brussels sprouts with smoky beans

Burritos or wraps are probably the most difficult foods to appetizingly photograph, so it must be known that these wraps were delicious. Sauteing sprouts are my favorite way to make them - add a little minced garlic close to the end of the cooking time and you are all set. Just don't cook them to a mush.

Having sprouts in a burrito for me would be complete (call me a cabbage head), but I wanted to add some protein for the kids. Kate requested a bean burrito to begin with, so that is where the dish lead. Some pinto beans, diced onions and smoked paprika (Amazon has a great deal on one - I've been looking for months for it) and the beans take on a different flavor from their Mexican cousins.

Quick, tasty and incorporating Brussels Sprouts - what more can there be?

Cost Breakdown:

sprouts: $3

beans: $2

tortillas: $1.50

spices, onion, garlic: $1

Total to make 4 burritos:

$7.50

On a total tangent, I have been wanting to blog about candles. Not food, I know, but I saw Tami talking about these candles on Vegan Appetite and I bought a few. The owner, Mike Hipp, has not contacted me to promote for him, but I love these candles. I used to be a Yankee Candle gal, but these soy candles blow them out of the water.

Anyway, take a look at Soy Candles by Phebes if you are interested in holiday or other candles. The scents are amazing and he has a ton of variety. He is very quick and he makes them himself. I've ordered three times from him in the last six months and have been very pleased.

As you can tell by the lack of advertisement on this blog, I don't promote lightly. But I love a good product and when that business is run by a vegan, I kind of want to get the word out.

This is most likely the last non-food related post I'll do, so enjoy it!

roasted tomatoes and olives pasta

You know you've crossed some sort of fast-food, canned-soup, frozen-meals border when your teen is demanding a home cooked meal. I have been admittedly reluctant to reenter the kitchen since the MoFo and last week's Teen Dance we hosted. I made so much food that David and I wound up buying a freezer. Okay, so it was an excuse, but it is certainly helpful to have the extra space.

Without hesitation, my daughter wanted Pasta Puttanesca, my son wanted Pasta with Spaghetti Sauce and the youngest one was craving Mama's Bean Soup. Since I felt a wee-bit guilty at my laziness, I granted all of them their meal choices - something I do not typically do and do not recommend anyone do so either. Bad habit.

Tonight it wasn't too much of a stress though. I had a 2# container of cherry tomatoes and a wonderful jar of olives sitting in the fridge (the olives, not the tomatoes). I roasted the tomatoes on 450 until they got a little charred and released their juices. I tossed them with crushed red pepper, olives, pasta and some of the reserved pasta water.

Good tip: always reserve a cup of the pasta water in case your dish needs some more liquid. The starch in the water also helps to thicken the sauce.

Traditional Puttanesca contains capers and anchovies as well, but I know my kids didn't want the extra pungency (replace the anchovies with some miso when you toss it all together), so I skipped the capers and miso. In other words, this isn't a typical Puttanesca but instead a very easy, very delicious, very quick weeknight meal.
 A great way to get back in the kitchen.

Cost Breakdown

pasta: $2
tomatoes: $4
olives: $2
Total to make 4 servings:
$8.00