Sunday afternoon I had twenty-four flour tortillas spread across the island in four rows of six, a sheet pan of scrambled eggs cooling by the window and a pot of refried beans I'd made that morning. Wyatt walked through, counted, and asked who was coming over. Nobody, I told him. This is spring break.
The kids are home all week, March 16 through 20, and we're staying put. The preschool takes the same week off, so I'm home too, but tuition and payroll don't care what week it is, and I'm still putting in a few hours a day at the kitchen table. Breakfast and lunch for three kids, every day, while I reconcile accounts, is exactly the kind of week I plan ahead for. So last Sunday I rolled two dozen bean, egg and cheese burritos for the freezer, for $14.80 total.
The recipe
Makes 24 burritos.
- 3 packs burrito-size flour tortillas, 8 each
- 18 eggs
- 1 pound dried pinto beans (half of a 2-pound bag)
- 1 pound shredded cheddar (two 8-ounce bags)
- 1 onion, 3 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon cumin, a little oil, salt
Beans first. I cook the pintos in the Instant Pot without soaking: rinse them, cover with 6 cups of water, add half the onion and the garlic, and cook for 45 minutes on high pressure with a natural release. Drain, saving a cup of the cooking liquid, then mash with a little oil, the cumin and salt, adding liquid until they're spreadable but not loose. Wet beans make soggy burritos, and soggy burritos stick to the bag.
Eggs second. I scramble all 18 with the other half of the onion, chopped fine, in my 12-inch cast-iron skillet in two batches, and pull them while they're still a little soft. They'll cook more when they're reheated, and overcooked freezer eggs go rubbery.
Cool everything. Beans and eggs go onto sheet pans until they're completely cool. Warm filling makes steam, steam turns into ice crystals, and ice crystals turn into a soggy tortilla. This is the step that gets skipped when it's late and everyone's tired. I've skipped it. I've regretted it.
Set up the station and roll. Tortillas get a few seconds in the microwave so they don't crack. Each one gets about 3 tablespoons of beans, a big spoonful of egg and a pinch of cheese. Fold in the sides, roll tight. Six of them get no beans and an "E" on the wrapper, because Eli eats egg and cheese, period.
Freezing them
I wrap each burrito in a square of parchment, freeze them on two sheet pans for a couple of hours so they hold their shape, then vacuum seal them in packs of four. Before we had the sealer, I used gallon zip bags with the air pressed out, and that works fine for a few weeks. Sealed, they keep longer, though ours never get the chance.
Reheating, and who ate what
From frozen: unwrap, wrap in a damp paper towel, microwave for a minute, flip, and give it another minute or so. Wyatt then puts his in the air fryer at 375 for about 4 minutes to crisp the outside, and I have to admit he's right, it's better. I check the center with the Thermapen for 165 degrees, the USDA's number for reheated leftovers, especially anything with eggs in it.
The tally as of this morning: Wyatt has eaten nine, two most mornings plus one he called "second lunch." Eli has eaten four of his six. Rosie has gone through three, half at a time, wearing about a quarter of each. Matt took two to work, and I ate two standing at the counter between invoices. That leaves four in the freezer for the last day of break.
We packed the first ones in foil on Tuesday for a picnic at White Rock Lake, and they held up fine for a couple of hours in a lunch bag. Eli's had to ride in a separate bag. You can guess why.
The cost
- Tortillas, 3 packs at $1.99: $5.97
- 18 eggs: $3.44
- 1 pound pinto beans: $0.65
- Shredded cheddar, 2 bags at $2.19: $4.38
- Onion, garlic, cumin and oil: $0.36
Receipt check: $14.80 for 24 burritos, about 62 cents each, and three kids fed breakfast and lunch for most of a week with almost no dishes.
Last summer's freezer breakfasts taught me to make more than I think we need, and this batch confirmed it. For summer break I'm going to try three dozen and see how long they last against an eleven-year-old.
