Recipe (Mess)ipe

Attention, world! I have an announcement! I am not a cook. That is all.

It's well known in my family that I am not the greatest of cooks. There are a couple of things I can make, only one thing I can make well, (at least that's what I've been told) (they could have been lying..) and the rest of the cooking I leave to John.

However, I watched my father-in-law make a pot roast one day and it just involved a lot of dumping things into a pot and letting it sit on the stove top. Huh. Okay, so you drop the roast in, add a can of diced tomatoes, a can of tomato paste, sauce, water, and seasonings and then just leave it there for a couple of hours. And it cooks itself? With minimal involvement on my behalf? Really. I must try this.

So I did. And John liked it! And Sprite ate it! No one died! And it was good. I started making this meal every weekend and got a little more adventurous. I made mashed potatoes, from scratch! That's right, this "from a box"ed in kitchen wrecking ball who believed in the God of Freeze Dried Potato Flakes actually diverted from tradition and went the extra step. Why? Eh, I wanted lumps. But it worked! And it was good.

John became inspired by my increased interest in the culinary world and vowed to get us a good set of pots and pans. The ones we had were awful. Food stuck to them incessantly. We tried olive oil, butter spray, prayer, nothing worked. So, John came home one day with a brand spanking new set of pots and pans, the same day that I was making a pot roast for dinner, for my parents, who were in town visiting, and had heard about how I could rock a roast. Sense the foreboding? No? FOREBODING! (Just looking out for you.)

My dad and I had stayed home working on the baseboards in our family room since John and I would like to look at a color on the wall. (Primer does not constitute a color. It's true. I checked.) John and my mother took Sprite out for the day and around 3:30, I took a break from helping my dad (Oh, he took the lead in this one. I had to let him. We're so alike, we would have been butting heads. And the baseboards would never have gotten done. Mom, please don't comment on this.) (Ah! Fingers off the comment link! I see you!) and prepped the pot roast where it then sat on the stove basking in the heat of it's own sauna.

Some time around 4:30, John and Mom and the kid arrived home and John was just SO EXCITED about the new pots he had bought. I ooh'ed and ah'ed appropriately and then meandered off to find Sprite who was trying to corner Harry. (Poor dog. But that's another post entirely.)

While I was gone, (FOREBODING!) John decided he just HAD to try out one of the new pots. He dumped the contents of the pot roast from the old pot to the new pot and settled it back into the same spot it had occupied earlier. I would have been none the wiser about his shenanigans if I hadn't come back to the kitchen and seen red spots all over my just cleaned counter. (I'm anal. You know.)

I looked at the mess and then at the stove. The new pot? He transferred dinner from the old pot which I would not have had to clean after dinner and just toss out into the new pot which I was now going to HAVE to clean after dinner? I won't lie to you. (You look great today, by the way. Honest!) I was upset.

I took a deep breath, let it go, and started preparing the rest of the meal. When the timer sounded, (FOREBODING!) I lifted the lid on the pot and looked inside. Um, no, it wasn't supposed to look like a gloppy greasy mess. I took one of the flanks out of the pot and propped it on a plate where I promptly began slicing. Stringy, slimy pieces came off one by one.

Dinner was ruined. And for once, it wasn't my fault.

We had a blow out, right there in the kitchen in front of my parents, whom I had to send out for a rotisserie chicken while I sat and stewed in my own juices the rest of the night. (I imagine I would have been very tender.)

Since that disastrous day, I have been reluctant to cook. Especially since last night, when John brought home a fire extinguisher and made a big deal about where to stow it, "just in case". (Okay, now he's just being a schmuck.) (I understand that every kitchen should have a fire extinguisher and even Julia Child could have caused a couple of 3 alarm blazes in her day, but John's timing? Very schmucky.)

Now, of course, due to the economy being what it is (Um, quick tangent, can we send the economy to Time Out? Cuz it's been a BAD BAD BOY!), we are eating more meals at home and trying to stay away from the restaurant circuit. So, I am on the look out for some recipes, hopefully healthy ones, that are easy to make, and don't require much, you know, involvement. From me. In fact, let's assume that John will make the meals. All the meals.

I'm asking for your easiest time saving recipes. What is your go-to for when you come home and need to get something on the table in under 30 minutes? I'm not looking for Rachael Ray, I know where she is. (In syndication, duh.) I'm not looking for fillet mignon either. I'm looking for a reliable (somewhat healthy) alternative to canned soup. Which is probably what we're eating tonight since I forgot to bring down the chicken from the freezer.

Whatcha got?

Comments

[Laurie]

Do you have a crock pot? If not, get one. For a simple veggie chili:
one can diced tomatoes
16 oz Hunt's tomato sauce
1 can Mexicorn
2 cans of kidney, pinto or even black beans (mix and match!)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 envelope Taco seasoning
chili powder, to taste

In the morning, dump everything into crock pot, give it a quick stir, turn on high and it'll be ready when you get home.

If you have extra time and you want some meat in the chili, you can cook up some ground beef or ground turkey when you get home and just add it to the pot.

If I keep the spiciness down, even my kids like this...top with some grated cheese and they're good to go.
Good luck!

[Rebecca]

You need to check out this blog...
http://bradleykitchen.blogspot.com/

She has some good recipes that even I can do. I'm not the best cook, but am improving. Her bean soup she posted a few weeks ago is soooo easy, soooo healthy, and sooooooo delicious!

Happy cooking!!!

[Katie]

I'm not really a cook either, well I might be but the in-laws always have to cook or tell me how to cook, so I just don't cook in their house, too much hassle.

Here's my Spin on wishes...

http://parentalsupervision.blogspot.com/2008/09/i-wish-i-may-i-wish-i-might.html

And here's one of our favorite desserts...

http://parentalsupervision.blogspot.com/2008/09/something-yummy.html

[tifRN]

chicken pot pie (sort of). can of cream of mushroom soup, can of cream of celery soup. bags of whatever frozen veggies you feel like. couple of chicken breasts, we pan broil ours (listen to me, it sounds like i know what the hell i'm talking about! write that down!) and chunk em up and throw em in, simmer until boiling slowly. keep stirring or it'll burn to the bottom. add copious amounts of pepper if you are anything like me. please to enjoy.
oh and you can pour the whole mess in a ready made pie shell and cook in the oven til it browns, too, if you want a crust.

[Sprite's Keeper]

Oh, my mouth is watering already! And it's not even time for my morning snack! Argh!

[Sam (The Edge Of Insanity)]

Check out Allrecipes.com! They're great, I find new recipes all the time. They have a section "30 Minutes Or Less" and it's nice because recipes are rated so you can read the reviews to see if it's something you want to try out or not.
Good luck!

[Arwen]

http://desertspor.blogspot.com/2007/10/pineapple-chicken-fajitas.html

[Krystal]

I have a few for you but I will send them later as I have an appointment to go to in about 10 minutes and need to make my desk look like I actually have been doing some work this morning! :-P

[HeatherPride]

I used to be a great cook but now with a full-time job and two kids I have zero energy or patience for it anymore. I pretty much don't cook anything without assistance from a box or the frozen section! I will have to check out some of those links up there, though!

(and the kitchen mess and resulting dinner disaster???? You handled it much better than I would have!!)

[Lisa @ Boondock Ramblings]

Crock pots are awesome, like the others who commented said ... er... wrote.

I hate cooking because I just stink at it and Hubby never eats it. I go to a bunch of trouble and he eats a baloney sandwich. Ah. Thanks a lot. Jerk.

I would have been so ticked at John had he done that to me and the fire extinguisher thing? Let him know he can store it on the front porch so when you throw all his crap on the front lawn and set it on fire he'll have something to put the fire out with.

[Deemarie]

I don't cook much. And when I do, it's usually a mess. One thing we love to do is get a rotisserie chicken, cut it up and throw it on lettuce, cheese, etc. for a great salad. It's very quick and not too pricey. We've used a bit of buffalo sauce too for a nice kick!

[bessie.viola]

Sprite! Do you have a Crock Pot? Get thee a Crock Pot! Toss the stuff in at the beginning of the day, and then when you get home - voila! Dinner! It's fabulous.

I digress, though - my go-to for quick dinner would be beef stroganoff. It's fast, easy and filling. This recipe is my favorite - and the blog itself has a TON of great stuff!

http://kellycooksandotheramazingfeats.blogspot.com/2008/09/skillet-beef-stroganoff.html

[Sprite's Keeper]

So far so great, and I am now wanting lunch time to be here. Does anyone else have the same issues with crock pots? I have one, but I have this thing about leaving heating elements plugged in while no one's home and the what-if's and fire hazards and what not. If it's just me, then give me a virtual slap upside the head, but I've always wondered about crock pot related fires.

[Sprite's Keeper]

Oh, and the veggie chili? Totally trying it this weekend!

[Casey]

I'm scared to use crock pots when we're not home too but I've done it without a problem. I put it on top of the stove so hopefully it wouldn't burn much if it did catch on fire.
We use ours about once a month, we get a roast, cut up some carrots and potatoes and let it cook all day. It's yum!
We make Thai a lot, we get the Archer Farms Thai sauce (from Target), use ramen noodles without the seasoning and get the fresh stir fry veggies from the produce aisle at Publix. Then we cook up chicken with the veggies in a skillet then mix the sauce and noodles in. Yum.
We do burrito night once every few weeks and get the Chili cheese queso from the chips aisle at the store.
We also grill a bunch of chicken at the beginning of the week and just make sides to go with it when it's time to eat.
PapaJohns.com is the answer to everything.
I'm like you, I don't cook much. Jamie does all the cooking around here and that's fine by me!

[Krystal]

I fear a crock pot therefore I do not have one.

Quick recipe - vegetable lasagna

1 box of lasagna pasta
3 bags of your favorite veggies in those ready to microwave pouches
olive oil
ricotta cheese
your fave pasta sauce
orgegano & basil
shredded cheese (your choice)

* Boil pasta while you microwave/steam your veggies
* mix ricota cheese with basil and orgegano
*pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
*once pasta done and veggies down, layer them out in your own configuration - do not for get to add the sauce and ricotta cheese to your layers!!!
*once all layers are done, top off with one more bit of sauce and then lots of shredded cheese!!!
*pop in the oven for about 15 minutes and you're set!

[Laurie]

Like Casey, I put the crock pot on top of the stove. ANd I've never heard about crock pot fires...

[jenboglass (steenkybee)]

Okay. So I haven't got through this post yet. I couldn't stand it anymore. I just had to jump down and say that I'm totally nervous for you. I'll go back and read the rest then comment properly. That's all.

[jenboglass (steenkybee)]

Oh sister. I'm not a good cook. My husband's the king of cooking. I'll ask him. How healthy do you guys eat.

Also, don't compare yourself to Julia. She was not only a wonderful cook, but she was just revealed as a spy. No one expects us gals today to keep up with that. As always, you are awesome!

[anna]

Oh man! I am giggling at the fire extinguisher, but yeah, I would have been so angry!

I hate cooking, too. Sometimes I will make turkey sloppy joes--if you drain off the fat it's not too bad of a meal. Just steam some broccoli or whatever.

Also, take two slices of white bread and 1/3 C of pecorino romano cheese (or just plain parmesan), put in food processor and blend until rough crumb base forms. Put on top of chicken breast and bake until done (like 30 minutes with bone, 20 or so without).

[Arwen]

We like to do one similar to Casey's. I slice up and saute either steak or chicken, add in some sauce (usually teriyaki or peanut sauce). Add some vegetables (premixed frozen veggies work well). I cook up the Ramen noodles, and I do add the seasoning. Drain the noodles and add meat and veggies.

[Lee Ann]

Jen,I would be more than happy to share recipes with my sister! :)Most of the recipes I have are healthly. If you want I could email you them.

[Sprite's Keeper]

Hi Jenboglass! (I totally love that link name!)Yes, we like to stay healthy during the week, but if you have some guilty pleasure, I'll be more than happy to make John cook it up during our cheat night.
Hi Lee, send the recipes or never see your niece again! Mwa ha ha! (Oh, sorry. That came out of nowhere...)

[Deemarie]

Spin Cycle! This is fun!! :)

[kristina]

You sound like me in the kitchen!