Much as I love to cook, there are days when even I just need the ease of a ready-made dinner. But I'm not a big fan of take-out or drive-thrus and eating out gets expensive very quickly. So sometimes I rely upon a nearly ready-made dinner, otherwise known as a "Dump 'n Stir."

Yeah, it doesn't sound very glamorous, I admit. However, much depends upon the quality of ingredients and what, exactly, is being dumped into the meal. If you start with cream of mushroom soup and dried onion soup mix, your meal will not be particularly stellar.

But if you use nutritious black beans and corn and tomatoes, you might just assuage any guilt for not spending more than 10 minutes making dinner, and nourish your soul while nourishing your body, as well.

Black Bean 'n' Rice Soup

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed
1 14-ounce can tomatoes with Mexican seasonings (cut up tomatoes into smaller pieces)
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup cooked rice
1 cup salsa
1-1/2 cups vegetable stock
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients; bring to a boil, then serve hot with sour cream, guacamole, crumbled nacho chips or anything else that strikes your fancy when you need sustenance and comfort on a cold winter day.

Mary Bilyeu has won or placed in more than 60 cooking contests and writes about her adventures as she tries to win prizes, feeds hungry teenagers and other loved ones, and generally just has fun in the kitchen. The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured next to the blog's title) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15, and is a wish for all her readers as they cook along with her ... may you always be happy here!

You can contact Mary at yentamary@gmail.com.