Black Bean and Sausage Burritos

Here is a recipe for Black Bean and Sausage Burritos that my husband is especially fond of.  I found it initially in a Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook Great Cooking for Two and have changed it up a little to personalize it for our family.  It is easy to assemble, but takes a little preparation.

Black Bean and Sausage Burritos

adapted from Great Cooking for 2 Cookbook

Serves 4-5

Ingredients

• 12 oz Italian Sweet Sausage, skins removed and crumbled
• 3/4 cup onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup Green or Red Pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup Ricotta Cheese
• 1  3/4 cups Pepper Jack Cheese, shredded (divided use), or cheddar cheese if desired
• 4 oz can diced green chilies, drained
• 8-10 (medium) Flour Tortillas
• 1 (15 oz) can Black Beans, rinsed and drained (you may need more if you are making 10 burritos)
• 1/2 cup mild or medium salsa

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Wrap the flour tortillas in foil.

For the filling: n a large skillet, cook the Italian sausage, onion, green or red pepper until the sausage is browned and the onion is tender.  Drain the excess fat.  Add the chopped garlic and cook for an additional minute or so.  Stir in the ricotta cheese,  3/4 cups of the pepper Jack cheese (or cheddar), and drained green chilies.  Stir until combined and set aside.

When the oven has come to temperature, heat the flour tortillas for 10-15 minutes to soften them.

Use a fork to mash the black beans in a separate bowl.  Stir in the salsa.

Unwrap the heated tortillas and spread about 2 Tbsp of the black beans down the center of each tortilla within 2 inches of the edge. Spoon 1/2 cup of the sausage cheese filling on top of the bean paste.  Sprinkle with about 2-3 Tbsp of cheese over the filling.  Fold the ends of the tortilla over the filling and then the sides.  Either skewer them with toothpicks, or wrap them in foil to secure the burrito.  Place in a baking dish. Bake the burritos at 350 F for 15-25 minutes or until hot.  Remove toothpicks/foil.  Serve with salsa and Spanish Rice.  Serving Size: 2 Burritos.

Printable Recipe

Pan-Seared Steaks with Shallot Butter Sauce

For New Years Day, I made pan-seared steaks and served them with Shallot Butter Sauce.  I found the recipe in The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook 2001/2010 (link) on page 108.  The sauce has a hint of lemon and marries quite well with the steak.  Steak is blotted dry with paper towels, seasoned on both sides with Kosher salt, and pepper.  Seared in a very hot pan with 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil for four minutes on the first side and then four (medium high heat) on the other for 4 more minutes for rare (5 for medium-rare; 6 minutes for medium).  Remove the steaks to a platter and cover with tented foil to allow to rest for 5 minutes, during which time you then prepare the Shallot Butter Sauce in the same pan you made the steaks.

The magic I think is in the sauce.  I doubled it.  Shallot Butter Sauce (The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook 2001/2010 page 109).

Shallot Butter Sauce

America’s Test Kitchen Recipe (doubled)

Serves 6-8 steaks

Ingredients:

• 2 medium shallots, minced (2/3 cup)
• 1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
• juice of one lemon (2 tsp)
• 2 tsp minced fresh parsley leaves
• salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Follow the directions for the steaks as above.  After removing the steaks, add the shallots to the skillet over LOW heat (don’t use a non stick skillet- you want the browned bits to contribute to the flavor of the sauce).  Cook the shallots until softened, about 1 minute, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen some of the browned bits.  Add the chunks of butter, continue stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan until most of the browned bits are loosened.  As soon as the butter is melted, add the lemon juice, chopped parsley and stir to combine.  Pour the sauce over the steaks and enjoy!

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