The Burrito Bowl

Burritos can be filled with just about anything these days: corn, beans--whole or refried/mashed, rice, meat of some sort, various veggies in small pieces, cheese, salsa, etc. And if you're like me, you will always fill that little tortilla to bursting and end up with a messy plate (or lap!). And if your kids are like my kids, they will take forever to learn to hold a burrito in such a way that the entire contents doesn't land in their plate (or lap).

Enter: the Burrito Bowl, one of our favorite Dinner Bowls. Easier to eat, cheaper (good quality tortillas can add up!), and adjustable to each family member. Bonus: the ingredients are easy to keep on hand for quick meals. I keep extra cooked rice in the freezer for these kinds of meals, too, so there's very little cooking involved. We usually make our Burrito Bowls vegetarian and save the meat for our Fajita Bowls (which are essentially the same thing but with slightly different ingredients). The picture above shows some browned, ground meat we threw in because we had some leftover.

The Burrito Bowl

(these are the usual suspects in the full tummies' household; vary to suit your tastes!)

• cooked rice (about 1/2-3/4 c. per person/bowl)
• black beans, drained (about 1/4 c. per person/bowl)
• corn (thawed, drained, whatever; about 1/4 c. per person/bowl)
• shredded cheese
• salsa
• cilantro if you've got it

Layer in order given. If we throw in veggies to this--which we don't usually because this is an "end-of-the-month" type meal or a quick-and-easy-to-throw-together type meal--just chop them fairly small.