Burritos Veggie Bean

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Today we have another addition to our Health Dollar Menu! Katie from Kitchen Stewardship shares one of her families favorite meals all for under a dollar per serving.

Versatile. Nourishing. Frugal.
People have been asking about my favorite meatless meals lately, and I always fall back on this one. I’ve often served it for company, always to rave reviews.

Can add meat if you want tp.

Veggie Bean Burritos have lots of vegetable options and can be completed entirely on the stove-top or baked as a casserole, so they’re perfect for any season. It’s a great way to use up whatever might be in your fridge.

I have my favorite vegetable combination, so I tend to make them whenever organic mushrooms are on sale, especially when zucchini is in season at the same time. I always have green peppers frozen from the Farmer’s Market, and can often utilize frozen zucchini from summer’s bounty too.

Other vegetables I’ve been known to toss in:
· Spinach or kale
· Sweet potato or squash (frozen cubes) in the sauce
· Colored peppers
· Carrots
· Broccoli stems, chopped small

Yes, I often end up with more than 2-1/2 cups of veggies. Just toss in extra seasoning if you do the same. You really can’t go wrong here; these burritos are consistently tasty no matter what is stuffing them!

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  • 6

Ingredients

  • Sauce ingredients:
  • 1 small onion, chopped ($0.25)
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed ($0.05)
  • 1 small can green chiles OR chopped jalapenos ($0.25-$1.00)
  • 1/2 T. chili powder
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste (freeze the rest for the next batch) ($0.20)
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1/4 tsp. ground coriander
  • dash cayenne
  • 8 oz. can tomato sauce ($0.30)
  • 1 c. water can sub 14 oz can tomatoes for sauce and paste.
  • Filling ingredients:
  • 1 small onion, chopped ($0.25)
  • 2 -1/2 cups chopped veggies (green pepper, frozen corn, zucchini, fresh mushrooms) I almost always end up with twice this much, so I double the recipe, and a single batch of sauce covers it all.
  • 2 cans black beans OR 3-4 cups cooked dry beans ($0.50-1.00)
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 tsp. chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp. cumin (+ about $0.25 for all the spices?
  • 6-8 big tortillas for this one.
  • Filling ingredients:
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 -1/2 cups chopped veggies (green pepper, frozen corn, zucchini, fresh mushrooms) I almost always end up with twice this much, so I double the recipe, and a single batch of sauce covers it all.
  • 2 cans black beans OR 3-4 cups cooked dry beans
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 tsp. chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp. cumin
  • 6-8 big tortillas

Preparation

Step 1

To make sauce: sauté onion and garlic and 1/4 cup water or olive oil 5 minutes. Add chiles and spices, stir and sauté a few minutes. Add remaining sauce ingredients, mix well and simmer about 15 minutes. Set aside.

To make filling: sauté onion, green pepper, mushrooms in water for 5 minutes. Add other ingredients; sauté 10 more minutes.

You can just fill tortillas and eat smothered with sauce, or put a little sauce in the bottom of 9×13 pan, put the filling in tortillas, top with more sauce and cheese and bake 15-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Make it “with meat”: You can add 1/2 pound of grass-fed beef to either the filling OR the sauce.

Potentially a meal in themselves, these burritos are huge. If you want an added side dish to complete the platter, consider adding Mexican beans and rice or, for a lower carb option, homemade refried beans.

Making your own tortillas is the most frugal option while staying away from questionable ingredients in mainstream tortilla shells.

Here’s my soaked recipe:

Start with: 2 cups white whole wheat flour
Cut in: 1/4 cup lard or coconut oil or butter
Fork in: 1/2 cup water w/1 Tbs whey or just 1/2 cup whey

After a 12-24 hour soak at room temperature, sprinkle the 1 tsp salt on and knead into dough. Knead thoroughly until smooth and flecked with air bubbles. Divide dough into 8-11 balls, depending on how big you want your tortillas. Roll as thin as possible on a lightly floured surface.

Heat an ungreased griddle or cast iron pan very hot (400 degrees) and drop tortillas on it. Cook about 20 seconds, until lightly flecked with brown on one side, then flip until brown spots appear on the other side. Cook about 20 seconds, until lightly flecked with brown on one side, then flip until brown spots appear on the other side.

Serve immediately or refrigerate (or freeze) in airtight container.

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