them. Maybe.