<p>What’s a good bottled honey mustard dressing? I’ve had a problem finding one I like. I have a great recipe to make it from scratch but if I can find a good bottled one, I’d buy it.</p>
<p>DRB (re: quick cobbler dessert) I know it sounds gross, and I NEVER thought I could eat canned fruit, but I swear it is over the top delicious. Canned cherries, in water, taste pretty darn good, and it’s all natural (unlike the cake mix, unless you buy it at Whole Foods like me).</p>
<p>re: #77-80</p>
<p>Mix lettuce, apples, chopped/glazed pecans instead of walnuts, crumbled blue cheese, and cranraisins.
For dressing, mince 2 tbs. shallots and add to a 1/4 c. cider vinegar and 1/2 c. vegetable oil mixture. Add a tablespoon maple syrup, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and season with salt, pepper.</p>
<p>RE: NYT Minimalist recipes - thank you to the person who first mentioned it, and the to the one who gave the link. What a fantastic list of easy recipes!</p>
<p>Pasta Fagiole- This makes a lot so it’s good for crowds.</p>
<p>This has a lot of ingredients but they’re common and easy to find. These porportions are estimates- I don’t measure anything.</p>
<p>Brown the following:</p>
<p>2 lb hamburger meat
1-2 C diced onion
1-2 C diced celery
2-3 C diced or julienne carrot</p>
<p>Add:</p>
<p>Big Jar of favorite spaghetti sauce
Big can of diced tomatoes (I like Muir Glen Organic Roasted)
Can Red Kidney Beans (drain)
Can White Kidney Beans (drain)
oregano (2-3 t?)
pepper (2 t?)
parsley (4-5 t?)
tabasco (1-2 t?)
4-6 cans beef broth (add until you get the consistency you like)
1-1 1/2 C ditalini pasta (you can either cook the pasta ahead of time and add, or put the pasta directly into the soup and let it cook slowly.)</p>
<p>*Have plenty of beef broth on hand (at least 4-5 cans) so you can add more broth after the pasta absorbs the liquid or to achieve the consistency you want.</p>
<p>*I cheat and buy the pre-diced vegetables, and I use julienne carrots in a bag. It’s more expensive but the soup makes a LOT so per serving it’s not so bad.</p>
<p>*Clearly this is not rocket science- the porportions don’t really matter. Just eyeball the ingredients and dump as much as you want.</p>
<p>We do Idmom’s dip, but with just Rotel and Velveeta - it is on the Velveeta box and the Rotel can I think. One I like better:</p>
<p>Spread an 8 oz block of cream cheese or low fat cream cheese in a 13X9 microwaveable dish. Top with chunky salsa of your choice (we like Pace Mild CHunky Salsa with this). Sprinkle with shredded cheese - cheddar or the mixed Mexican cheese. Microwave until melted - 1-3 minutes.</p>
<p>Some other quick or easy things:
Pasta with broccoli and sausage:
Shaped pasta, not spaghetti type
Sausage of your choice, but not breakfast sausage
Broccoli
Red pepper flakes</p>
<p>Cook one pkg of corkscrew, bowtie or penne pasta (anything but spaghetti/linguini noodles) according to the directions.
While the pasta cooks, saute sliced smoked sausage or sweet Italian sausage or brats in a tsp of olive oil. Chop broccoli florets. As the pasta is draining, add the broccoli florets to the sausage skillet, and just warm until the broccoli turns shiny green. You want the broccoli to still be fairly crunchy. Dump the sausage over the pasta in a bowl, sprinkle with red pepper flakes and toss. You can drain the sausage if you are concerned about fat, but leaving some of the fat is important for the flavor, I usually drain if there is more than a tsp collected. The red pepper flakes are important, too, add to taste, but you need some unless you use hot sausage.</p>
<p>patsmom What’s a good bottled honey mustard dressing? </p>
<p>We really like the Newman’s Own Light Honey Mustard. Not as heavy and thick on the mustard and more salad dressing.</p>
<p>I clicked on the NY times site and it said I had to purchase the article. Did anyone else have a problem?</p>
<p>You don’t have to purchase the article. It’s a free registration thing (they just want data on your demographics).</p>
<p>Bocadillos (“sandwich”)</p>
<p>My kids and their friends LOVE these!</p>
<p>baguettes, kaiser rolls, or other sturdy bread (if you have a Mexican bakery nearby, ask for bolillos)
refried beans (any kind–vegetarian, non fat, traditional homemade, black or pinto beans, etc.)
shredded or sliced cheese
sliced tomatoes, avocados, olives, red/green peppers, shredded lettuce, etc.
salsa (tomato, tomatillo, or red pepper–we like Tapatio)</p>
<p>Slice the bread in half and spread with beans and top with cheese. Heat under a broiler or in a toaster oven until the beans are bubbly hot and the cheese is starting to brown. Add toppings and salsa as desired and enjoy!</p>
<p>Baked Brie</p>
<p>Slice the rind off of the top of a wedge of brie. Place in a baking dish and cover with your favorite kind of jam or preserve–we like sour cherry preserves–and top with sliced almonds if desired. Bake at 350 for ten minutes or so, until cheese softens and starts to melt. Serve with toasted baguette slices or crackers. This is great for those nights when you don’t feel like a full meal, but you want something to keep you getting hungry in the middle of the night.</p>
<p>about that salad. Mangos instead of cranraisins. Yum!</p>
<p>I haven’t looked at the other recipes since I’m vegan and probably can’t make most of them, but this tomato sauce is a classic (even my carnivore dad loves it):
[quote]
Creamy Tomato Basil Sauce
prep time: 5 minutes | cooking time: 20 minutes | makes 3 cups</p>
<p>This sauce is so easy and so so tasty. Don’t be scared of the coconut milk, trust me, it’s fabulous.</p>
<p>Equipment:
Sauce pot</p>
<p>Ingredients:
2 teaspoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
28 oz can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
pinch dried thyme
pinch salt
fresh black pepper to taste
1/3 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped</p>
<p>Directions:
In the saucepot, over medium heat, saut</p>
<p>Okay, for all you gourmet recipe providers for the CC cookbook. We need basics!</p>
<p>Item: S and chums came over to try to cook a meal–more or less from scratch. S turns on oven (it’s not quite as old as S, but almost). Nothing happens. “Did you turn the knob on the right that says bake, broil, etc…?” “Was I supposed to?” It reminded me of the summer I spent eating salads and charcuterie in my brother’s Paris apartment because I did not know how to operate his oven. Never fear, though, once the oven was conquered, the meal, courtesy of Trader Joe’s, turned out quite well.</p>
<p>First item in the CC cookbook-
Check that you removed the leftover pizza box from the oven before you turn it on.</p>
<p>OK, basics…</p>
<p>Go to college with all of the basic spices: salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, basil, parsley, crushed rosemary, dill, tarragon. Bring olive oil, bottled lemon juice, and some of your favorite bottled dressings (try Newman’s).</p>
<p>For dinner, get a piece of raw fish, meat, or poultry, and broil it with a little oil and one of your favorite spices with salt and pepper. With that, eat a bagged salad with dressing, or microwave fresh veggies with a little olive oil or butter on top (and salt, pepper, and another spice). Don’t know which to use? Look at what you are about to cook, smell a couple spices, and sprinkle the one which smells like it would be good with it on top. Lemon juice is always good with chicken and fish, BTW. Cook extra meat for dinner and put in fridge. To make sure things are cooked, cut them open and look.</p>
<p>Lunch: Make a sandwich with the leftover meat, fish, or poultry from last night.</p>
<p>Breakfast: scramble egg whites (you can buy them in a jar) or egg substitute or just plain eggs with some of the leftover veggies from last night (mushrooms, zucchini, broccoli, peppers, onions). No leftovers? Chop your favorite veggie, cook on low heat with a little olive oil until tender, add eggs and parmesan or your favorite cheese and salt/pepper and scramble. Or eat fruit, whole grain cereal, and skim milk. Or saut</p>
<p>Not basic enough. What’s saut</p>
<p>After my last post I’d have to ask a parent, close relative, neighbor, trusted adult, etc. to go over the basics like scrambling, baking, and sauteing. One really should not leave for college without learning how to feed oneself, and mastering other basic life skills such as personal grooming and swimming.</p>
<p>If a young adult was reluctant to learn basic food preparation, I’d get him or her a meal plan. Another idea would be a basic cooking class. I think it is unlikely that a clearly reluctant cook will learn as well from a long list of instructions as from another human being. :-)</p>
<p>Here is an idea: Do any of your friends have a particularly attractive daughter who is a good cook (and needs extra money)? Give your son a few at home cooking lessons as a gift, and pay her well to teach him a few basic meals which will involve all the introductory techniques. She can bring the groceries, make a meal with him, eat, and get paid. Send a Cameron Diaz look-alike over there and he’ll be flambe’-ing in no time.</p>
<p>I just looked back and saw “GF came to visit”. Why doesn’t she teach him?</p>
<p>Oh, the guys are on the meal plan (mandatory). But since I myself did not know how to turn on the oven in my brother’s apartment at age 18, I can hardly complain that my S does not, either. Just beware that there are lots more college students like myself. Now, the kids are pros at operating microwave ovens which did not exist when I was in college.</p>
<p>I think I described S’s cooking strategy early on this thread, but to repeat–go down to corner deli, order sandwich, take back to dorm.</p>
<p>Alternately, go down to local Chinese take-out, order Chicken and Broccoli, take back to dorm.</p>
<p>He’s got all the procedures and processes to accomplish this figured out, and eats cheaper and more than the food plan offered.</p>
<p>He actually can cook a little, but kitchens in dorms don’t allow for much more than heating water for noodle soup.</p>
<p>Mine learned on their own. They are living at home this summer in exchange for nightly dinners. </p>
<p>Nori Rolls</p>
<p>Need a bamboo mat to roll. Cook nori rice according to package direction - look on line for different ways to flavor - my favorite is a rice wine and some sugar - this makes the nori roll, when you get the rice perfect to your taste. After cooked, spread on bamboo evenly. Variations are
lining with seaweed or sesame seeds or salt. I don’t like raw fish, so I only make California Rolls, with cukes, carrots, avocado. Lay out in middle of rice, roll, remove mat, slice. Serve with wasabi, soy sauce, sliced ginger - ginger is also good inside the roll. My kids, esp. the girls love this as it is low fat and easy and fun to make.</p>
<p>Marie’s in the refridgerated section is my favorite salad dressing.</p>
<p>If you add nutmeg to the lasagna recipe, it will be much improved - mix with ricotta</p>
<p>Easier briscuit - brisquit in baking dish, some water, smother meat with chopped onions, bake at 250 all day. One hour before serving add sliced potato and fresh carrots, sliced or julienned.
Bake covered all day - uncovered last half hour 375 to brown. </p>
<p>One son makes daily pancakes with bisquick. I always did from scratch. He also makes crepes.</p>
<p>Lot of things to do with eggs, omelets, taco fillings, can add anything to the eggs - another kid favorite to make.</p>
<p>All varieties of pastas with chicken and black olives added. Many good canned sauces.</p>
<p>They do a lot of marinating of chicken and steak and sauces they have made up - always delicious.</p>
<p>Marite - forget turning on the oven. Just about anything can be made on the stove top (I have gas) and the control over the cooking is better, as well as a decrease in odors. I don’t know how to turn on mine - too high tech.</p>
<p>Multiple salads and fresh fruit salads. Whole Foods sells great preprepared fruit salads - for less other markets do too, but they aren’t as fresh, though cheaper. Lots of goat and feta cheeses on salads, walnuts, almonds.</p>
<p>Place any type of chicken (breast, boned, drumsticks) in crock pot</p>
<p>Dump one bottle of Open Pit or any type of barbecue on top of chicken.</p>
<p>Set crock pot on high and come back in 4 hours or so.</p>
<p>Side dishes: microwaved potato, salad (grab some lettuce - no fuss)</p>
<p>Complete meal. Lots of leftovers.</p>