Nachos

Last night was what my mother would call "Potpourri Night" at our house. We had a fridge full of leftovers to eat up, so our evening meal consisted of a little of this and a little of that. The main event for my husband and his pal, Ryan, was a hearty pile of nachos, the perfect disguise for leftover odds and ends.

The nacho building went a something like this:

Mostly crunched tortilla chips made up the ideal base layer.

Refried beans? Definitely.

Leftover rotisserie chicken found a new life when I added a few shakes of chili powder.

A hearty pile of shredded cheddar was the crowning jewel.

And after the house was filled with the fragrant perfume of nachos straight from the oven, a dollop of sour cream and salsa really gilded the lily.

As you can tell, these nachos were designed to use up the leftovers in our fridge. But please customize them to your palate and pantry. You've got a can of black beans languishing on your shelf? Just mash them up with a fork and, if your feeling wild, throw in a dash of cumin and chili powder, and substitute black bean for the refried beans. Say you've got a hunk of pot roast a day away from the compost pile. That's a perfect stand-in for the chicken if you shred it up into bite-sized bits. Just use what you have on hand, and I bet you'll be pleasantly surprised with the delicious results.

Chicken and Bean Nachos
Serves: 2-3 hungry dudes

2 cups shredded or cubed chicken
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup refried beans
1/4 cup sour cream, plus extra for serving
6 cups tortilla chips
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Salsa, for serving

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine chicken and chili powder. Heat in the microwave until warmed through, about 2 minutes on medium-high.

In a separate bowl, stir together refried beans and sour cream. Heat in the microwave until warmed through, about 2 minutes on high.

In a baking dish (mine was 9" square), layer half the chips. Spoon half the beans and half the chicken over the chips. Sprinkle with half the cheese.

Repeat with remaining chips, beans, chicken, and cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until everything is warmed through and cheese is melted. Serve with extra sour cream and salsa.

Note: If you don't want to warm up the chicken and the beans in the microwave, just bake it longer in the oven to ensure everything is warmed all the way through.