The Dinner Bar: Southwest-Style Loaded Potatoes

This is probably the easiest Dinner Bar yet.  And with the many prepared items now available in the produce aisle of most grocery stores, it may also be the fastest. Although it is considered vegetarian, there is plenty of protein in the cottage cheese, and the beans and corn together provide complimentary proteins.  You will need:

Protein:

• (See Grains and Legumes)
• (See Dairy)

Grains:

• (See Vegetables)

Legumes:

• Black Beans, canned

Vegetables:

• Russet Potatoes (about 1 per person)
• Corn, canned (also a grain)
• Green Onions, sliced
• Salsa

Fruit/Healthy Mono-unsaturated Fat:

• Avocado

Dairy:

• Cottage Cheese
• Mexican-blend shredded cheese

First, wash the potatoes, pierce them with a fork a few times, and wrap tightly with aluminum foil.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour, or until tender. Alternatively, choose microwaveable, pre-washed and shrink-wrapped potatoes to cut the usual time down to just 10-minutes.

In the meantime, open, drain, and rinse the black beans and corn.  Chop the green onions and slice the avocado.  Open the cottage cheese, shredded cheese, and salsa.  Choose a place for your Dinner Bar and lay out the spread in individual bowls.  It’s up to your family to choose what and how much they will load on their potatoes.

This is a great meal to fix when you’re pressed for time.  It’s also filling and packed full of nutritious fuel for active kids.  Keeping the ingredients on hand will make it even faster than any fast food excursion, not to mention healthier.  Sorry, no more drive-through excuses!

Contributing Author:  Cami Ruark