What.A.Week. And it’s only Wednesday. Yes, as I type this, it’s Wednesday morning… I blog ahead sometimes. But seriously. It’s been a week that I do not wish to repeat. Was anything REALLY that bad? No. Not if I think about it. In the moment though? HORRIBLE! Isn’t that always the way it is though?

Gotta get up and out of bed, put one foot in front of the other, smile, pray, and move forward! I CAN DO THIS! 🙂

So last night I had absolutely NO CLUE what to make for dinner. I had a bunch of stuff that I had to figure out how to meld together. I had chicken tenderloins (you can also use leftover rotisserie chicken in this recipe), leftover rice, cans of beans and roasted tomatoes with chilis… etc… and I thought… I can do something “mexican themed” with that, and my husband will be quite happy!

So, here ya go!

This dish is cheesy, a bit spicy, and quite filling! You don’t need a large portion, and this can make a whole family happy! After both my husband and I had dinner, there is enough for at least 5 more portions, 3-4 large portions! For us, we have it frozen and portioned for my husband’s lunches. It’s great when we do that because he has a stock of lunches just waiting for him to grab out of the freezer each day!

From start to finish this meal took me less than 30 minutes, because a lot of the food was either canned, or leftovers!

INGREDIENTS

• 4 large chicken tenderloins (my FAVORITE are the Trader Joes chicken tenderloins) – no need to thaw
• 2 TB extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups pre-cooked white or brown rice. (You can even use leftover rice from chinese takeout!)
• 3/4 can (or whole can) black beans – rinsed well
• 1 cup frozen corn – I used sweet white corn
• 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes with green chilis
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 TB queso dip (I had this in my fridge – you can use leftover from Moe’s, or the white or yellow queso if you have some… but not required)
• 1 TB tomato paste for thickening
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese for topping

DIRECTIONS

• Drizzle the olive oil into a large skillet and place the chicken tenderloins into the skillet with the oil. Heat on medium to medium high heat. While they are cooking, evenly season both sides of the chicken with the dry spices. (cumin, chili powder, paprika, oregano and salt&pepper)
• Once the chicken is seared on both sides and starts to cook through, I remove the chicken tenderloins one at a time, place onto a cutting board, cut into 1-2 inch pieces, and then scrape back into the skillet. You can cut them with scissors in the skillet as well… up to you how you would like to do it.
• Add the can of roasted tomatoes and the 1 TB of tomato paste and let simmer for about 5 min. Then add the queso dip if you have it, for a bit of cheesiness and spice. If you want a bit more heat and spice, add some cayenne powder at this time!

• Add the can of black beans and the corn
• Add the leftover (or freshly COOKED) white or brown rice and stir to combine.
• Remove the skillet from the heat. Cover the dish with 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese (or cheese of your choice) and IF you have an oven safe skillet, put the skillet into a oven preheated to 300 degrees. Bake for 5-8 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the dish is bubbling.
• Serve immediately!

ENJOY!!!!

And now, for the quote of the day: I need any excuse I can to add chocolate to my daily diet. 🙂