The Dreaded Question...What's For Dinner

We've all asked it.  More than that probably, we've all been asked it.  It's the dreaded..."What's for dinner?"...question.  My husband is usually the one who asks this question in our house since I'm the one who cooks more often than not.  We had to have a talk about that question before when he would call in the middle of the day and ask.  Then, when I would tell him, I would get some sort of not-so-enthusiastic response.  It was frustrating.  After all, I'm the one cooking...he doesn't have to...so he should be good with whatever I decided to make for the evening, right?  Well, being the good hubby that he is, he learns...and we don't have that conversation any more.  He now seems pleased as pie at whatever is on the nightly menu.  And if he's not, he doesn't tell me about it.  Yeah!  We all win!

Typically, I am a very good menu planner.  I've done it most of my life, so it's really second nature.  With my schedule getting more and more hectic with school, this has really become a saving grace.  Between school work, classes and my sweet little girl, I don't have time to fly by the seat of my pants anymore and my little weekly menu outline comes in extreme handy.  However, between making meals to practice for class and testing recipes to contribute to a cookbook, I've gotten a little overwhelmed from time to time about the whole cooking thing.  I mean, I love to cook, it's what I want to do for the rest of my life, but sometimes you need a break!

This such thing happened to me a few weeks ago.  Here I was after breakfast looking at my list of dinner choices for the week and I didn't want to cook any of them!  I decided that I would re look after lunch and maybe something would strike my interest...nope, didn't happen.  The worst part was I was in this weird funk.  I didn't want to whip up one of the fabulous Bertoli frozen dinners we had in the freezer and I didn't want to call out for pizza.  So I decided I would do the next best thing.  Find 6 ingredients in my pantry that needed to be used and make something.  I used to do this all the time when I was younger and responsible for cooking dinner once a week in my house.  The dish usually consisted of either beef or chicken and some other "stuff".  Aptly, I named these dishes "hamburger and stuff" and "chicken and stuff".  They were always a hit.

So I hit up the pantry and fridge and found 6 ingredients that I could throw together quickly and would please the hubby and baby girl.  It ended up being really good too, if I do say so myself.  So here is my latest addition of "Hamburger and Stuff".  When your in a cooking rut, give it a try.  6 ingredients, 20 minutes and your done with dinner.  How fabulous is that?

Hamburger and Stuff
Makes 4 servings

1 lb hamburger
taco seasoning
4 oz sour cream
1 can black deans; drained
1 can fire roasted tomatoes with garlic; not drained
2 c yellow rice; cooked

1 - Brown hamburger in a deep skillet.  Drain off fat.
2 - Sprinkle enough taco seasoning over the meat to cover it twice.  Stir to combine.
3 - Stir in sour cream, drained black beans and tomatoes (with the juice).
4 - Cover and heat through until bubbly.  I just left it on the heat until the rice was done cooking.
5 - Serve with a sprinkle of cheese...if it's in your fridge already!  ENJOY!