Tried and true Tuesday: Chicken and black bean burritos and spinach salad

So the recipe of the week is all from Cooking Light, and it’s chicken and black bean-stuffed burritos, spinach salad (goat cheese, strawberries, Mandarin oranges, and topped with walnuts) with cinnamon vinaigrette. The recipe calls for eight-inch tortillas, but we found that they work better when you use the larger tortillas. What are they—10 or 12 inch? Not sure, but they actually leave you room to use the exact amount of filling called for in the recipe, and then still have room to fold the burrito so that it holds in all the contents.

Last time this recipe was on the weekly meal plan, The Husband ended up making the burritos because I got home late, and he did an excellent job. They were tasty and delicious, and with the larger tortillas I bought by accident, he—the Chef master—was able to fold the burritos expertly, and they stayed together without falling apart. This time, I bought eight-inch like the recipe required, and there was too much filling to be able to fold over the ends, which made them quite messy.

I put less in Bryleigh’s burrito so that hers might stay together, but she took each end in a hand and began eating it from the middle. That little tyke ate ever bite of strawberry and Mandarin orange on her plate, and then she ate every bit of burrito except for a few of the black beans that fell out. I couldn’t believe how much food she ate last night! We worried that it may be a little too spicy for her, and admittedly during one point in the meal she gave the funniest little frown and started sticking her tongue out and whining a little. We suggested she drink some milk, which she did, and then continued eating. I think she may have just eaten a bite that must have a particularly spicy bit of chicken in it.

Anyway, this meal is definitely a family favourite. If the cinnamon vinaigrette sounds strange to you, try it anyway. The sweetness from the strawberries and oranges in the salad and the little kick of hot sauce and cinnamon in the vinaigrette makes a great complement to the spicy black bean burritos!