Ready, Set, Go

As happens every week about this time, tomorrow starts a new work/school week.  In my life, those weeks roll much better if I have taken a little time over the weekend (exactly 90 minutes today, in fact) to prep some food to get us through a few of the upcoming days.  We have a bit of a leg-up with these basics ready to go.

Cukes 'n onions, salt, pepper, white balsamic vinegar.  Done.

Chickpea salad with tomato, onion, olives, feta cheese, parsley, cucumber, Cavendar's Greek seasoning, red wine vinegar, and a tiny pour of olive oil.  I cooked the chickpeas from dried last night while I watched football--Go HOGS!--and have more in the fridge.  This salad goes great as a dinner side, or popped into a pita for lunch, sometimes with whatever other leftovers are around.

Vegetable soup.

Roasted vegetables for Lucy's Tofurkey lunch sandwiches.

Balsamic roasted onions for....anything and everything.  I think this week I want them on top of some mashed tomatoes or creamy polenta.

Here are a few other staples waiting in the fridge to make our lives easier during the week.

Cook's treat for all this productivity?  I got to rub a hunk of a fresh baguette in the unctuousness of the balsamic/olive oil/onion goodness left in my Pampered Chef bar pan.  I'm not sure, but I think my eyes rolled back in my head after I ate that bread.

Have a happy week!

Waaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh---I don't wanna

Do you ever have those days when you just can't do it?  Can't muster the brain cells to plan a meal.  Can't find the energy to actually prepare and "cook" something.  At my house it sounds something like this:  "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh, I just can't do it tonight."

What do you eat when that happens?  Here are our can't-cook-tonight-go-to's.

1.  Nachos

I have been known to eat nachos two or three times a week.  I read an article in the Arkansas Times that reported on an actual survey, showing that people in Arkansas prefer their nachos "neat."  That is, each triangle of corn chip has one slice of cheese on it, and most often one slice of jalapeno pepper on top of that---instead of "messy" nachos where the chips are mounded and then everything is piled on and mixed up.  I fit right in with the Arkansas crowd mostly, but sometimes I like to shake it up.  I love my sister's method of having a separate Pampered Chef small round stone for each person, and all kinds of toppings---black beans, salmon, onions, cheeses, salsa, sour cream, guac.  Every person makes their own plate, pops the stoneware into the microwave oven, and drools until the bell rings.  Yum.

2.  Eggs

Lucy and I are big egg eaters.  We love our weekend breakfasts more than anything, and occasionally we just need the ease and comfort of breakfast for dinner.  Fried, scrambled, omelets, frittata...we love them all.  Throw in our special breakfast potatoes, and you'll want eggs Monday through Friday night.

3.  Brown Rice/Quinoa/Orzo and Roasted Veg

The best eating weeks are those when I've used the weekend to prep a lot of staples that form the basis of several meals during the week.  Taking the time to fix a stash of things like hard boiled eggs, roasted vegs, and some whole grains makes those "waaaaaaaaaahhh" nights a minor inconvenience, rather than a major catastrophe.  All I have to do is grab some kind of already-cooked grain out of the fridge and top it with some already-roasted vegetables (or, in a pinch, some vegetables out of the freezer), grate on some grana padana and maybe add some quick and easy delicious bruschetta (I'll show you my own technique soon) and a rough day has turned into a happy evening.  

I wonder what you eat on those days.