5-minute meals?
Does anyone have any great ideas for quick and easy meals which can be made in about five minutes or less? I can currently only stand to be in the kitchen to do food prep for about 2 minutes or so at a time but am hoping I can slowly get back into making meals for my family as I am tired of resorting to canned soup and carry-out. Any super simple ideas would be much appreciated.
posted by Crystal Paine at 7:20 AM
42 Comments:
Crystal,
A favorite in our house is a really simple and quick chicken and wild rice casserole. It involves conveience foods and tastes yummy!!
Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole
1 rotisserie chicken
1-2 bags microwavable wild rice (Uncle Ben's is my choice)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup chopped broccoli
milk
Shred 1.5 to 2 cups chicken. Cook rice in microwave.
Combine all ingreadients in 8x8 baking dish. Add enough milk to make creamy but not sloshy.
Bake at 350F for about 30 minutes.
This takes 5-10 minutes to put together, depending on if you have helpers in the kitchen. :)
Hope this helps!
Blessings,
Mrs. W
Crystal, microwave 2 eggs whites mixed with parmesan or cubed chees in a glass on high for two minutes, and you will have a high-protein instant souffle. I serve these little souffles with a tossed green salad and toast to friends for lunch when I have company and am in a rush.
Hang in there. You are in my prayers.
Mexican Scrambled Eggs
eggs (plus some milk if you like & butter for the skillet)
salsa
shredded cheddar cheese
Scramble some eggs however you usually do. Top with bottled salsa and shredded cheddar cheese.
Before you start, begin heating up some canned corn and canned black beans or refried beans for sides.
Warm up some tortillas in the microwave for another side.
Crystal, if you have family or friends nearby that have asked you what they can do to help out, it might be good to ask them if they would cook up some meat for you and put it in meal sized freezer bags to keep on hand. I found that handling raw meat and the smell of cooking it really did me in, but I could work with cooked meat for short periods of time. You could buy the meat and then take it to someone to cook for you to keep the smells out of your kitchen, and then you could just thaw a bag for dinners like the casserole Mrs. W suggested. There are a lot of fast things to do with shredded chicken or cooked ground beef. I have a quick recipe that I make a lot, http://catherinewheels78.blogspot.com/2006/10/go-to-sauce.html
You can also just put shredded chicken cold in a big green salad, or have some of your ground beef as taco meat on a salad with other taco salad type fixings. For me, cold salads were often more palatable than hot food. And the crock pot was definitely out, because it made the house smell like food all day!
I hope that your sickness subsides soon!
If your morning sickness can handle chili, this is super fast because most of it comes out of cans!
A staple around here ... I always have the ingredients for this on hand during the Fall/Winter.
1 lb. ground beef (I usually use ground turkey)
1 lg. Onion chopped
1 can refried beans
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can chili beef soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup
2 cans Rotel tomatoes
Brown ground meat and onion. Add soups, refried beans and tomatoes. Simmer for 1 hour. This is best cooked in a slow cooker as it is easy to scorch. You may adjust the soup to your liking, adding only 1 can of tomatoes if you like it spicy or just 1 can or Rotel tomatoes if you like it mild. You may need to add a little water if it becomes to thick.
This recipe can easily be made vegetarian by substituting veggie meat for the beef, and vegetarian refried beans and chili. Serve with tortilla chips, fritos, sprinkle cheese over it, etc.
Here's a favorite at our house. It's just as easy to make 2 as 1, so I always make one for the freezer as well.
Mom Mc's King Ranch Casserole
2 tuna size cans of chicken, drained (about 2 cups shredded chicken)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup salsa (add more if you wish it hotter) - I've also used rotel tomatoes
1 bag tortilla chips
1 lb. grated cheese
In a sauce pan, mix together the chicken, soups and salsa. Heat throughly. In a casserole dish, place a layer of crushed chips, 1/2 chicken mixture. Top with more crushed chips and 1/2 cheese. Pour in remaining 1/2 chicken mixture and top with a final layer of crushed chips and remaining 1/2 of cheese. Microwave for 3 minutes or place in 350° oven until cheese melts.
When I make one for the freezer, I just double or triple the recipe and make them in an assembly line. It really doesn't take much extra time to make extras of this yummy meal.
BTW, my husband swears he married me just for this recipe! :0)
Throw some boneless pork chops in the crockpot. Dump a can of chicken and rice soup on top and add some sliced onions. Cook all day on low. Serve over rice.
Uh oh...I just saw someone say they couldn't stand the crockpot because the house smelled like food all day. YMMV!
I love to raid my freezer when I'm in a hurry or not feeling well.
Frozen bags of stir-fry vegetables cook up quickly and are delicious.
For my carnivorous husband (claims he's allergic to green LOL) I put some Asian Boubon chicken in the oven on a cookie sheet, you only have to stir it once.
A cup or two of rice in the microwave, and voila! Delicious and nutritious!
Frozen pizza is quick and easy too. We like DiGiorno, Freschetta or the Sam's Club brand.
My last freezer favorite is really more of an addition. My kids really enjoy the Ramen style noodle soups...so to help with the nutrition factor, we don't add quite the whole packet of seasoning, to avoid some of the sodium, and when it's cooked, frequently we stir in frozen peas, corn, etc. instead of ice cubes to cool it down. HTH!
Crystal,
Here is a five minute recipe for you, it's not the healthiest but better than take out.
Easy Chicken Quesadillas
Flour Tortillas
salsa- any brand
shredded cheese
cooked chicken- or canned chicken
sour cream -optional
In heated frying pan place a tortilla add some chicken, cheese and salsa, not too much. When torilla gets crisp fold in half, remove, cut and eat. Dip in sour cream if you wish. If you get a couple of pans going it will be no more than 5 minutes.
I just made it past the first trimester "survival" mode myself. Best wishes, Esther
My husband and I have subscribed to a community-supported-agriculture produce program and it has amazingly made meal preparation a lot more easy and quick. We spend about $20 every other week, and the meals almost make themselves. You can roast vegetables, which takes about a 5 min prep, and then run away from the kitchen while they cook. That together with a rotisserie chicken makes an excellent meal.
Crystal,
You won't get much easier than this.
Frozen chicken breast
half an onion
carrots sliced
potatoes cubed large,peeled or not
olive oil
Place frozen chicken in an oven proof baking dish. Add onion,carrots and potatoes. Drizzle olive oil over top. Salt and pepper. Cover with lid or tight foil.
Bake covered in a 350*-375* oven until chicken is done. (30 min or so start checking)
The frozen chicken adds enough liquid as it cooks. Do not add any. This is a simple and easy to eat dish. We dip our chicken in ranch or mayo for a little more flavor.
Enjoy!
Lenni
I have a lot of crock pot meals that take 5 min .or less to prep??? Or do you want total cooking time. Take two chicken breast ( frozen is fine) a can of cream soup. Cook on low till chicken is tender and falls apart add i can of peas or 1/2 a bag of frozen . Then put it on top of refrigerated rolls.
We like sandwich rollups made with flour tortillas: ham, cheese, tomatoes, spinach all rolled together. Peanut butter works too.
I also jazz up ramen noodle soup with my own cooked chicken, chopped cabbage, and grated carrots.
Mary, mom to many
I agree with the crockpot recommendation. You can either make the whole meal in the crockpot or just the meat. Cooking meat in the crockpot is easy and the results are most often more tender and juicy than other cooking methods (though you do miss out on the browning factor).
I do lasagna and enchiladas in the crockpot. You can do the meat first, then when it's falling apart, scoop it out and throw in the layers one by one. Many casserole recipes can be thrown into the crockpot too.
But let's say you wake up feeling terrible and don't know what to make for dinner. Crawl to the kitchen, grab some meat from the freezer and throw it in the crockpot with a bit of broth or water and crawl back to bed. ;-) You'll be amazed at what wonderful meat you have in a few hours. You can decide what to do with it later. Burritos, Tacos, Soup, Stew, Casserole, Baked Potato Toppings, Served With Rice, etc.
Crystal, if you use all frozen veggie blends, the menu I posted this morning can be a 5 minute meal.
http://janelmessenger.blogspot.com/2006/11/quick-easy-healthy-meals-from-scratch_29.html
Hope you feel better soon! I hate that dog-dead tired feeling.
This might seem a bizarre idea but rather than try to adjust the prep time or eliminate food or cooking odors(and possibly have to select from meal recipes that are nutrient limited or additive laden), maybe calling to this site might offer relief. If it removes airborne odors for those with chemical sensitivies, customer service might recommend it to provide relief(for the cost of fast food meal) for mommies that can't tolerate odors in the kitchen? Just a thought.
http://www.icanbreathe.com/favorite.htm
Ranch burgers
This recipe came from Be not Conformed website.
1 lb hamburger,browned and drained
add: 1 can cream celery to pan, then scoop onto hamburger buns and add a slice of cheese and place in a 350 oven or under the broiler.
Thanks for posting this Crystal and for all the suggestions. I need some ideas too!
We had this last night for the umpteenth time. It makes a great burrito filling. You can serve it with cornbread or some kind of muffin. It's so easy to make:
Lentil Rice Casserole
Hi Crystal,
This is my first time leaving a comment, but I've been reading your blog for awhile now and I've been blessed. Thanks!
Congratulations on your new baby! I have two boy that are 10 1/2 months apart and it's busy!!! But oh so rewarding, the Lord has richly blessed us. Anyways, so I know what it's like to be prgnant and have a little one running around, my oldest started walking at 9 1/2 months! And I had them both c-sections. ANyways...so I have a recipe for you that i just made yesterday and it was super yummy! Perfect for cold winter nights. I got it from allrecipes.com but i altered it a little.
Here is my version of minestrone soup: feeds 3-4
INGREDIENTS
* 24 oz. chicken broth
* 1 can (14.5 oz.)diced stewed tomatoes
* 1/2 to 1 can(14.5) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
* 1 can (15 ounce) garbanzo beans (chickpeas) or pinto beans
* 1 cup frozen cubed hash brown potatoes, thawed (I didn't add the potatoes, I cooked brown rice separtely and then when I served the soup I put some rice in the bottom of the bowl and poured the soup over it).
* 1-1/2 teaspoons dried minced onion
* 1-1/2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
* 1/2 teaspoon salt(i used celery salt, either works)
* 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder(i used real garlic, crushed)
* 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
* 1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
* 1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed (I didn't add peas, but I chopped up a whole carrott and added that instead)
DIRECTIONS
1. In a slow cooker, combine the first 13 ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Stir in the spinach, peas and carrots; heat thorough.
This soup is awesome because you can add whatever other veggies you have on hand. I also sprinkled some shredded mozzerella cheese on top. I love allrecipes.com, it has a lot of great meals that are quick and easy!
God bless!
I'm not even pregnant and these all sound great! Thanks for sharing ladies!
Annette
Here are a couple that I use when we're in a hurry.
French Bread Pizza
1 Italian bread loaf
Pizza sauce
Mozzarella Chesse
Pizza toppings (the sky's the limit!)
Cut the loaf of bread in 1/2 once horizotally & once vertically to give you 4 "slices."
Top with sauce, cheese, & toppings.
Bake at 350* for 8-10 minutes or until cheese has melted.
It depends on your toppings, but this can be the main meal if you have meat & veggies for toppings. Can serve with salad.
Meatball sandwhices
1 can of spaghetti sauce
Pre-cooked frozen meatballs (4-5 per sandwhich if using smaller meatballs)
Hot dog buns
Simmer the meatballs in the sauce for 5-10 minutes or until completely warmed through. Spoon into buns, and top with mozzarella cheese if you like. You can serve with baked french fries/potato slices and/or salad.
I've found numerous 5-10 minute prep meals at www.kraftfoods.com. Check them out when you're not too nauseated, and hopefully you'll find something you like, or something that will like you.
http://tammysrecipes.com/chicken_stuffing_casserole
This is a recipe from "Tammy's Recipes" that I made over the weekend with leftover turkey and it was really fast to put together the night before and then pop in the oven 30 min before we ate it.
You can make it all from scratch or used canned soups/broth and boxed stuffing mixes and it takes 5 min to throw together. This also makes enough that you could half it to make it even quicker to throw together or make as is and freeze 2/3 of it to warm up for dinner 2 other days.
Something else I do alot is turn leftovers into a soup the next day. For ex. I layered corn tortillas browned beef, salsa and cheese in a casserole dish for a last min supper, I usually layer what ever I have in with it too. Sometimes I mix in corn or black olives, or use rotel instead of salsa, if it's spicy salsa I'll mix it with cream cheese or a cream soup,usually turns out yummy. Then the next day, or day after that, I'll take the leftovers and chop them up and add a big can of tomato sauce with a few beef bouillion cubes and couple cups of water, and more veggies like a can of green beans, some carrots or diced potatoes, add a few spices like garlic or whatever you prefer. If I don't have time to make bread or rolls, I put some bread slices in the toaster, butter them and sprinkle on garlic salt. It tastes like a yummy garlic bread. Then I'll put a bowl of fresh fruit on the table as well.
I've got leftover red beans and rice in the fridge that I plan on doing this with for supper tonight.I like doing this with leftover lasagna and pasta dishes to.
I hope this helps.
Love,
Carey
btw, I live in Ozark,MO so maybe I'll see you at S.D.City sometime!
1. Mexican Salad with a can of black beans, tortilla chips crumbled, and buy the bagged salad and bagged shredded cheese. Add salsa, sour cream, tomatoes, avocado, etc. (this way you can avoid the meat)
2. Enchiladas with frozen bean burritos : layer salsa, then burritos, then salsa, then shredded cheese into casserole & bake for 30 m at 350 (give or take some minutes)
3. Meaty buscuits: use ground beef/turkey w/flavoring, or precooked chicken/bacon at the store to avoid cooking it at home. Saute some onions, or other veggies. Place Philsbury biscuits into muffin tins and nestle meats/veggies into each biscuit. Top w/shredded cheese. Cook @ 400 for 15 min. Serve with soup, salad, fruit, etc.
I have found that all of the Campbell's soup recipes are so easy and cheap. They take no more than 5 minutes to prep. I usually find them in magazines, but I'm sure they're on their website too.
Crystal, another thought... ice cream with fruit and nuts for the fam and sorbet for you really is not that un-nutrious if nothing else sounds appetizing. We had quite a few ice cream meals in my family when my mother was pregnant... :)
Crystal, I found this site. It says 10 minutes but you may be able to cut a couple of them down. Hope it helps.
http://www.baptisteast.com/recipes/moremeals.cfm
THANK YOU, THANK YOU for all these great ideas. I'm copying and pasting ones which would work into a document to save in my files to use for planning menus for the next few months. This is tremendously helpful to this currently very uncreative mama. My family will thank you all, too. :)
I have two suggestions:
1. Cheese sandwiches
Use store bought bread (or homemade bread that someone else sliced), pre-sliced cheese, thin sliced ham and tomato slices. You can butter the bread or not. Put in toaster oven (or oven, but I don't know the settings) for however long it takes to brown a slice of toast. Place them in there 'open faced' so that the cheese melts faster. Serve with crackers or chips. Or, if you're not THAT tired of canned soup, you can serve it with tomato soup. There, you've covered four food groups with one hot sandwich. Btw, ANY toasted sandwich is quick and easy to make -- and feels more 'meal-like'. Peanut butter and honey; microwaved scrambled eggs with cheese and ham; whatever your family likes.
2. Chicken porridge (aka Chicken and rice soup -- homemade) I eat this ALL the time when I feel too sick to cook.
Put any chicken pieces with bones (I use either chicken thighs or a whole cut up chicken -- it's better without the skin, but if you can't stand to deskin it, no big deal) into a large pot and fill with water. Add 5 garlic cloves OR 1 carrot, 1 stalk celery and 1 quartered onion. Sit down and rest while water is coming to a boil. Turn down the heat to low and REST for an hour to an hour and a half. However long you need -- it'll get better the longer it sits. Thirty minutes before you want to serve it, add 1 cup rice. Recover and REST some more. Anytime after rice is finished cooking is time to serve dinner. Diners can add salt and pepper to taste.
-Harmony (who is without her password once again ^_^)
Crysatl ~ this doesn't exactly answer your question, (I can't seem to fix anything for my crew in anywhere near that amount of time!) but I was reading the following info today & thought of you :-)
probiotic Tummy Tuneup8, available from Beeyoutiful.com is reported to help mommas dealing with 'extreme morning sickness'.
Also, I didn't think to try this when I was in my first trimester, but a few days ago, I was feeling pretty yuck (21 wks - should be past that for good by now...)and I rubbed a couple drops of peppermint essential oil 'diluted' in coconut oil on my belly & within about 20 minutes, I felt fine ~ might be worth a try, if ya don't mind smelling like a candy cane :-)
Blessings ~ T.
Crystal,
Crockpot roast beef
3-4 lb. roast
one envelope of brown gravy
one envelope french onion soup mix
2 cups water
Mix gravy and soup mix with water. Pour over roast. Cook on high for 4-6 hours or low 6-8 until falling apart.
Great with mashed potatoes...you can peel and cut up potatoes, cover with water, and refrigerate until you are ready to boil them.
With leftovers, make beef vegetable soup: cut up beef. Throw in a pot of water with a bay leaf, some of the gravy from last night and a bag of frozen veggies
P.S. Hi, Carey...I live in Nixa :) Do you have a blog?
Hi Crystal. I have a ton of fast meal ideas.
If you can stay in the kitchen long enough to make boxed mac-n-cheese you can make this easy meal.
1 lb browned ground beef
1 box mac-n-cheese fully prepared
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can green beans.
Mix it all together and heat through - YUMMY!
Also, we love tomato soup and grilled cheese. I just use a can of soup and sliced Kraft cheese. Very fast. If you get a lot of heart burn you may not like the tomato soup though.
Quesadillas
1 1/2 cup cooked chopped chicken (I am guessing at this because we use about 3 cups for my big family)
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1/4 to 1/2 cup mild salsa (I do mild for the kiddo's)
mix it all till heated through and put on tortillas. You can heat the tortillas in the oven at 425 for 5 minutes if you like a slightly toasted tortilla.
Also, Bisquick (sp?) has a ton of quick recipes - their pizza recipe is super easy and they have other very quick recipes on the back of their box.
I have a lot more but you have already gotten tons of great ideas which I am copying down for myself :)
This is super fast because it comes from cans. I usually cook my own beans and use powdered chicken stock just to make it less expensive. But this is what we're having for dinner!
Black Bean Soup
2 cans black beans
1 can mexican spiced tomatoes
1 can chicken broth
Let it comes to a boil. Mash up a bit. Add shredded cheese and let it melt. Serve with sour cream, tortilla chips, and some green onions.
Takes about 5 minutes and we love it. Comes from a book called Desperation Dinners (check the library) and they guarantee none of the recipes take more than 20 minutes and most of them take less than 10. Uses lots of canned/boxed ingredients, but sometimes when you're desperate...
tuna or chicken salad: dump cans (as many as you need...we usually have 3 for our family of 6) into a bowl with mayo and pickle relish. Put on bread slices, hamburger buns, or hot dog buns (or plain!). Top with cheese if desired. Also good toasted with cheese melted on top.
On a bed of bagged salad mix with any other cut veggies added if you please, place tuna salad in a flower-cut tomato(stem side down and cut 4 times top down creating "petals" to open for filling addition) or drained tuna or diced chicken in tomato with hard boiled egg(can do these ahead to have on hand) on the side if you can't handle making the salad. Include a piece of cantaloupe with cottage cheese...or cottage cheese with pineapple or peaches spooned on top(or yogurt and fruit and maybe a little granola on top). Add a bread and you have nutritious and filling.
Maybe this will spark other ideas for someone?
Hello Crystal,
I'm so sorry that you're feeling bad! Oh boy, have I been there. My suggestion is to crank up the grill and I'm sure you're hubby will take over from there. My own dear husband loves the time he gets to grill. Then a salad and potatos(regular or sweet) in the microwave make a healthy, yummy and quick meal. Also, with our last baby we had wild blueberries ripening (we call them huckleberries). Every morning that I went out and picked and ate a handful of berries I never felt sick, perhaps you can try regular blueberries. I intend to try them with our next baby if it's not huckleberry season :)
God bless you and your family, Kim
I have one more for you if your family is a soup family.
Quick and easy.
1 can french cut green beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can black beans
1 can chili
1 can tom sauce
2 cups beef broth
1 lb hamburger (we use free range grass fed)
1/2 onion chopped
1/2 cabbage shredded
1 Tbl chili powder
garlic powder
salt and pepper
dump all the cans into a crock-pot for all day cooking or a big pot on the stove for a quick dinner. You can fry the hamburger with onion if you wish,(the smell of that early in preg. is not so good) What I do is drop the meat in the pot, little bits at a time. If your using the crock-pot, wait until the soup is good and hot and then drop it in. I think thats about 1/2 way through the cooking time on high. Micro or wilt onion and cabbage and add to pot.
You can find good organic beans or make a mixed bean soup the day before to add to this. I don't know about the organic chili. My huband like good ol' canned. I add the chili for extra flavor. It makes it come together faster with long cook taist. This could also be made with no meat adding more spices and a can of stewed tomatoes.
Hope this is helpfu.
Lenni
Skillet rice dishes! In a skillet add 11/2 c. rice, 3 c. chicken broth (or 3 c. water and 3 t. chicken boullion) and a half bag of frozen broccoli and a couple chicken tenders or 2 boneless chicken breasts. Bring to a boil and simmer for 25 min.
You can also do the similar and make it spanish by browning the rice with 1 clove diced garlic, 1/2 onion, 1/2 green pepper in a bit of oil. Add the chicken broth, 1 T. tomato paste and 1 t. cumin. Bring to a boil and simmer 25 min. I will put chicken on top of this also or ground meat.
If you can stand it one day or have a relative do it for you, Cook up like 10 lbs ground beef and some chicken and freeze in baggies. It is so hard to do it when you are sick, but it makes it for one sick day and less sick days in the future.
Salads
Bean burritos- canned beans and cheese and taco sauce
Soup- cut up 2 potatoes and put in chicken broth, add diced celery. Cook until tender. Serve with a spoon of sour cream and a bit of cheese on top. I like to have bread with this so make it in the bread machine!
You can also throw a boneless chicken breast, diced potatoes, a bag of frozen california blend veggies in the pot with some salt and pepper. Simmer until tender and cut up everything. Soup!
Here's one from me!
"Company Chicken"
1 jar roasted garlic alfredo sauce
1 can Rotel
chicken breasts as many as needed.
Mix sauce and Rotel tomatoes, pour over chicken, and bake! Serve over pasta
Actually, if you like chicken, you can do all kinds of variations--salad dressing makes great marinade. :)
Parmesan chicken is really good. In your Cuisinart mix up a piece of bread, a handful of parmesan cheese, a good shake of dried parsley leafs, some salt, and garlic powder. Then sprinkle the mixture on your chicken , and bake 'em till they're done. It's really good if you dip the chicken in milk and then coat it with the breading, but that's an optional step that can be skipped if you're getting too sick ;)
This isn't a complete meal, but it's a really simple yet very nice main dish for a night when you might want something special. Serve it with rice and a tossed salad, or with whatever else might strike your fancy.
Blessings to you and remember there are MANY women out here who are praying you through your pregnancy!
Here's a few quick ideas I used during this pregnancy (I just finished my sickness- there is an end in sight- hang in there!!!).
1) Yogurt with bananas or berries or diced fruit and granola. If you layer it in desert glasses it looks fancy, and if you're too tired, self-serve style let's everyone make it the way they like it.
2)Tuna melts- whatever kind of bread you have on hand (pitas, sliced bread, buns, tortillas, etc.) plus a can of tuna or salmon mashed up with a bit of mayo and seasoning (I like Spike- tasty and no msg), then sprinkle with cheese and broil on a cookie sheet for 5 minutes. Put it with salad from a bag, or baby carrots and other finger veggies and a dip.
3) Tortilla pizzas- I use tomato paste with a bit of honey and italian seasonings for sauce spread on any size tortillas(canned sauce is ok too and regular tomato pasta sauce also works), then add whatever veggies you feel that you can stomach (our favorites are mushrooms, colorful peppers, red onion, diced tomatoes, basil or spinach, etc.), plus shredded or feta cheese, and pop in the oven till cheese is bubbly.
4) Fried rice- put rice on earlier in the afternoon, then in a large frying pan add some olive oil and onions or garlic (if the smell is ok for you), then add the rice and fry for a couple minutes. Come back and add frozen veggies (corn and peas) and maybe chopped carrots, and when the veggies are done, add in a couple of beaten eggs and fry till the eggs are cooked. I season it with Spike and Bragg's (healthy soy sauce), and you can also add sesame oil or peanuts if you like. Bean sprouts are good on top too (added after cooking) for extra nutrition.
HTH! You are doing fantastic and you are almost through this season- I'm excited for you and your family!
Stephanie
Crystal:
You can do anything you can do with normal pasta with ramen noodles, which cook in only three minutes. (One day I will write a book entitled "101 ways to make ramen: a cookbook for starving college students.")
Cooking a larger package of meat all at once by frying or grilling is no harder than cooking a single meal's worth. Grilling steaks, burgers, etc. is very easy: low heat, ten minutes one side, ten minutes other side, stab to see if done. (Grilling burgers might also be easier than watching ground beef on the stove.) If you don't have a grill, just fry in oil or butter, or cook in oven or crockpot. Freezing is an option if you want to make a lot at once; just make sure you have it thawed if you need it. Also an option would be brown&serve sausage or boxed popcorn chicken, which you can thaw ahead in the fridge or microwave quickly. (These may not be the healthiest or cheapest, though).
I haven't ever been pregnant that I know of, but I think a good strategy would be:
Cook up a bunch of meat, preferably at least two kinds so you can rotate them. Cut up or divide and put into tupperware or baggies the amount you would use per meal. Have on hand canned veggies, shredded cheese (on sale it is usually not more expensive than block cheese), ramen noodles, and kinds of sauces your family will appreciate (salad dressings, tomato, marinara, oils with or without spices or flavorings, cheese sauces, barbecue or salsa sauce... whatever sounds intriguing.
Every night, make some ramen, or possibly another kind of pasta (frozen, fresh, or boxed) that is relatively quick and does not require constant monitoring and stirring. You can make the ramen with or without seasoning, and drain or leave as soup (in which case sauce and cheese would probably be skipped). Throw your starch in a serving dish and add some sort of meat, some sort of veggie(s), and some sort of sauce/oil/dressing. Add some sort of cheese if you wish. Microwave it a bit. Wala! "Instant" casserole. ~5 min. after boiling water.
Even quicker: mix canned hash and veggies, or canned noodles, canned meat, and canned veggies. You could add cheese to this also.
By the way, congratulations! I stop reading blogs for a couple months and I come back and you are pregnant.
Hope this is helpful.
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