Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Last Minute Meal

Lately, I seem to be running perpetually short on time. I keep finding myself at about 3:30 without a concrete plan for dinner and very little prep work done. Five minutes later my sons get off the bus, the dog needs to run for half an hour and there's a pile of book bags and papers on the kitchen table. Its not the best time for me to ponder what culinary delight I can pull together.

Last night, I checked the freezer/cupboard inventory clip board and made a quick plan. I know this sounds anal but the clip board is a huge time saver. I grabbed a container of split pea soup from the freezer, a quart of canned carrots from the cupboard and an arm load of potatoes from the cabinet. I certainly wasn't in the mood for split pea soup and I was pretty sure no one else would be either so I needed a treat to make it fun, that's where the potatoes came in. I scrubbed the potatoes and cut them into strips to make French fries. The carrots and split pea soup went into a pot, along with some leftover bulgur. No one complained about the soup because they were too busy eating the French fries! We ended the meal with popcorn which, despite its simplicity, everyone loves.

4 comments:

Harmonia said...

Thanks for the tips and ideas! Also, thanks for the compliments and answer to my questions on my post earlier today. I appreciate it.

Any ideas for Seitan or Polenta?

Isil Simsek said...

Hi,
I found your blog through Harmonia's links.
I will be visiting this blog.
Isil

Barbara said...

Thanks for the margarine suggestion. I couldn't find Soy Garden, but I did a little research and bought (from the same company) Whipped Organic Earth Balance. My partner likes it and it's taste so it's a go!

So far, we've switched margarines, ketchup, salad dressings and pastas to something more healthy.

Barbara

Katie said...

Harmonia,
I have a crock pot sietan recipe that we enjoy. I'll post it soon. Polenta always gets a thumbs down from my hubby and kids so I don't have any ideas to share on that one.

Welcome Isil, glad to have you along for the ride.

Barbara,
Soy Garden can be tricky to find. Don't you just feel like a detective sometimes??