I hesitated before sharing these taquitos with you because they are barely a recipe, more like just some pantry and fridge staples that I threw together with minimal effort, but in these hectic-but-not-hectic days, it’s nice to have healthy dishes you can turn to without a lot of advance planning that still qualify as pure fun and what is more fun than food that gets all rolled up into a neat little cylinder?!!

And you can continue that fun by topping them with all sorts of stuff—here I’m showing them with a little salsa, but feel free to add sour cream, guacamole, hot sauce, tomatoes, scallions—whatever your fun-loving imagination can dream up!

The tortillas are filled with a simple black bean/onion/parsley/cheese mixture that comes together in a matter of minutes and is very customizable so feel free to toss in/sub whatever you do or don’t have on hand.

In fact, the only persnickety part about the whole thing, is that I fry each tortilla for a minute or two before filling and rolling them—it allows them to get that little char and softens them up too and I urge you not to skip this step, but of course you could just fill and roll them as is if you’re really in a rush.

So much flavor and crunch! Melty cheese, tender black beans with the crunch of a corn chip—what’s not to love?!! While these are baking, put on a pot of rice, toss together a green salad and bingo, dinner is done!

Yup, make it a Baked Black Bean Taquitos night, because if it’s one thing we need more of around here it’s fun!!

Baked Black Bean Taquitos

Makes about 12

Prep Time: 20 minutes; Bake Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

• 1 small white onion, diced (if it’s a large onion, just use half)

• Handful of parsley or cilantro, finely chopped

• 6-8 ounces cheddar cheese, grated (use the higher amount if you like these cheesier)

• Kosher salt and black pepper

• 12 small corn tortillas (I used the street size version)

• Canola oil

• Salsa, sour cream, hot sauce, avocado, etc for serving (optional)

The Recipe

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. In a medium bowl, mix together the beans, onion, parsley, cheese and a pinch or two of salt and pepper. Set aside. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.

2. Heat about 1 tablespoon of the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and quickly fry each tortilla for about 1 minute or two per side, just to get a little char on them and soften them up. Transfer to a plate.

3. Fill each tortilla with a few tablespoons of the bean mixture and roll up, placing them seam-side down in the prepared dish and bake for about 20-25 minutes, until cheese is melted and tortillas are golden brown and crispy.

Enjoy!