And when I'm very very lazy

And I'm talking lazy beyond the bounds of making quiche with a ready-made crust, I have a few quick kid-pleasers in my repertoire. Since this weekend was filled with feverish toddlers and rash covered preschoolers, I didn't do much cooking. I did a lot of reheating leftovers and some ordering take out, but neither of those seem worthy of a blog post, do they?

Instead, I'm going to talk about Naked Burritos. No, no actual nudity here. They are completely family friendly and completely modest. My current recipe has evolved from a one pot recipe I used as a single woman way back when I had time for pedicures and massages and such. Sigh. I used to call it Beans and Rice and Corn. The ingredients were pretty much that, with a few additions. Recently our nanny dubbed it Naked Burritos and I think that has a nicer ring to it. The ingredients are things that I commonly have in my pantry. The only time sink in this one is the rice, but if you are like me, you can freeze precooked rice and just have it on hand, or buy the precooked rice at Trader Joe's. Once mixed, it makes a great lunch box lunch and is just as good at room temperature as it is heated. Even the picky eater who used to be in our nanny-share would jump on this one, so I think it has universal appeal.

Naked Burritos
1 can of beans (black beans or pinto- I use the organic ones, but you don't have to)
1 bag of frozen sweet corn (you can use canned, but I like the roasted corn from Trader Joe's)
2 cups of cooked brown rice (again, you can use white rice, but why would you. Brown rice is so much tastier)
1/2 jar or tub salsa of your choice (fresh salsa is the tastiest, but if I'm working from the pantry I'll use a jar of prepared salsa.)
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or jack, or that Mexican blend of shredded cheese- really any cheese you like will work)

In a large pan heat the beans corn and rice, add the shredded cheese and salsa, stir and eat. Too lazy for the pan? Put it in a big bowl and microwave it! See why I love this recipe?

If you're looking for extras, you can top it with sour cream, or low-fat yogurt (my choice). If I have them on hand, I'll toss in a big handful of chopped cilantro and some sliced black olives Sometimes I'll toss in some roasted green chilies or ground soy-meat. Roasted zucchini cubes also go in nicely if you have it laying around. I've added chopped spinach and broccoli at other times, both went over well. I haven't tried it, but I'm sure cauliflower would work too.
If you're a meat-eating type, you could add chicken or ground beef. I'm sure Mr. Dog would love it if I added a bit of shredded pork, but that's not likely to happen at my house. You could probably even toss in your leftover turkey if you were so inclined. I guess my point is that this recipe is really flexible.

Well, that's all you're getting out of me today. I've got some slacking to get back to.