In No Mood to Cook

I had a rough day today.  First I made the mistake of disrespecting my husband yesterday and he decided to discipline me for it this morning.  It wasn't a really bad one with the belt but it still HURT.  He thought a short leather strap was sufficient.  I've been on my feet a lot today so I guess it was .   Then I spent to much time on the computer which left me with little time to cook.  Fortunately, I had some back up plans in the freezer that got me through this without another discipline.  Let me share my emergency dinner with you.  I don't think it is something to feed the in laws but it went over well with my family. 

1,  two weeks ago I cooked five pounds of hamburger with onions.  I would have added peppers but my family won't eat them.  I froze this this in five equal size packages in freezer bags.
2. about the same time I cooked some beans.  You can call it refried beans if you want but there is no oil in them.  I put two pounds of pinto beans in the crock pot with three large onions, one tablespoon chili powder, one tablespoon cumin, one teaspoon salt and two teaspoons pepper.  I put enough water in the crock pot to cover them by about three inches and let the crock pot cook all day on low.  Then I cooled them off and blended them into a paste with a stick blender.  I have mashed them by hand or used a regular blender but I really like the stick blender.  I froze these in cup size packages.
3.  Flash forward to today.  I defrosted a package of beans and a package of hamburger crumbles.  I placed a 1/2 cup beans in the middle of a flour tortilla and topped it with 1/2 cup hamburger.  I put hot sauce on it and 1/4 cup bottled salsa.  I rolled it up and microwaved it.  I topped it with shredded romaine, chopped tomato, and 1 tablespoon sour cream.  This was enough food for my husband.  I ate the same but only used half a tortilla. 

I was in the kitchen no more than 15 minutes today.  I'm sure the active time for cooking the beans was no more than 15 minutes (and I have four more containers) but they were in the crock pot all day. the hamburger may have taken 30 minutes but I have four more containers of that also.  I didn't mess up one pan today or heat up the kitchen. I think I have safely beaten the one hour rule.  There are also other uses for the beans and hamburger.  Later I'll feed my family a taco salad made with baked chips from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's.   The hamburger may be sloppy joes or put in spaghetti sauce. This is one of the cheapest things I can figure out how to make.  It could be even cheaper if I left out the hamburger--and its still good that way.

Here is the best break down I can get on the calories but again I'm no dietitian.

1 tortilla 180 calories, no fat
hamburger 164 calories, 6.4  grams fat
beans 120 calories 7 grams protein no fat
sour cream 30 calories 2.5  grams fat
salsa, 30 calories no fat no protein
I didn't count the calories in the lettuce and tomato

This makes 524 calories for my husbands and 434 for me because I had 1/2 a tortilla. This is enough fill me up.  I imagine a Hispanic person will e-mail me soon soon saying I am ruining their cultural cuisine but I have created a short cut that works for me.  I hope it gives you ideas.

 

What did you think of this article?




Trackbacks
  • No trackbacks exist for this entry.
Comments

  • 7/4/2007 1:45 AM Dena Davis wrote:
    Hi, I love your recipes.
    I guess you are a primitive christian?
    Much love,
    dena
    Reply to this
  • 7/7/2007 8:24 AM jules wrote:
    Sounds delicious to me! Another way you can cut those calories down even futher, is to use turkey burger, i cant tell the difference between turkey and hamburgr once cooked, and there are alot less calories and fat in the turkey burger. Also, a low fat sour cream, used sparingly, because you dont need much. I dont know the exact calories, but i do know it is alot less! AND.... if you use a whole wheat tortilla it is also less calories and higher fiber.
    Reply to this
    1. 7/7/2007 9:16 AM Debbie Lee wrote:
      Good advice!  I was going to suggest the ground turkey in a while.  The whole wheat tortillas and low fat sour cream take more getting used to.  I'm sure they appeal to some people more than others.  I'll do the tortillas but not the sour cream.  I use regular sour cream but dole it out like it cost a king's ransom.  Your suggestion is the healthiest a burrito can get though.  My favorite thing about this is that it takes NO time so it keeps me from wanting to order pizza or whine about being to tired to cook. Pre-planning is essential.

      Reply to this
Leave a comment

Submitted comments will be subject to moderation before being displayed.

 Enter the above security code (required)

 Name

 Email (will not be published)

 Website

Your comment is 0 characters limited to 3000 characters.