It’s been very quiet in here lately. The end of the year craziness will do that to a blog I guess. Rest assured I’m still cooking delicious food for my little family – if you follow me on Facebook or Instagram you’ll see some pics of it there.

I did a Facebook Live this afternoon as I was preparing this for an afternoon tea/early dinner for the kids before Little Athletics. I like to make sure they’ve had a good feed before we go to avoid the hassling for junk from the canteen, and this fits the bill perfectly.

It also makes a great meat-free Monday meal in a hurry. To keep it real, I will tell you that the fussy 6 year old does not eat the beans and tomatoes, so I always make sure to serve the typical raw veggie plate alongside.

Here’s the recipe if you’d like to whip them up yourself…

Quick & Easy Bean Nachos

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced (or 1/2 tsp garlic powder)
• 1- 2 tbsp Mexican Spice Mix
• 400g tin Mexican beans, rinsed and drained (or use pinto, kidney, black or cannellini beans)
• 400g tin diced tomatoes

To serve:

• tortilla/corn chips
• grated cheese
• avocado, mashed with lemon or lime juice
• natural or Greek yoghurt or sour cream

Method:

1. Sautée diced onion in olive oil until soft.
2. Add garlic and spices. Cook until fragrant.
3. Add beans and tomatoes and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened
4. To serve, arrange tortilla chips in an oven-proof dish (I use a Pyrex pie dish), leaving a hollow in the middle. Spoon bean mix into the hollow and top with grated cheese. Melt cheese under grill (or use oven if beans need to be heated through as well).
5. Serve with mashed avocado and a dollop of yogurt or sour cream. My husband and I like to add some Tabasco sauce or some chopped jalapeños too.

Bean mix can be prepped ahead and refrigerated or frozen until needed. It also makes a great wrap or quesadilla filling.

Enjoy!