Conference turris::cooks

Consider a slow cooker (eg. Crock-Pot).  You throw the ingredients in in
the morning and come home to an already-cooked meal.  Your son can help with
the preparation (much of it can be done ahead of time and stored in the
refrigerator).  The cooker itself is inexpensive to buy and use.

					Steve

    I second the crock pot, but assemble the goodies the night before and
    refrigerate it.  then all you have to do is plug it in.  My mornings 
    are too hectic to do the assembly.
    
    Pasta salads and dishes are quick and nutritious.  we also hit the deli
    when we are in a hurry and do grilled sandwiches with whatever we pick
    up.  (Cheese and meat on special)  
    
    frozen boneless chicken breast are a little pricey, but stir firies are
    quick, and there are lots of other ten minute dishes you can do with
    them.
    
    meg

    there are many crockpot notes and replies that you might like to look through:
    
   120  NELSON::TELCOM       23-APR-1985     6  POT ROAST: Crock Pot Pot Roast
    
        DONJON::EYRING       14-OCT-1986  378.6  Crock pot bread
        SKYLRK::WILDE        20-NOV-1986  378.7  CROCK POT PORK SUPPER
        SKYLRK::WILDE        19-JAN-1987  378.13  crock pot beef
        PARSEC::PESENTI      30-JAN-1987  378.15  Crock pot soup
         BASEX::GEOFFREY      7-DEC-1991  378.26  Crock pot Lamb roast
         GLASS::HAIGHT       28-JUN-1988  378.29  Crock Potters Only!
        GAMETE::HAIGHT        5-JUL-1989  378.44  Crock Pot Bread Pan
        STRATA::STOOKER       1-MAY-1990  378.52  Pork Roast in Crock Pot.
        BAGELS::MONDOU        8-MAR-1988  605.28  Crock Pot Stew
        SOLVIT::TRUBACZ      12-MAR-1993  737.16  lentil stew in crock pot help needed
        BENTLY::WILDE        18-MAY-1989  896.26  crock pot recipes for 2
        THE780::WILDE        14-MAR-1988  1032.18  PORK CHOPS ALA CROCK POT
        FLMNGO::WHITCOMB     23-NOV-1993  1261.205  Juicer, Waffle Iron, Crock Pot for Sale
         CUPMK::DROWNS        8-AUG-1990  2547.12  CROCK POT
        DPDMAI::EASTERLING    5-SEP-1990  2602.17  CROCK POT FAST AND EASY
         POBOX::SCHWARTZINGE 23-AUG-1991  3113.19  Crock Pot Chicken w/Beer
    
    ed

    Quite often I cook several large meals on the weekend and use the 
    leftovers for Monday, Tuesday and possibly Wednesday's meals.  This
    last Sunday I made Senate Bean Soup and cornbread for dinner and
    there was enough soup leftover for soup, cornbread and
    salad on Monday and soup and burgers on Tuesday. 
    
    Senate Bean Soup also gets better as it sits in the refrigerator
    something about the ham and onion flavor blending together.  Other
    homemade soups that do well as leftovers are pea soup, ministrone
    and beef stew (which you can cook in your crockpot).
    
    I also made spaghetti sauce this weekend and put most of it in the
    freezer.  I find that sauce defrosts quickly (microwave or on the
    stove - low heat) and while that is heating you can be preparing
    the pasta and a salad.
    
    Other suggestions:
    
    o Ham steak, potatoes and a frozen vegetable is a quick meal.
    
    o Lasagana - made on Sunday and leftovers frozen.
    
    o Omelets (choose any filling you want) with Bagels can be a very
      satisfying evening meal even though it sounds like breakfast.
    
    o Prepare some chopped vegetables the night before for a stirfry the
      next evening.  To add meat to the stirfry slice a small steak or one 
      chicken breast very thin and add.  Stirfrys can extend meat a long
      ways because the bulk of the meal is the vegetables.  Use Basmati
      Rice with the stirfry as this takes less than 20 minutes to cook.
    
    There are several cookbooks on the market that have receipes for 
    meals in minutes they might be worth the investment.
    
    Have fun!
    
    Alexis
    

    One thing my husband and I have found is these new simmer sauces
    that are out by Cambells and some other folks.  All you do is brown the
    meat (chicken or beef), pour over the sauce and simmer for a little
    while.  It is usually less that 1/2 hr prep time and they can be served
    with rice or noodles for a pretty complete meal.  Quick and easy and
    they aren't half bad.
    
    \Caroline B.

    The simmer sauces are also great for the crockpot.  I have used
    Campbells chicken caccatore (sp) and the creamy broccoli.  I just 
    throw in some chicken parts (usually 3 thighs, three legs and three 
    wings) with the can of sauce.  Put it on low and when I get home 
    make a pot of rice/noodles and either salad or a vegetable and 
    within 1/2 an hour dinner is on the table.  
        
    Roberta                               

    Most have already said this but I have to seond the motion, especially
    since your son is becoming interested in cooking.  Cook ahead of time
    and freeze!
    
    I grew up as the oldest in a one-parent household and my mother and I
    would make our own "TV Dinners" ahead of time and freeze.  They're much
    more nutritious and less expensive then the store bought meals and it
    will allow you and your son to work together, say on a Saturday.  We
    would would cook the main entree and the starch (or whatever) ahead 
    and save the vegies to prepare fresh at meal time.
    
    Also, A really quick soup is as follows:
    
    2 cans of chicken broth (or vegetable broth if preferred)
    carrots, potatos, onions, broccoli, roma tomatos, etc.
    (Bits of chicken are OK to add as well, but no bones!)
    
    Cut the vegies up into large chunks.  Dump it all into a 6 quart pot,
    cover with the broth, add water if necessary to bring the liquid level
    up to the top of the vegies.  Throw in a bay leaf, some pepper corns
    and a clove of garlic and bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down and let
    it simmer until the vegies are _mush_.  Fish out the bay leaf and use a
    hand blender to puree the entire thing into a smooth, creamy soup.  Add
    a bit of non-fat milk or sour cream if you want to make it creamier. 
    Salt/season to taste and enjoy! 
    
    It stores/freezes well and tastes wonderful.  
    
    I like to use lots of carrots when I make it which, combined with 
    the tomatoes, gives you a wonderful orange color.
    
    MJ

Where is the recipe for Senate Bean Soup?

    senate bean soup 2585.9, Pasta Fazoulli :-)
    
    ed

The problem I have with "Simmer Sauces" and the like is that they are
loaded with salt.  Catering to modern tastes, I guess.

One "ready to use" product which I really like and keep finding new uses for
is Contadina's "Pasta Ready" canned tomatoes with olive oil and spices.
I use it for making pizza (with Boboli crusts, cheese and whatever other
toppings appeal), mixed in with pasta, etc.  I've also found an inexpensive
frozen vegetable mix (DeMoulas/Market Basket "New England Farm Mix") which
goes well with lots of different things.

				Steve

>> The problem I have with "Simmer Sauces" and the like is that they are
>> loaded with salt.  Catering to modern tastes, I guess.

And loaded with sugar/corn syrup/high frutose corn syrup....and onions.
For a person that needs to watch for sugar and onions (allergic to onions),
these simmer sauces are killers.

Judy

   in response to everyone so far :

 (1) I'll look in more detail at some of the crockpot recipes in here.  I
     do have and have used (wintertime especially) the crockpot, but my
     son isn't a big lover of "stew" type meals yet (hopefully this will
     change just like his non-love of fish has !!!)......

 (2) same issue with the tomato-based simmer sauces - when I make pasta
     with sauce, he'll generally have very little if any sauce - however,
     if I make Amer.Chop Suey, it's ok - so I'll have to look at this
     some more

 (3) re : batch cooking on the weekends - we do that sometimes, but often
     our weekends are busy with scouting activities, shopping, school and
     housework, etc..  When I can, I do generally make a "large" Sunday
     dinner and we have that again later in the week once or twice, but I
     generally *don't* have time to batchcook 2 or 3 or more meals on one
     weekend......

 Really what I'm looking for are dishes that are easy/quick to make when
 I get home OR something that can be put together in the morning and my
 son & the sitter can put it on to cook/bake later in the afternoon.  Hopefully
 I'll find some time to look at more ideas in this file later this weekend.
 In the meantime, thanks for the ideas so far and keep 'em coming !!!!

  Debbi

    OK, something quicker?  I would suggest that you pick up one of the
    many cookbooks that are out designed for the busy professional/single
    parent, etc.  They will probably have lots of ideas for what you're
    looking for.
    
    Del Monte and similar companies have recently put out many different
    low salt/fat, "pasta ready" canned products and it only takes 10 minutes 
    to cook pasta, so I find I do a lot of that.  Also, try this:
    
    1 package bowtie pasta
    1 large can white chunk tuna in water
    freshly grated romano cheese
    black pepper
    
    Cook the pasta, drain
    Open the tuna, rinse, drain
    
    Mix pasta and tuna in a large bowl with the romano cheese and black pepper
    
    This is good hot or cold and is super easy and simple.
    
    MJ

    Try boneless, skinless chicken breast....marinate for about ten minutes
    in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil with a cut up clove of garlic,
    then coat with bread crumbs (for added flavor I toss some shredded
    cheese in with the crumbs) and put in a baking pan.  Drizzle with the
    oil the chicken marinated in and bake in 375 degree oven for about 30
    minutes.  Once chicken is in the oven, start a pot of rice/noodles.
    I usually grate up a couple of carrots, sprinkle some water on with a 
    little bit of seasoned salt cover with saran wrap and microwave for about 
    a minute or two (just so it's hot and nicely steamed).
    
    Read the back of the campbell soup can, especially the cream of ?????,
    they usually have quick and easy dishes also check out the Lipton
    recipe secrets.......
    
    Roberta

Chinese stir-fry dishes cook up in a few minutes, once you get 
everything cut up.  These days, you can buy meat and veggies already 
pre-cut for stir-frying, if you don't have the time to do it 
yourself.

--PSW

    also check out note 39: "Quick, Easy, Cheap"
    
    
    
    Pam

    Yes, Note 39 had a lot of good ideas.  When my daughter was much
    younger and wanted to help prepare dinners, I let her make the chicken
    described in 39.15.  We left out the butter altogether, used only 1/2
    of the Lipton Onion Soup, and turned the chicken about half way through
    the cooking process.
    
    It takes only a few minutes to assemble and I would call her about 45
    minutes before I expected to get home.  When I got home, all I had to
    do was make a salad or vegetable and dinner was ready.
    
    Carolyn                                               

    Two of my favorite easy meals:
    
    Chicken Mozzarella
    ==================
    
    Take boneless chicken, put in casserole dish (maybe 1 lb)
    Top with 1 32 oz jar favorite spaghetti sauce and then top with
    6 oz or so mozzarella cheese.  Bake about 1/2 hour.  Serve over
    pasta.  This is so easy that your son could easily make it!
    
    
    Chicken smothered with Vegetables
    =================================
    
    This one has alot of variations.
    
    Take 1 lb chicken, cut into large chunks.  Put into large casserole.
    
    Add various vegetables... for example
        green pepper in large chunks
        onions, also cut large
        halved mushrooms
        chunks of zuchinni or summer squash
        sliced celery
        green beans
        corn, kidney beans
        artichoke hearts
    
    Top with some sort of tomato sauce... for example
        favorite pasta sauce
        salsa
        stewed tomatoes
        plain, canned, whole tomatoes (add some spices if doing this such
                  as mexican or cajun spices)
        delmonte pasta ready tomatoes
    
    You could top with cheese if desired... for example
        feta cheese
        parmesan cheese
        mozzarella
        cheddar cheese
    
    Bake 1/2 hour or until chicken is cooked and serve over rice or pasta.
    
    
    This turns out different everytime I make it.  Last night I did
    chicken, green peppers, onions, celery, 4 cheese Delmonte pasta ready 
    canned tomatoes with 1 can whole tomatoes too, served over egg noodles.
    
    For a mexican twist, I might do corn, green peppers, onions, and kidney
    beans with salsa.
    
    Another good one I like is chicken, onions, marinated artichoke hearts,
    stewed tomato and some feta cheese.  I usually ad some crushed red
    pepper to this and drain off the marinade and replace it with vinegar.
    
    Every one of these is so different that you can use this recipe every
    week and not get bored with it! 
    
    Karen

    Try preparations the night before. many meals such as stews and such
    are better when reheated. After the kids go to bed, make a stew or
    something and refigerate. Then you only need reheat it and make some
    noodles or rice to spoon it over. Alternatively you can do some
    preparation for the following night's dinner by precutting ingredients
    and refrigerating them. The next night you take them out of the fridge
    and finish preparations. (Works well for many stir fry ingredients.)
    The advantage here is that you save time by not having to cut AND
    prepare at once. You save money by not buying already cut ingredients,
    which are invariably more expensive and usually not as good.
    
     The Doctah

    One thing I do that  keeps the cost down for chicken is to buy
    2 or 3 whole frozen chickens - usually about 2.50 each as opposed
    to 4 or 5 dollars for 4 breasts.  I bring them home and clean
    and cut them.  I put the wings all together for making buffalo
    wings, put the thighs together for making soup, put the drumsticks
    together for frying and bone the breasts to use for boneless breast
    recipes.  Then I put them all in the freezer and take out the
    pieces that I need.
    
    Pam

Pasta!

I have had (for the past 30 years!)  Macaroni and meatballs with a salad twice a
week (Sunday and Wednesday, or course!).  This is in the form of spaghetti,
ziti, rigatoni, rotini, shells,...  Buy lots in advance and let your son choose
the type for dinner each time.  Make sauce and meatballs in a large lobster pot
and freeze in small weekly containers (for two meals each).  Broil some sausages
and add to the pot for some variety.  Pieces of pork are excellent, too!

This way, I make sauce only one every couple of months.

Another favorite that is very quick and delicious is Spaghetti and Clam Sauce.
I prefer Progresso's White Clam Sauce, (since I have so much red sauce other 
nights).   Just boil the spaghetti, and simmer the sauce is a small sauce pan.
Pour over spaghetti in a bowl, and voila!  Add a salad.  Sprinkle grated cheese
on spaghetti, too.  This is a favorite Friday night quick meal!  (or any time
we're in a hurry)

I second the note about buying chicken in bulk, separating it, and freezing it.

I buy split breasts in the family pack.  When I go to cook a breast or two, if
I bone it, (easy once you do it a couple of times), to stir fry quick meals,
(veggies take the most time here)... I simmer the bones in a pan of water for
soup the next night (usually while we eat) (with extra carrots and celery added
to the pan before or after dinner).  Let this simmer 2-3 hours (if mostly
bones), and refridgerate or freeze later in the evening.  Add a small breast of
chicken or leave some on the bone if you want chicken for the soup.  The next
day, cook 1/2 cup 'acini de pepe' soup mac for 5-10 min. and add to reheated
soup right before serving.

A big bowl of soup (with meat, veggies, and macaroni) and salad is another
complete, delicious, and healthy meal!

Have fun!

Lauren

    I may have read this in another note in the conference, but I've found
    that if I buy fewer small chickens (bulk) but do buy bigger chickens
    you really get more value.  For example, if you buy 4 chickens you are 
    paying for the bones four times -- if you buy 2 big chickens you are
    getting much more meat -- bigger breasts -- and only paying for the bones 
    twice.
    
    Stir fry is so economical -- and you can buy the vegetables that are
    most plentiful to use.  The sauces, if any, are usually very simple and
    inexpensive, like chicken stock (canned), with corn starch, some soy
    sauce.
    
    When I faced this problem years ago, time dependent, inexpensive, etc.
    I did a pot-of-something every week-end like beans, stew, chicken soup.
    During the week at least twice I did something with the
    pot-of-something.  Chicken soup quickly turns into a second meal when
    you make it chicken pot pie (frozen pie crusts) with the addition of a few 
    more veggies and a thickener -- same with beef pot pies out of stew. So
    each pot-of-something was 3 meals -- once as I cooked it, once as
    left-overs, and once turned into something else.
    
    Many dinners were 'breakfast' -- waffles, pancakes, left over corned
    beef (a pot-of-something), poached eggs, etc.  I still do this.
    
    I made up dozens of frozen hamburger patties, salmon patties, etc. and
    would put them in a piece of aluminum foil and freeze them.  I would
    then slice veggies into another piece of foil- and bake for 30 minutes
    or so.  The hamburger  would thaw and cook, the veggies would steam.
    Served with a side dish of  rice this was excellent.
    
    There are a series of 'quick' cookbooks that I would recommend.  They
    are "Mr. Food Cooks xxx" where xxx may be Italian, Chicken, etc.  The
    recipes are all on one page, the ingredients often are right on your
    shelves.  Most of the prep time is less than 10 minutes with short
    cooking times. I bought 3 or 4 of these for my grown daughter -- she said
    she uses them often.
    
    Boy this brought back memories!
    

    A really easy, quick, and inexpensive meal that my kids like is Chunky
    Chicken (Vegetable) Soup over rice.  River Rice takes 25 minutes and the
    soup only takes about 10 to heat.  The soup is thick enough that it
    almost makes a gravy and the kids can make it (ages 12 and 16) if they
    have to.
    
    They also like macaroni and cheese with browned hamburg mixed in.
    (yuck.)
    
    They love Shepherd's Pie, but it takes a little longer to make by the
    time you brown the hamburg, and mash the potatoes.
    
    Another favorite is stuffed peppers.  While I'm steaming the peppers,
    I cook up some River Rice, brown some hamburg and mix them together with
    some jar spaghetti sauce (my kids like Classico Tomato and Basil).
    Sometimes I top them with shredded cheddar cheese and then just bake
    for 20 minutes or so.
    
    Well hope this helps.
    
    Noranne
    
    brown hamburg and cook up some rick
    
    

    ... and then there's Pseudo-Stuffed Peppers.  Instead of cleaning,
    steaming and filling the pepper cases, just add frozen chopped green
    pepper to the filling glop.
    
    							Ann B.

   well,  we'll see how this week goes - I went grocery shopping over the 
   weekend - made a casserole of Shepard's Pie last night for supper - have
   boneless chicken breasts (large package) waiting to be separated/wrapped/
   frozen (minus tonight's dinner, of course) into serving portions for other
   meals - picked up rice/noodle mixes along with frozen veggies and a couple
   of the simmer-sauces to try (one for chicken, one for beef)........

   of course, I'm starting all this at THE most hectic time of the year to
   boot !!!!!!  Won't be devastated if it's a disaster trying new recipes/
   ideas, but definitely don't want to have to resort to take-out (Xmas budget
   is stretched enough !!!)!!!!!

   Thanks for the ideas; more are always welcome !
   Debbi

    
    
    thanks everyone. those recipes sound great. I'm gonna try some.
    
    
    
    		Bob R.