Beef, Black Bean and Spanish Rice Burritos

enestvmel's Note:

This is the first original recipe I've posted on this site, I'm so excited...It's one of the few meals that I literally just throw together, but I'll try to write it down. When our family eats tacos, we usually have homemade spanish rice, homemade refried beans and tacos. Tonight I had an epiphany....why not double what I normally make and make up some burritos with the leftovers and throw them in the freezer? I usually make this recipe from scratch because they taste that good, but why not cook once and eat twice? This will make a great OAMC meals also, though I haven't tried it yet. I'll give you the ingredients for making it from scratch, and if you decide to turn it into two meals, just double everything...If you don't have the spices separately, just use a taco mix pack. We like ours without salt and really spicy, so I tamed this back a bit. If you like a runny, non-chunky salsa, you don't have to add as much water.

• Total Time: 40 mins
• Prep Time: 25 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 4-6

Yield: 8.0 burritos

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons cumin
• 1 ½ teaspoons chili powder
• ¼ teaspoon chili pepper flakes (optional)
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 cup long grain rice
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 ½ cups water
• 15 ounces black beans
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder or 1 teaspoon fresh garlic
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 cup cheddar cheese or 1 cup colby-monterey jack cheese
• 8 flour tortillas
• cooking spray
• 2 cups salsa (optional)

Directions:

1. 1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. 2. Start on the spanish rice first, as it will take the longest. In a pot, put rice, salsa and water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and cover. Cook for about 17-19 minutes.
3. 3. Begin to brown ground beef in a pan, add all seasoning and cook until browned. May need to drain fat, depending on how you like your beef. Don't worry about getting your meat a little spicier than you might normally like it, because combining all these will tame down your meat and make the overall meal better.
4. 4. While the meat is browning you can start the beans. In a sauce pan, heat up the oil. I drain almost all of the liquid out of the can and put it the pan. I add the garlic powder after the beans and real garlic before.
5. 5. When all are finished cooking, I mix in a large bowl and mix in the cheese. I spray a 9x13 pan. I fill the tortillas and wrap them up like burritos and put them in the pan. I put it in the oven for about 15 minutes. We usually just add salsa on top of it.
6. 6. If you're going to freeze, put in a plastic bag and lay flat in the freezer. I would thaw them out the day you're going to cook them. You may need to cook them a little longer if they're cold out of the refrigerator.