A cool secret for heat-and-eat burritos

Life is complicated, right? This year has been particularly complicated. So, I’m suggesting we make one thing very uncomplicated. Let’s put lunch on autopilot. Honestly, making lunch is the last thing you want to hold you up in the middle of the day.

We’re going to make a bunch of delicious heat-and-eat burritos to stash in your freezer for quick lunch, snack, or dinner on demand.

Compared to commercially frozen burritos, these taste better and are far healthier. Just look at the ingredients on frozen burrito packaging if you need further convincing.

In addition to a recipe, I’m sharing a technique you can use to make any variety of belly-filling burritos. These are easy, inexpensive, delicious and you get to choose exactly what you want in them.

The rule of thumb is one generous cup filling for each 10-inch tortilla. If you’re making eight burritos, you’ll need eight cups of filling. For example: to make chicken, veggie, and rice burritos you could prepare two cups cooked chicken, three cups cooked veggies, two cups rice, and one cup cheese. If it totals eight cups, you’ll have enough filling to for eight belly-filling burritos.

You’ll want burrito-sized flour tortillas for this purpose. They come in packages of eight so that’s the quantity used for this recipe. When I go to the effort of making burritos to freeze, I typically make a whole bunch, so this recipe easily multiplies.

Because these will be frozen, don’t use ingredients that wouldn’t freeze well or that you wouldn’t want to eat hot. For example, don’t add lettuce, raw tomato, or avocado. Save your salsa fresca, guacamole and sour cream for serving time.

One issue people have with making burritos at home is folding them so they don’t burst and make a mess. My tip – don’t over fill them! A 10-inch tortilla can handle no more than 1 ½ cups filling and using less makes folding even easier.

How to fold a burrito – Warm the tortillas for easier handling, either individually in the microwave for 10 seconds each, or heat the whole package in the oven by wrapping the tortillas in foil and heating for 10 minutes at 350°F degrees. Spoon fillings onto each tortilla just below the center. First, fold in the sides that are perpendicular to the lines of ingredients. Pull the bottom edge over the top, squeezing the filling in as you roll the burrito away from you. Continue rolling, leaving the seam at the bottom.

How to freeze a burrito – Place burritos seam side down on individual pieces of foil. Wrap tightly in the same manner as you folded the tortillas. Use a sharpie to date and label them. Place in a freezer safe bag and freeze for up to three months.

How to heat a burrito – Take a burrito from the freezer, remove the foil, and wrap in a damp paper towel. Place the wrapped burrito on a plate and microwave on high for 2 to 3 minutes, until heated through. You can also heat foil wrapped burritos in the oven at 350°F degrees for 20 minutes. That’s best for heating several at once.

BEEF AND BEAN BURRITOS

Yield: 8 burritos

What You’ll Need:

2 pounds (85/15) hamburger

1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce

Taco seasoning, purchased or homemade, to taste

1 (16 ounce) bag frozen pepper and onion blend - optional

1 (15.5 ounce) can refried beans

2 cups cooked rice

1 cup shredded cheese

8 burrito-sized flour tortillas

Here’s How:

In a large skillet heated to medium-high, cook the hamburger until no longer pink. Drain excess fat and add the tomato sauce and taco seasoning, stirring to combine. If using, add the defrosted pepper and onions, squeezing most of the liquid out before adding, and cook thoroughly. Let cool.

Meanwhile, gather the rest of the ingredients and warm your tortillas. It’s unnecessary to heat any of the other ingredients because we’re freezing these. Evenly divide ingredients between the tortillas and fold and freeze as directed above. The easiest way is to assembly line the process. It’s even better if you have extra hands.

Ordinarily when life is complicated, I’d suggest taking something off your plate. Instead I’m suggesting putting something on your plate that’s delectably easy. Buen provecho!

Lifestyle expert Patti Diamond is the recipe developer and food writer of the website “Divas On A Dime – Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous!” Visit Patti at www.divasonadime.com and join the conversation on Facebook at DivasOnADimeDotCom. Email Patti at divapatti@divasonadime.com