Smashed Black Bean Butternut Squash 'Sunset' Burriteos

Sunsets. They are one of of my favorite things. Another favorite thing is sunrises. I love the colors and how they slowly change in the sky. The awesome sunset we saw tonight had many shades of  blue with purple/grayish clouds streaked in here and there. It was chilly tonight. But it was fun being outside. As we played hide and seek, the colors changed, and the sun slowly disappeared on the horizon.  The shadows grew. The stars came out. So in honor of beautiful things like sunsets in our lives, I named this burrito the smashed black bean sunset burrito. Just seemed appropriate given the gorgeous colors about to be chopped and put inside. 

This recipe was adapted from a cookbook I had borrowed from the library.  I am always looking at cookbooks. It's almost a problem hahaha! I really think I improved on the original recipe. Although you can find it here.  The real critics, My son & hubby, were less enthusiastic, but heck they ate it without too many complaints. I am okay with that. Not everything is going to be exciting as pizza  or steak. My husband isn't a fan of anything bean related. So once every two weeks we have something with beans just to keep it as small little part of our diets. I don't only focus on healthy stuff, as long as the whole foods are present in someplace during the day I am good. So I don't mind if they don't "love" it because I totally did. It was easy and flavorful. It will be one of those once a month or every other meals. 

Note: A few changes I am going to do next time. Just minor stuff after tasting it... tonight. I never post stuff that isn't going to taste good. First change is the heat level. I am going to lower the heat a little for my son next time because he said it was spicy. I didn't think so but I like things spicier than him. I can add some hot sauce later individually. Second change is lowering the level of cinnamon. The cinnamon actually has a bit of heat in it, so maybe I can hit two birds with one stone by lowering the spice. Cinnamon sort of overwhelmed the dish. But I don't think it should go completely. Or I was thinking about adding just a pinch of nutmeg. Nutmeg and cinnamon go so well with most squashes and earthly flavors.  

Feeds 2 or 3 depending on appetites (my husband ate two) 

Makes 4 burritos 

Ingredients: 

1/3 cup black beans (let sit over night 12 hrs)
1 cup of water
1 cup of chicken broth or stock
1/2 Tbs minced garlic
1 strip of bacon cut in half for convenience
4 tortillas
1 cup finely diced onion
1 cup finely diced acorn squash
1 cup finely diced butternut squash, peeled 
1/2 cup of frozen corn defrosted
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded jack cheese, divided
1/8 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
1/8 tsp chili powder
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp kosher course salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
burrito fixing's like sour cream, salsa, cilantro (optional) 

Directions:

1. After letting the black beans soak over night. Rinse them and take out anything that doesn't look good. Sometimes you will find fragments and in this case it doesn't matter too much because they are getting smashed later but in most cases you wouldn't want those in your dish.

2. In a small or medium saucepan start cooking the beans (this can be done a few days ahead).  In the pot  add the beans, water, garlic and bacon. Bring it to a boil and then cover and simmer on low for 2 hrs. 

3. When they are done. Taste one and see. You can tell. Should be soft and taste cooked. Drain them and throw away the bacon. Once drained put them back into the same cooking pot and smash them with a potato masher for a minute or two. Set aside. As you can see I didn't smash my beans enough (pictured below) next time I am going to really cream them get out some aggression so its easier for my son to eat them. 

4. Saute the veggies over medium low with 1/2 Tbs canola or olive oil. This is an easy drop and chop into a skillet starting with the most hardy veggies. 

5. Saute the onion for 3 minutes, then add the butternut squash for 2 minutes, then add the acorn squash and salt everything. Continue cooking for 8 minutes. At that point the veggies should be pretty soft or almost there. Add in the chili powder, red pepper flakes, cumin, and pepper.  Add in the yellow pepper and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Last throw the defrosted corn in and stir and cook until corn is heated through approx 2-3 minutes. 

6. Add the beans to the veggie mixture. 

7. Heat the tortillas just slightly so they are more flexible. 

8.  Carefully (since the filling is warm) put equal amounts of filling in the center of each tortilla, approx 1 cup. Top each filling with 1/8 cup of cheese. I used Monterrey Jack for its melting properties and the mild taste to let the squash flavors really shine. So total amount of cheese on the inside of 4 burritos is 1/2 cup.  

9.  Roll the burritos and place them in a baking dish seam side down. Top with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of shredded cheese. 

10. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

11. Serve immediately with burrito fixin's if desired.

This was an evening we were out and about and a meal my hubby took to work so I didn't serve it with anything. Rice, chips or salsa would've complemented this meal perfectly.   If you really really love meat add it in. I think boneless skinless chicken thigh meat would taste great in this. Or just put a piece of chicken on the side.  

Another great experiment (wink) paid off. 

Eating healthy & Making it look 

as pretty as a sunset

From my kitchen to yours!