Beef and bean burritos

(makes 6 burritos)

I rarely cook or eat Mexican, probably because it's not something I grew up with and am not very familiar with... but motherhood and feeding a toddler calls for creativity and exploring new horizons! For some reason, my little munchkin loves legumes. This is great as they are very healthy, good source of protein and fibre, the only problem is, I have no ideas on how to cook legumes (lentils, chickpeas, beans)! My greatest exposure was having dhal baht in Nepal for about 3 weeks. Anyhow, recently someone suggested Mexican and it was ingenious! Burritos seemed like a good way to start as it has everything she likes, rice, corn, cheese and something resembling bolognese mixture with beans :) Winner. 

They are very filling though, so half a burrito is more than enough for a little one and a full one is almost too much for an adult so be warned.. At least that means this can last 2-3 meals though! 

Prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 40-50 minutes

Ingredients
1 cup brown rice, uncooked or about 2 cups of cooked rice
1 zucchini
1 carrot
1 brown onion
1 red capsicum
3 cloves garlic
500g beef mince
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp paprika (mild)
2 tsp oregano, dried
3 Tbsp tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes
1 tsp sugar (optional)
1 can (440g) red kidney beans
6x 10" (large) tortilla wraps
1 1/2 cups grated tasty cheese
3/4 cup corn kernels

Method
1. Cook the rice in the rice cooker according to the instructions on the packet (usually 1 cup rice: 1 1/4 cup water ratio)
2. Preheat the oven to 180 C.
3. Finely dice the zucchini, carrot, onion, capsicum and garlic.
4. Sauté the vegetables and garlic in a deep saucepan for 5 minutes on medium heat, then add in the beef mince and break it up and sauté until brown. Add in the cumin, coriander, paprika and oregano.
5. Add in the tomato paste and diced tomatoes and stir through. Season with sugar (optional) and salt if needed. Drain the kidney beans from the can and add into the beef mixture. Cook for another 10 minutes.

6. Prepare the wraps, rice, cheese and corn kernels. Assemble by first placing the rice in the middle of the wrap, then the beef and bean mixture on top, then the cheese and corn. Fold the sides in and roll it up. 

Wrap with foil and place in an ovenproof dish. Continue assembling as many as you intend to eat that night, then bake for 10 minutes (if fresh) or 20-30 minutes (if ingredients were cold) to warm through and melt the cheese.
7. Meanwhile, you can prepare a simple guacamole or salsa, or just a basic salad on the side (optional).

Capsicum, avocado, tomato salsa with mint and basil

8. Once the burritos are done, cut in half and serve in the foil. This helps to keep the eating process a bit neater, especially with little ones!