AT THE WATER’S EDGE:

We’re going out of town this weekend, so we’re running a little low on groceries and I needed a dinner recipe that wouldn’t make too much food, since we won’t be around to eat the leftovers.  I was thinking of making tacos tonight, because they are one of my favorites, and because I remembered that we had an avocado that needed to be eaten (think: guacamole).  Of course, it was already going on 6pm and I didn’t have any meat thawed.  So, I made a quick decision: tostadas.  


I was already at the grocery store picking up a prescription from the pharmacy, and the specialty cheeses just happened to be on my way out the door.  Of course, I had to stop and look.  I do love me some cheese.  I ended up picking up some queso fresco, thinking it would be a nice addition to the other ingredients I had on hand.  Here’s what I ended up doing for tonight’s tostadas:


Ingredients:
– 6 corn tortillas
– ½ can black beans, drained and rinsed
– 2 oz queso fresco, crumbled
– 1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced
– 2 small tomatoes, diced
– ½ a small white onion, diced
– 4 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
– Lemon juice
– Garlic
– Salt
– Pepper
– Chili Powder
– Cooking spray


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lay tortillas out flat on a baking sheet, not overlapping if you can help it.  Spray with a thin coat of cooking spray, then sprinkle with salt and chili powder.  Bake for 7-10 minutes or until crunchy (caution: they go from done to burnt very quickly).  

Meanwhile, combine beans, queso avocado, tomato, onion and cilantro in a bowl and mix until combined.  Squeeze a little bit of lemon juice over top and season with salt, pepper and garlic to taste.  Once the tortillas are done, simply top with the “salsa” mixture.

I have several variations of this recipe, but it’s very simple to make and it always tastes great!  It also makes a great summertime meal when you don’t want anything too heavy and you don’t want anything hot.