Monday: Bean Burrito Casserole

I don't think I've ever made a casserole since I've been married. Like ... ever. They always sounded to bland and mushy. However, I have been on a desperate search for food that will be good for dinner, even better tasting for lunch the next day and something I've never cooked before. If it's freezable I may just pass out in sheer gratitude. So I went to my favorite (and only) web site where I get all of these fabulous recipes (www.epicurious.com) and searched casseroles. I stumbled upon this one and it sounded good and not very "casserole-y" so I tried it. This whole week I will post all the recipes I make. I went to the store and bought all the food I would need for the entire week. I usually try to go twice, but I find when I do that even though the food is more fresh by the time Saturday rolls around, I have over spent on my weekly budget. I spent $85 on all the groceries so you know that you could make all 5 of these recipes for that amount more or less depending on what you already have on hand in your pantry. (I usually wait until the end of the week to do chicken recipes because I buy frozen chicken breasts from Costco and those won't go bad.)

Ingredients:
For the filling
1 onion, chopped fine
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons olive oil
two 1-pound cans black, pinto, or pink beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup tomato sauce (*I used a 12 oz. can since that what I had and didn't want to waste it. I think it made it better and not as dry as it would have been)*
2 teaspoons ground cumin
4 fresh or pickled jalapeno chilies if desired, seeded and chopped (wear rubber gloves) (*I feed this to Devon so I used canned, MILD green chilies instead of jalapenos. Even better if you ask me)*
1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander if desired
*Joe needs to have meat with his meals so I added 1 lb. of hamburger and it was SO much heartier. I also added a small can of sliced olives ...yum! Next time I would add corn and cilantro. *

twelve 7- to 8-inch flour tortillas warmed
1 1/2 cups grated Monterrey Jack (about 6 ounces) (*I used cheddar)
guacamole and tomato salsa as accompaniments

Preparation:
Make the filling:
In a large heavy skillet cook the onion and the garlic in the oil over moderately low heat, stirring, until the onion is softened, add the beans, and mash about half of them coarse with the back of a wooden spoon. Add the tomato sauce, the cumin, the chilies, and salt and black pepper to taste, simmer the mixture, stirring, for 3 to 5minutes, or until it is thickened slightly, and stir in the coriander.

Working with 1 warmed tortilla at a time and keeping the others covered, spread about 3 tablespoons of the filling down the center of each tortilla and roll the tortillas, enclosing the filling but keeping the ends open. Arrange the burritos, seam sides down, in one layer in a baking dish, sprinkle them with the Monterrey Jack, and bake them, covered with foil, in the middle of a preheated 350°F. oven for 10 minutes. Serve the burritos with the guacamole and the salsa.

This is a great vegetarian dish as is and cooks up super fast and easy. Although my husband liked the flavor he said it was basically,"Burritos in a pan." It defiantly needs the avocado, salsa and sour cream and would be great with some Spanish rice and watermelon. I think this is OK for dinner, but great to freeze pre-portioned for a quick and easy lunch.