Pinto Beans....Poor Man's Dinner

This came from Emily's blog, it's Mandy's recipe and I've had it for almost 2 years now. It is finally making it on my food blog because I served it for dinner last night, and for the first time......the kids ate it. I probably doubled the garlic, pepper and tomatoes.

Pinto Beans (poor mans dinner)

1 (1 lb.)bag of dried pinto beans
1 large can of diced tomatoes
2 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp garlic minced
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp oregano
1 bay leaf

1) rinse beans and pick out foreign material. Place in crock pot and add remaining ingredients.

2) cover with water plus 2 inches above beans.

3) Cook on low all day (8-9 hours) adding more water when necessary..

Fiesta Chicken Burritos

Fiesta Chicken Burritos

1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can (15 oz) corn, drained
1 can (15 oz) black beans (I cook a batch of these up these from scratch and keep them in the fridge to use through the week)
1 can (10 oz) diced tomatoes and green chilies
3 T ground cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp pepper
Dash of cayenne pepper and crushed red pepper flakes
1 pkg. (8 0z) cream cheese
8 flour tortillas

Place the chicken in the slow cooker. Mix remaining ingredients except cheese and tortillas and pour over chicken. Cook on low for 4-5 hours (better use high if your chicken was frozen). Remove the chicken and shred, then return to slow cooker adding the cream cheese. Cook for about 15 minutes more or until everything is warmed through.

We ate this on four tortillas the first night, over mashed potatoes a few nights later and then I cooked up the leftovers last night with corn tortillas in casserole of sorts.

Tex-Mex BBQ

Tex-Mex BBQ

3 1/2 lbs beef roast
1 jar (18 0z) hickory smoke-flavored BBQ sauce (or make your own)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 envelope chili seasoning
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. lemon juice
14 hamburger buns (make your own....YUM!)

Cut the roast in half and place in slow cooker. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over beef. Cook on high for 5-6 hours. Remove beef and shred then return to slow cooker. Serve on the buns.

This made enough for dinner one night and Sunday lunch. I'm sure it would go farther if you actually feel well enough to serve it with a side dish or some vegetables.

Whole Wheat Pancakes

This is my sil's recipe....a fact which convinced my oldest that using all whole wheat flour could still be yummy.

1 Cup whole wheat flour
1 Cup milk
*mix together til there are no lumps, then add:
2 eggs
2 T sugar
1 T baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup oil
Mix well and cook in frying pan over medium heat.