Let’s say you laid down on the couch this afternoon, kids busy and frolicking to and fro, and you decide to close your eyes for “just a minute”.
Then let’s say you woke up some unknown amount of time later, living room dark, kids off entertaining themselves some place else, and suddenly you realize you’ve got about a half hour before your hungry husband would be home from work and ready for dinner.
In other words, let’s say you needed to throw something together for dinner fast.
And let’s also say that it’s a good thing you didn’t add “meal planning” to list of things to improve upon in 2012. That resolution would be an utter fail.
Instead, let’s just be thankful for Beans, Beans The Magical Fruit.
The more you eat, the more you… well, you know.
A diced onion sauteed in olive oil until soft, a can of spicy refried beans added to the mix to heat through. Bean concoction cooked tonight in my new cast iron skillet from Santa! My latest library book Your Vegetarian Pregnancy reminded me that cooking with cast iron is a great way to increase the amount of iron in your diet.
(P.S., cooking with cast iron is a great way to get more iron into your kids too, especially breastfed babies who have started solid foods!)
Bean burritos are kinda sorta my latest obsession, so it’s really no wonder why I was able to throw this together so quickly tonight. I’ve had weeks and weeks of practice.
And if that picture were in the newspaper, the caption beneath it might read:
“Hungry, pregnant wife waits impatiently for her husband to return from changing his clothes and wonders what on earth is taking so long.”
Refried beans, corn, salsa, diced avocado and greek yogurt all swaddled up into a soft whole wheat tortilla.
Those beans look so warm and cozy wrapped up like that. Doesn’t this picture make you sleepy? No? Is that just me?
hang on to that pyrex saucepan – I don’t think they make ’em anymore. I just spent beaucoup bucks on a heavy-duty calphalon saucepan – I was advised to cook my oatmeal for a long time, instead of eating it raw with my patented mix of almonds, walnuts. hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, chia, flax….mmmm, I’m getting hungry. I digress. My point is, I was in need of a heavier small saucepan that the oatmeal wouldn’t burn on the bottom of. I tried looking for pyrex – INSPIRED BY PIX OF YOURS! – but couldn’t find anything…
At any rate. At least your kids didn’t set the house on fire while you rested!
I actually have two, a medium sized one that I stole from my mom and that small one I found in a thrift store. I snatched it up as soon as I saw it, I love them!
I have a couple of calphalon pots too… although they are started to look scratched up after a few years despite using wood and plastic utensils for cooking. Grrrr.
In other news, I now think I’m going to have oatmeal for breakfast tomorrow!
You crack me up. Isn’t there some place local that has amateur “stand up comedy” night? You should go
Now THAT’S funny!
Santa brought me my cast iron skillets (2 of them!) two Christmases ago. Love mine to bits, used one to make dinner tonight, too! I doubt you’re anything like me and didn’t bother to read up on cast iron skillets, but whatever you do, don’t put it in the fridge. And don’t leave it wet to air dry. And be careful with citrusy/acidic foods. And rub oil into it after washing. And don’t leave it sitting on top of your bamboo cutting board over night only to discover horrible black marks it left behind the next morning. And don’t do it again the next week on the other side of said bamboo cutting board. Yeah . . .
Yes, cast iron pans are definitely something you want to read the directions on before you throw them into the recycle bin… sounds like you and yours have been on quite the cast iron adventure!
I need a cast iron pan now.
when I was a kid my mom used hers for everything but I’ve never had one!
I did just get a ceramic glazed cast iron pot / dutch oven thingy for Christmas so I am super excited to use that sucka!
way to go on the fast dinner.
and glad you got a nap!
I want one of those big cast iron dutch ovens too! Big bucks, but well worth it I’m sure!
I love bean burritos, and corn… yum, great addition. I’ve heard of cast iron skillets increasing your iron, but I just don’t like my hands smelling like metal… I’m crazy I know. Plus I feel weird adding oil to a ‘clean’ dish. I’ve got a ceramic covered cast iron dutch oven that works nicely for slow cooking soups and such, though.
I do know that metallic smell you’re talking about. It’s… weird. It took me a while too to get use to the “cleaning”/seasoning process and not using soap, etc. I have a bunch of friends that use cast iron, so that helped me get on board with it all before I had my own.
I’ve wonder if those ceramic covered cast iron dishes do the same for leeching iron into your food? I need to check into that.
I would venture to say that ceramic/enamel cast iron won’t leech the iron. Based on my cursory understanding of food stirred more on a cast iron skillet has more iron due to more contact with the iron. Your food doesn’t touch the iron if it has enamel/ceramic on it. That’s my guess anyway.
Mmmmmm….those look yummy!
I’m kinda sleepy too…maybe it’s the pic, or maybe it’s just because it’s winter and I really would like to be hibernating (and eating bean burritos). I took a nap today…for no reason at all. I can’t blame pregnancy, so I’ll just say it’s the low levels of daylight and ridiculous temperatures. (p.s. I heard it’s supposed to be in the 40s tomorrow—heat wave for us!).
I love exactly what you had written, it’s a fantastic posting and your point is a wonderful one. I look forward to showing this with some loved ones that know will probably be intrigued.