Simple dinner recipes anyone?

[todreaminblue]

what if all you have on hand is an old shoelace and a half eaten jar of queso?

 

you use the shoelace to tie your dates hands together and put a spoon between them and tell him/her to try to finish the half jar of queso..if he/she does they get a big beautiful reward...which of course will be their hands untied .......and they can keep the shoe lace...they will enjoy eating the queso...might even be worth a smile or two.....in expectation of a beautiful reward....i would say that would make a memorable date...;0)...deb

Edited March 8, 2018 by todreaminblue

[skywriter]

I want to cook something to make me look I'm not a complete novice and at least semi-capable of crafting a dish

 

Anything in terms of ingredients that is not too rare will do. No restrictions! I have AllClad cookware, just ..... not too experienced in using it, and when I'm by myself my regular dinners are teen-like (pint of icecream or some pizza usually keeps me alive - I am glad that I still have high metabolism and low blood sugar )

 

But yeah - if anyone can share a simple dinner that will be enjoyed by a big man (not girl appetizers and alike ) I'd be very very grateful and it will save me half-a-day of browsing and ton of money on random grocery purchases just in case I need them

 

 

Well, I'd want to know what his favorite foods are, and maybe google easy recipes, and some probably have youtube videos that will walk you through the preparations.

 

Baked spaghetti is an easy meal, with some Texas toast, and a small salad. Ya'll could maybe grill out, some meals together. My boyfriend loves being in charge of the grilling, and I prepare our side dishes.

[preraph]

When I was in my 20s, I only had the bare essentials to cook with and my boyfriend interests often decided I couldn't cook because I didn't cook anything but breakfast for them. I just couldn't afford all the pans I needed nor any of the more expensive food items is all. Turns out I'm a pretty fair cook. One thing I hate about getting old is right when I'm getting the real hang of cooking, then my body starts falling apart making it hard to stand up and do it. A better plan would be being a good cook when young and then being content enough with bologna sandwiches and mac and cheese when old.

[todreaminblue]

When I was in my 20s, I only had the bare essentials to cook with and my boyfriend interests often decided I couldn't cook because I didn't cook anything but breakfast for them. I just couldn't afford all the pans I needed nor any of the more expensive food items is all. Turns out I'm a pretty fair cook. One thing I hate about getting old is right when I'm getting the real hang of cooking, then my body starts falling apart making it hard to stand up and do it. A better plan would be being a good cook when young and then being content enough with bologna sandwiches and mac and cheese when old.

 

 

:0( you are never too old too cook...my legs give way or seize up if stand for too long..i sit on a chair and i cook.....my kids will ask me can i help mum...and we hav ekitchen time together they move around me they will chop and be my preppies....my recipies become ....immortal from mother to daughter to granddaughter and down it goes forever onwards........the older you get the plates served taste like love and wisdom..never stop cooking as i head to make my grandaughter a special cheese toastie..deb

Edited March 9, 2018 by todreaminblue

[camillalev]

An easy, healthy, easy meal:

 

-Chicken drumsticks covered with BBQ sauce and bake at 400 degrees for about 40 mins

-Brown rice

-Sauteed kale with 1 minced garlic clove, juice from 1/4 a lemon, and salt.

[preraph]

:0( you are never too old too cook...my legs give way or seize up if stand for too long..i sit on a chair and i cook.....my kids will ask me can i help mum...and we hav ekitchen time together they move around me they will chop and be my preppies....my recipies become ....immortal from mother to daughter to granddaughter and down it goes forever onwards........the older you get the plates served taste like love and wisdom..never stop cooking as i head to make my grandaughter a special cheese toastie..deb

 

I have had to sit down to chop and cook. I have a desk chair in my kitchen. No kids to "help." I eat out quite a bit and I try to limit myself to easy recipes with not much chopping, etc. I made Barilla's Lasagne with Leeks and Corn recently, which was absolutely delicious, and thought it looked easy since it used oven ready lasagne, but making the sauce was a long process with continual stirring until it thickened, longer than most sauces that thicken because it had 6 cups of milk (extra liquid for the oven ready noodles). It wore me out, but it was very good. It's on their website.

[No_Go]

Do you have a crock pot or slow cooker??

 

For me, I can put a chuck roast or pork roast in the slow cooker in the morning, pick up my girlfriend, spend the day with her and when we get to my house. All I have to do is throw a quick salad together, throw a couple potatoes in the microwave and I'm done.

 

The main course has been slow cooking all day, just serve.

 

I've also found slow cookers to be fairly inexpensive. Buy the biggest one you can find, you'll end up cooking quite a few different dishes with it.

 

I don’t have one... can you recommend one working for you? It will be fun to try!

[Happy Lemming]

I don’t have one... can you recommend one working for you? It will be fun to try!

 

I have a 7 Quart Rival Crock Pot. I got it at Walmart. They are about $25.

 

Its big enough for everything I need to cook (chicken, chuck roast, pork roast, etc.). 6-8 hours for most items and I don't have to tend to it. Liquid in the bottom, season to your taste, turn it on and leave it alone, or even leave the house and run errands.

 

I've even cooked a small turkey for Thanksgiving (overnight). The turkey doesn't dry out as much, when you slow cook with liquid in the bottom.

 

I've done the Christmas Ham in that slow cooker, as well. For the ham, I put orange juice in the bottom, with a light coating of honey and brown sugar and slow cook it all night.

 

Home made soups are a breeze, also.

 

One tip, is utilize slow cooker liner/bags. They make clean up a breeze!! But even without the liners/bags, cleanup is fairly easy.

 

Go for it!!

[todreaminblue]

follow on from happys post about slow cookers ...if you sit the joint of meat or whole bird on carrots onions herbs potatoes sweet potato the meat juices will flavor the veg and the fat from the meat will be the liquid on the bottom and cook and contain a whole heap of flavor .....and the meat will be more figure friendly and not catch on the bottom...

 

 

you can stuff a whole bird with herbs and lemons i suggest rosemary and lemon and garlic.... and lemons underneath with potatoes rosemary and onions and a whole bulb of garlic to keep the chicken moist...lemon and rosemary potatoes are classic greek fare..i have some really cool greek recipes fi you like goin' greek.....and preserved lemons are a cinch to make...its nto traditional greek preserved lemons...but it is moroccan...which i also have recipes for ...a flourless orange cake using whole boiled oranges skin pips and all and ground almonds...its a cake that my kids beg me to make.....with a slow cooker lamb dish with couscous and mixed with your very own home made preserved lemons and dried apricot.....lamb and apricot is also a real classic.....lovely dinner.....deb

Edited March 10, 2018 by todreaminblue

[todreaminblue]

i make these little egg pie things when i am on a real budget...its just eggs grated cheese coriander and veggies frozen or fresh cooked in a muffin tin or rubber sheet you can experiment with all kinds of add ins....they turn out like little pastry free quiches quite yummy and filling ...served with a green salad that has fresh fruit in it i like watermelon red onion baby spinach or tender rocket and coriander with a simple lime dressing..cuts through the richness of the eggs(if you have gall stones lol)...really bright and colorful... the little egg pies transport well..salad is simply tossed and dressed.. could be a take out dinner you eat for a picnic on a beach ....with your date....deb

[CrazyKatLady]

King Ranch Chicken Casserole. If you don't mind, I am assuming you have the internet, and can look it up--I'm typing on my phone and don't really feel like inputting all the ingredients.

I use corn tortilla chips broken up in place of actual corn tortillas.

[aliveagain]

Here is one that's both easy and delicious. I used to cook a lot for my gf, but this was her favorite. Easy-peasy. Takes about an hour total.

 

You're going to need your All Clad 6 quart sauté pan for this. BTW, I think it's hilarious that you have All Clad cookware and haven't learned to cook. I'd probably marry you for that cookware

 

2-3 large chicken breasts, bone-in, skin on

1 large can (28 oz) of Hunts diced tomatoes

1 large yellow onion diced

1 cup Uncle Ben's white rice

2 cups chicken broth (or water)

 

Salt and pepper the breasts and brown well on both sides (medium high, 2-3 tbsp vegetable oil). Remove breasts and make a fond with the brown stuff from the chicken and a bit of the broth. Add the diced onions and sauté a couple of minutes. Add the diced tomatoes and the remaining broth and bring to a boil. Add the cup of rice stir in for a minute and reduce heat to medium low. Return the breasts to pan, season with thyme, salt and pepper and cover. Cook 20 minutes until rice is cooked and broth is all absorbed. Check the breasts with an instant read thermometer to make sure it's 165F at the thickest part.

 

Serve with another vegetable or some cornbread, whatever you like.

 

You really need to learn to make great cornbread, and it's super easy. Do you have a cast iron skillet?

 

You can easily take your dish and convert it into Jambalaya by adding two stalks of diced celery and a diced green pepper at the time you add the diced onion. Add a couple of Italian or Chorizo sausages with the chicken breasts(I like to slice them into 1/4 inch thick rounds as they cook and are firm enough to slice then add them back in with the rice). In addition I would add 1 tablespoon Cajun spice and a teaspoon of oregano and the juice of half a lemon and one heaping teaspoon of brown sugar . You can add large shrimp at the last 6 minutes of cooking. It is similar to a paella, all one pan cooking. I like to use chicken thighs for this dish with some chicken breast meat cut into bite size pieces. Corn Bread goes really well with a nice spicy Jambalaya. Your dish has many possibilities including converting it into Chicken Cacciatore, an Italian classic. I love to cook.

Edited March 13, 2018 by aliveagain

[preraph]

King Ranch Chicken Casserole. If you don't mind, I am assuming you have the internet, and can look it up--I'm typing on my phone and don't really feel like inputting all the ingredients.

I use corn tortilla chips broken up in place of actual corn tortillas.

 

This is a great recipe. My variation is I do not let the tortilla chips sit and get soft in the casserole. I buy the thick approx. 6-inch round tostada chips because they won't get soggy like thinner chips will. Then I do the casserole but only add the chips at the end, by breaking them into large pieces and standing them up all around the edge of the baking dish plus all through the middle and rest of casserole, so only the bottom of the chip gets soft. I use about 12 of them broken into kind of fourths or fifths. I don't like mushy ones.

[alphamale]

have you decided on anything No_Go? you got a lot of input

[carolynsch]

I will try this recipes.