The Easiest Dinner Ever

A recipe! Something you don’t find around here too often :)

My feelings about getting dinner on the table range from ambivalence at best to dread at worst. When I was a new bride, I would spend HOURS scouring Pinterest for the perfect weekly meal plan, and then hours more prepping, chopping, braising, and other stupid verbs after my hour-plus daily commute home.

Those days are over! My current dinner mentality is get it done. Nothing fancy, and minimal to no actual recipes because I can't focus anymore. And I use the stovetop as infrequently as possible because of the inevitable 45 interruptions in a 6 minute period which almost always results in burned food (or, in the case of yesterday when I was boiling water for corn, an overflowed pot).

Cooking is the worst, but these quesadillas are the best. Minimal prep time, all cooking is done in the oven, cheap ingredients, and they can be modified for kids of all ages. I originally found the recipe in this cookbook from the library and it can be found on their website here.

Here is the recipe/non-recipe:

The Easiest Bean + Cheese Quesadillas

Ingredients:

Tortillas (I have been on a years-long quest for healthy tortillas and finally found some! Have you ever looked at the miles-long ingredient list on your bag of tortillas? Yuck. I found these in the freezer aisle and we all really like them.)

1 can refried beans (I like these)

Shredded cheese

Salsa (I used this one for a little kick and it was delicious)

Baking spray (I used canola)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400*.

Lightly oil baking sheet.

Place tortillas on baking sheet. Top with a layer of beans, followed by shredded cheese and some dollops of salsa. (You could also do grilled veggies here, or another protein if you were feeling ambitious, but I never am.)

Top with second tortilla. Lightly spray top tortillas with baking spray.

Bake for 10 minutes.

Once slightly cooled, cut each quesadilla into slices with a pizza cutter.

Serve with sour cream, more salsa, and any other sides of your choosing! I like chopped tomatoes and avocados.

Serves 2 adults and 2 children. (I would double this recipe if you have big eaters or want leftovers.)

NOTE: If you have small children, maybe they are like mine and prefer (demand) to eat all their food items separately? Before assembling the quesadillas for Nick and I, I always scoop out some beans for the girls and place them in bowls and heat them for them to eat separately, or maybe with some cheese and a dollop of sour cream on top. Then I either make them a cheese-only quesadilla to share (which still isn’t usually met with enthusiasm) or more likely just cut up a plain tortilla and warm it in the microwave, and serve alongside the bowls of beans and chopped up veggies/fruit .

ANOTHER IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are a mother of small children, do all the bulky, ugly, and microwave-unfriendly plastic bowls, plates and cups make you want to poke out your eyeballs? Mine did, so I threw them away. I have one word for you: DURALEX! Aka tempered glassware that is appropriate for children to use. We have had plenty of these bowls, plates pictured above) and cups drop on our tile kitchen floor, and have only ever had one casualty. I love that children and adults can use them, saving space and sanity. Do yourself a favor and make the investment!

Dinner is served! Do you have any super simple dinner hacks? PLEASE tell me!