To Kate and anyone else looking for a quick dinner:
This is what we have for a "quick" dinner about once a week: a
baked regular or sweet potato, topped with whatever veggie(s)
is/are left in the fridge, steamed or "sauteed", spices of choice
added, sometimes topped with a little something. Here's my method:
1. Walk in the door after a too-long day at work.
2. Walk to the stove, turn it on to 375 F, and place two potatoes
(scrubbed and foiled that morning, or right then sometimes) in the
cold oven.
3. Set timer to 1 hour.
4. Change clothes (put on pajamas if it was a really long day).
5. Wish that dinner was done now, but realize that life is not perfect.
Have just a nibble of a snack, like 1 pickle, or 4 baked chips.
6. Spend 1/2 hour doing something that either should have been
earlier in the week, or that will have to be done very soon, like:
washing the dishes from last night, spending quality time rolling
around on floor with neglected dogs, going through piled up mail,
chopping up veggies for tomorrow's stirfry, etc.
7. Prepare whatever will go on top of the potatoes. If the potatoes are
small, fix a larger amount of topping. Suggestions: frozen or
canned corn, warmed, with mexican spices added, with or without a
little fatfree cheddar cheese; broccoli, steamed, with a "sauce" of
fatfree sour cream or yogurt and dill and horseradish; onions sauteed
in diluted white wine or balsamic vinegar with marjoram or rosemary;
"sauteed" peppers, onions, and eggplant topped with leftover spaghetti
or pizza sauce and fatfree parmesan.
8. 5 minutes before the timer is set to go off, peer anxiously in the oven,
remove 1 potato, stab with fork, and decide they are ready to eat.
Carefully peel off foil, put potatoes in bowls, slice, top, eat.
Hope this helps!
Kim Allen
Baltimore, Maryland
KimAllen@xxxxxxx
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