Joystiq has your stash of criminally complete GTA IV news!
Posts with tag quick meals

Sometimes 'quick' dinners just means lazy dinners

Hungry Man Turkey DinnerIt wasn't until I started cooking meals from scratch on a regular basis that I discovered just how much of a fallacy this whole pre-made foods business is. I'm not talking about one of those tasty, pre-roasted chickens or fresh meals you can buy at the supermarket, but rather canned and frozen foods. They are great in a pinch, but they are not a big time saver, and they're certainly not a decent substitute for fresh foods.

So, reading Astin Cubed's post on "Simple Food" today was like reading a rant of my own, without the obsession with snap peas. How can so many of us have forgotten the simplicity of fresh? Or heck, even balancing the two? If you have zero time to make dinner, throw the fish sticks in the oven, boil/microwave/shred and fry some potatoes, or maybe throw some Caesar dressing on some romaine. If you have enough time to go out, wait to be served, eat, wait to pay, and come home, you certainly have enough time to cook up some pasta, fry up some chicken, make a salad, steak, or even stir-fry. Or, even take a day with some free time, make up a lasagna, and eat it during the week, month, or year.

My favorite frozen food: Using those Thanksgiving leftovers to make REAL roasted, carved turkey meals that I can eat all year.

My favorite "fast" food: Leftover fried potatoes with a fried egg on a toasted baguette.

What's yours?

Cooking with Trader Joe's, Cookbook of the Day

cover of Cooking with all things Trader Joe'sWhen I was growing up in Los Angeles, we lived down the street from one of the very first Trader Joe's (Eagle Rock). My family moved up to Portland when I was nine and one of the things that we all missed most was Trader Joe's. My parents, sister and I were all thrilled when the expanded north to Portland. These days I am lucky to live three blocks from the Center City Philly Trader Joe's and do more than half of my grocery shopping there.

I know that there are many folks out there who practically live at their local Trader Joe's and now there's a cookbook expressly for them. Written by Dana Gunn and Wona Miniati, Cooking with all Things Trader Joe's, offers more than 250 pages of recipes and photos in which all the dishes are made with ingredients from TJ's. Their theory is that we could all cook tasty and beautiful meals, if only we hand someone to help with the prep. Trader Joe's becomes your sous chef and these recipes makes it possible to create an array of dishes using just a few things straight off the shelves.

It's a fun book, with lots of big, colorful pictures and easy to understand recipes. It would make a great gift for a new cook or someone who doesn't have a whole lot of time to cook (most of the recipes come together really quickly). For those of you who are thinking about getting yourself a copy, the authors have a special deal to offer Slashfood readers. If you buy it from their website, you can get $5 off if you input the code SLASH5 when you're checking out (this offer is good through April 31st).

Roast your carrots for a quick weeknight side dish

a baking sheet of roasted carrots
I had something of a whirlwind weekend in which I hung out with a bunch of Philly bloggers, helped a friend arrange the couches in her new house and baked a batch of brownies to take to an impromptu dinner party. Other than the brownies, I didn't do much in the way of cooking and by last night, I was aching to get back into the kitchen and make some easy food that tasted good and wasn't ordered off a menu.

The meal I cooked was fairly simple, just some chicken breasts marinated in balsamic vinegar, olive oil and chopped rosemary (grilled up quickly on my trusty George Foreman grill--it's not fancy but it does the job really well), steamed broccoli and roasted carrots. However, it was deeply satisfying.

The carrots were an especially nice touch as they aren't one of my normal sides. They brought added color and sweetness to a meal that could have been a little boring otherwise. Typically I don't peel carrots, but these had been in my crisper drawer for some time and so had gotten a little furry and funky, so I quickly stripped them of their skins. I cut them on the bias for maximum surface area, tossed them with salt, pepper and olive oil and popped them in a 425 degree oven for about half an hour. They came out sweet and tender, but not mushy. You could do the same thing with those half-empty bags of baby carrots that often gather in the produce drawer. By using them, you wouldn't even have to chop them to prepare.

Make a meal in ten minutes or less

an assortment of mushrooms
One of the universal facts of modern life is that there never seems to be enough time. Cooking often gets shoved to the side and we find ourselves nuking something frozen, eating yet another turkey sandwich or calling out for something that comes in a flat cardboard box.

Thankfully, the always creative Urban Vegan comes to our aid with her Autumn Express: 101 Simple Vegan Meals Ready in 10 Minutes or Less. She has a bunch of terrific and quick meal suggestions that will appeal to vegans and omnivores alike. A few of my favorites include #11, the Savory Bread Pudding, #17, the Inauthentic-but-Fast Dal and #33, Mushrooms and Grains.

What are your favorite quick autumn meals?

Tip of the Day

Have you ever stashed a Coke in the freezer, hoping to chill it quickly, then forgotten all about it, only to have it explode all over your frozen peas?

Slashfood Features


What is it?
Beef (506)
Bread (12)
Candy (446)
Cheese (440)
Chocolate (759)
Comfort Food (615)
Condiments (207)
Dairy (490)
Eggs (253)
Fish (316)
Fruit (873)
Grains (594)
Meat (225)
Nuts/seeds (284)
Pork (288)
Poultry (382)
Rice (20)
Shellfish (145)
Soups/Salads (25)
Spices (283)
Sugar (394)
Vegetables (1117)
Holidays
Christmas (68)
Easter (20)
Halloween (40)
Hanukkah (9)
New Year's (11)
St. Patrick's Day (13)
Thanksgiving (49)
Valentine's Day (31)
Memorial Day (0)
Mother's Day (32)
Passover (7)
News
Artisan Foods (14)
Bakeries (119)
Books (708)
Business (1089)
Celebrities (54)
Coffee shops (171)
Farming (375)
Fast Food (206)
Food News (30)
Health & Medical (705)
How To (1179)
Lists (715)
Local Eating (43)
Magazines (450)
New Products (1344)
Newspapers (1407)
On the Blogs (2077)
Raves & Reviews (1042)
Recipes (2014)
Restaurants (1266)
Science (674)
Site Announcements (171)
Stores & Shopping (906)
Television/Film (536)
Trends (1256)
Vegetarian/Vegan (39)
Features
Guilty Pleasures (15)
Raising the Bar (6)
Tip of the Day (45)
Alt-SlashFood (42)
Back to School (14)
Brought to you by the letter D (37)
Cookbook of the Day (394)
Cooking Live with Slashfood (80)
Cooking Without a Recipe (3)
Culinary Kids (218)
Did you know? (438)
Fall Flavors (124)
Feast Your Eyes (22)
Food Gadgets (442)
Food Oddities (874)
Food Porn (875)
Food Quest (168)
Frugal Food (62)
Garden Party (25)
Grilled Cheese Day (34)
Hacking Food (107)
Happy Hour (203)
Head to Tail (32)
in sixty seconds (347)
Ingredient Spotlight (13)
Leftovers (40)
Light Food (181)
Liquor Cabinet (162)
Lush Life (221)
Our Bloggers (17)
Pizza Day (39)
Pop Food (142)
Pumpkin Day (10)
Real Kitchens (76)
Retro cookery (108)
Sandwich Day (31)
Slashfood Ate (80)
Slashfood Bowl 2008 (17)
Slashfood Challenge (1)
Slashfood Talks (3)
Slow cooking (50)
Spirit of Christmas (174)
Spirit of Summer (171)
Spirited Cooking Day (29)
Spring Cleaning (23)
Steak Day (19)
Super Bowl XLII (73)
Super Size Me (115)
The Best ... in All of New York (13)
The History of... (63)
What Time Is It?
Breakfast (677)
Dessert (1176)
Dinner (1295)
Hors D'oeuvres (285)
Lunch (932)
Snacks (1024)
Where Is It?
America (2205)
Europe (439)
France (115)
Italy (138)
Asia (484)
Australia (147)
British Isles (828)
Caribbean (30)
Central Africa (7)
East Coast (530)
Eastern Europe (41)
Islands (51)
Mediterranean (129)
Mexico (10)
Middle East (52)
Midwest Cities (219)
Midwest Rural (67)
New Zealand (61)
North America (70)
Northern Africa (19)
Northern Europe (64)
South Africa (29)
South America (84)
South Asia (120)
Southern States (202)
West Coast (905)
What are you doing?
Baking (698)
Barbecuing (85)
Boiling (126)
Braising (18)
Broiling (33)
Frying (172)
Grilling (153)
Microwaving (31)
Roasting (84)
Slow cooking (25)
Steaming (44)
Choices
 (0)
Fairtrade (10)
Additives
Artificial Sugars (36)
High-fructose corn syrup (12)
MSG (6)
Trans Fats (56)
Libations
Hot chocolate (23)
Soda (147)
Spirits (333)
Beer (286)
Brandy (3)
Champagne (75)
Cocktails (359)
Coffee (339)
Gin (101)
Juice (110)
Liqueurs (48)
Non-alcoholic (12)
Rum (76)
Teas (149)
Tequila (8)
Vodka (144)
Water (79)
Whisky (90)
Wine (573)
Affairs
Celebrations (31)
Closings (9)
Festivals (26)
Holidays (222)
Openings (40)
Parties (193)
Tastings (132)

RESOURCES

RSS NEWSFEEDS

Powered by Blogsmith

Featured Stories

Featured Galleries

I scream, you scream...
Food delivery at its finest
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Feast Your Eyes: May
Better Homes and Gardens Barbecue Book
Julep Iced Tea
Loyal Army Food Clothes
Great American Pie Festival
MOMA's funkiest kitchen accessories
Pork Pie Cake
Canstruction Designs
Taste of Vail
 

Sponsored Links

Most Commented On (60 days)

Weblogs, Inc. Network

Other Weblogs Inc. Network blogs you might be interested in:

Also on AOL