Baked Chimichanga

Finding a reason to rally the family together around the dinner is a creative exercise. You know what I mean?

Sure, you can frequently fall back to everybody’s favorite meals when in a pinch for time. We do this quite a bit actually. Pancakes, tacos and tater tot casserole are all staples in our house. But sometimes you just want to make something that is different. Something that gets the taste buds singing. Something that stimulates that creative part of your soul.

And let’s admit it. Preparing food for your family is something that brings great satisfaction. I love it when my kids ask for seconds!

Enter baked chimichangas.

I’m a sucker for Mexican food. And I love a good chimichanga. However, anything deep-fried is the enemy of good health (even if it taste so delicious!). I wanted to prove that you don’t have to sacrifice good taste for health. Using fresh ingredients and baking rather than deep-frying in oil makes this a tasty alternative for the health conscious.

And when I served them to the family, I was immensely pleased when my nine-year old asked for more. Peppers and all!

Here’s a few things you need to know:

• If you’ve never cooked with radish, it might seem kinda weird that I included them in with this recipe. Radish will actually soften the heat from hot peppers. And they add a burst of flavor when mixed with other veggies. My kids didn’t even know there were radish or peppers mixed in with the meat!
• Cooking time will depend greatly on your oven, so keep an eye on your chimis after 15 minutes or so. They should be a nice golden brown when done (the secret to this is the olive oil).
• We topped our chimis with homemade salsa. But you can top with anything that works for you. Cheese or enchilada sauce would be good alternatives.
• You can make these chimis and freeze them for future meals. Let them cool completely, then wrap in wax paper and place in freezer bags.

Now for the recipe. Enjoy!

 

Ingredients

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 1 can or jar black beans
• 4 medium tomatoes
• 3 jalapeno peppers
• 1 banana pepper
• 1 half medium onion
• 1 bunch radish
• 1 half bunch cilantro
• Garlic salt
• Shredded cheese
• 9 burrito flour tortillas

Prep

Dice tomatoes, onion and peppers and set aside in a medium-sized bowl. Cut the tops and bottoms off radish, then slice into thin strips. Chop the cilantro. Add radish and cilantro to other ingredients in bowl and set aside.

Instructions

Preheat your iron skillet and brown your ground beef. Drain off the oil and return to burner. Add black beans and stir into meat. Let cook for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally

Add the tomatoes, onion, peppers, radish and cilantro, mixing well into the meat and beans. Cook on medium heat for 10 minutes, then bring heat to LO. Let meat simmer until fluid is mostly gone, stirring.

Spray two 9 x 13 Pyrex baking pans with olive oil.

Line each tortilla with your shredded cheese. Then scoop meat mixture into each tortilla. Fold one end of tortilla, tucking in the sides, then fold over other end and tightly roll burrito. Place in baking pan side by side. Spray tops of each chimichanga with olive oil.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake chimichangas for 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Top with salsa. Serve with your favorite rice.