Hectic Holiday Menu Special # 1: Beef/Bean Burrito w/sautéed Peppers & Onions

            My daughter Candace and I went to the mall today to find an outfit for her to wear to her company Christmas party.  Often these shopping trips do not end as nicely as they start, but today was a totally different story. We arrived at the mall an hour before normal closing hours.  The first store we hit had some nice sales, but not the right size dresses.  Remembering that Thanksgiving had just passed and now the new Christmas hours have begun, we decided to take a walk to the other end of the mall, hitting some of the other large anchor stores.  While heading to the other stores we realized that the smaller stores were closing up.  I looked at Candace and told her not to worry; the big stores will stay open.  We got to Macy’s and she walked up to the first sales person in the store to ask about extended hours.  Sure enough, this store was open until 9:00; we had at least three hours.  We took a tour around the store in search of the perfect dress for the party, but none was found.  Off to the next store, Kohl’s.  This store seemed to be catering to everything but formal Christmas dresses for parties, so off we went to JC Penny’s.  As we walked into the store we joked around with the sales associates about the extended hours.  They told us that they were open until 12:00.  “Jackpot!” We had almost the entire store to ourselves, with up to six hours to shop; it was so peaceful.  It was hard to believe that just two days earlier the store was jam packed with crazy Black Friday shoppers.  Candace and I found the dress department and were pleased to find that most of the dresses were on sale.  After trying on a handful of dresses, Candace settled on one that was both sexy and comfortable.  Nowadays that is a rare combination.  In addition to the perfect dress, she found the greatest pair of stilettos, also on sale, of course.   As we walked out of the store, she looked at me and declared that the dress and shoes cost as no more than just a dress in one of the other stores.

           

Hectic Holiday Menu Special # 1:  Beef/Bean Burrito w/sautéed Peppers & Onions

Two pounds of Ground beef browned in a frying pan.  Add ¼ cup taco seasoning and ¼ cup wait  about 5 min, add two cans of refried beans to the meat and stir until completely mixed together.  Slice up green peppers, fresh mushrooms and onion and fry them in a different frying pan until they are tender.  Take a flour tortilla and add the meat and bean mixture, pepper mushroom mixture, grate cheese, add sour cream and salsa.  Roll and eat.