Quick, Delicious and Kid Friendly Bean Burritos

It's cold and everyone wants something hot and satisfying for dinner, but you're also busy ferrying kids to activities, talking on the phone with sick friends, and wondering in the back of your mind how you'll possibly make it to the dryer before the clothes get wrinkled. So, here's a quick and easy dinner that the kids can help make. They can learn a little Spanish while they're at it; burrito means "little donkey", but this recipe is strictly vegetarian! Authentic Mexican burritos are flour tortillas that are grilled or steamed and then filled with refried beans, rice, or meat.

Bean Burritos

Ingredients:

• 1 bag Trader Joe's whole wheat tortillas
• 1 can Trader Joe's refried black or pinto beans
• 1 bag Trader Joe's frozen tri color pepper strips (substitute shredded Romaine)
• 1 jar Trader Joe's mild to medium salsa, depending upon your taste
• 1 container Trader Joe's 0% Greek yogurt – this tastes and looks like sour cream!
• 1 bag shredded Trader Joe's Mexican blend cheese
• 1 package Trader Joe's prepared guacamole
  

1. Gently heat refried beans in saucepan over medium heat until hot.
2. Stir fry pepper strips until cooked through and no juice is left (otherwise burritos will be runny).
3. Place salsa, yogurt and cheese in individual bowls on table.
4. Microwave 1 tortilla per person for 30 seconds, uncovered.
5. Place one tortilla on each plate, spoon some beans onto first 1/3 of tortilla and top with peppers, salsa, cheese, and yogurt to taste. Roll tortilla and bring in sides to form a burrito. Eat with your hands. Serve guacamole on the side. Enjoy.

Pizza Stone Ratings Vary With Price

Would you believe the Wall Street Journal, of all the unlikely places, just reviewed and rated pizza stones? Well, it's just in time for super Bowl Sunday of course. I pointed out in an earlier blog about making pizza using Trader Joe's ingredients that pizza stones are critical to achieving a crisp crust. The article has a really cool online feature that allows you to see a photo show of all the stones and stone sets reviewed. The bottom line is that they rated the All-Clad Pizza Stone & Cutter best overall. Unfortunately it costs $99.95 and is temporarily sold out at Amazon.com, but the two consumer reviews the set received were great and the cutter is supposed to be one of the best. Better news is that Linens ' Things Kitchen 101 Pizza Set rated best value and only costs $19.99 on sale and is well under $20 if you use one of their 20% off coupons. You may want to spring for another cutter since this one isn't supposed to be so sharp. I have a Dexter Russell P177A stainless pizza cutter I got at a restaurant supply store over a decade ago that's still going strong. You can get one for $14.95 at akitchen.com. My pizza stone, which is well seasoned from many years of use, is made by Huey-Chang and a recent search showed that they are the manufacturer for Pampered Chef bakeware.

Principal Takes a Stand on Junk in the Cafeteria

Marc D'Amico, Principal of Glenville elementary school in Greenwich, Connecticut, was in the news yesterday for taking a stand on child nutrition and upping the ante on setting standards for healthy school lunches. He actually banned the sale of ice cream and cookies in the school cafeteria. Way to go Marc! You are a child nutrition hero.

He and the PTA co-President saw too many kids eating cookies and ice cream instead of the healthy lunches their parents packed for them and decided enough is enough. "They go right for the desserts. It's been my ongoing observation that the lunches that parents pack don't always get eaten by the children," D'Amico said. "(Parents) hold a lot of trust that we make sure kids eat the lunch first, and then go for the cookies."

"I feel it's my responsibility," D'Amico said of upholding healthy eating at the school. D'Amico said he already has received several e-mails from supportive parents glad to hear about the change, which he expects to be permanent.

I had to send him a congratulatory email and just let him know what a great example he has set for other school officials. How many others will ante up?