Having recently completed my first set of editor’s revisions
on Calling Me Home, I can now officially say I’ve worked on deadline for this
book. (Other than my self-imposed ones in the past, of which there were many!) During
the last few weeks of edits, I barricaded in the house for days,
working more hours than I care to count getting it all right.
The closer I came to deadline, the more I needed to make
meals for my family that were quick, easy, and didn’t require a lot of
measuring, shopping, or thinking ahead. I suppose if I were more enthusiastic about cooking, I’d prepare extra meals ahead of time and freeze them. Alas,
that just isn’t me. It’s either fast … or it’s fast food, and of course, I
don’t want anyone in the house eating fast food for days on end.
I thought it might be fun to share some of the meals we prepared.
They’re not the healthiest meals on the planet. (I'm sure they contain
preservatives and many other evil chemicals.) Neither are they
the worst. We’re always trying to watch our weight and things like fat and
cholesterol around here, and these mostly work for that. They’re not as
inexpensive as, say, spaghetti with a ground beef sauce, but they also don’t break the
bank. And … my kids are teenagers, which means they aren’t as picky as little
kids might be.
Maybe you’re another mom or dad writer who needs to feed the
family FAST. Would love to hear in the comments about meals you make
that meet the qualifications. (Fast, easy, semi-healthy, and fairly
inexpensive.) Leave links if want to!
·
Frozen
Garlic Chicken
o Costco
sells a huge bag of this stuff, which is full of pasta and veggies, and it
takes about 15 minutes to prepare. I add a whole cup of water as opposed to the
½ cup the bag calls for as it never seems to be enough to keep it from sticking
to the skillet.
o Serve
with:
§
Open a can of peaches and a can of mandarin
oranges (both about half drained), and slice a banana or two and six or seven
strawberries into a bowl to make a fruit salad.
§
Optional: Pillsbury Italian or French loaf baked
in oven. We often pre-slice the loaf into 10 or 12 individual rolls before
baking.
·
Chicken
wraps
o Purchase
pre-cooked chicken strips, pre-cut romaine lettuce, fresh tomato, parmesan
cheese, Caesar or vinaigrette dressing, large tortillas or sandwich wraps. Serve
buffet style. Kids enjoy making their own if they are old enough.
o Serve
with:
§
Store-bought prepared starchy side salad
(macaroni or potato salad)
§
And/or kettle or Sun chips.
·
La Madeleine
Tomato Basil Soup from Costco
o Costco
(yay, Costco!) sells a refrigerated two-pack of this delicious soup for around
eight bucks, and it’s enough to feed at least five hungry mouths. (The package
says eight servings, I think.) Dump it in a saucepan and heat it up in about
ten minutes. Or microwave it. You can garnish with store-bought croutons and
parmesan cheese.
o Serve
with:
§
A loaf of sliced French bread heated in oven, or even grilled cheese sandwiches.
§
Self-serve green salad fixings.
·
Brown
sugar ham in crockpot with pineapple
o Buy
a fully cooked sliced ham (1.5 to 2 pounds or so, and I’ve read that a non-smoked
one works better and doesn’t dry out as much). Use about 2 cups of brown sugar
total, some on bottom of crockpot, some rubbed over top of ham. Dump a can of
chunk pineapple with most of the juice drained around the edges. Cook on high
for an hour or so, then low for another hour or so. Serve with a little of the
juices that have formed from the ham.
o Serve
with:
§
Steam-fresh veggies prepared in the microwave
(Green beans? Peas? Broccoli?). Stir in a small amount of butter or margarine after
heating for flavor if desired.
§
A package of baked refrigerator biscuits with
jam or jelly.
·
Chicken
Tortilla Soup from Costco
o Another
Costco soup, also about eight bucks for double pack. We add several cans of
extra ingredients as it’s not very hearty:
§
black, kidney, or pinto beans
§
corn
§
diced tomatoes
§
Plus extra seasoning (chili powder, garlic salt,
etc.) to taste because we like things spicy.
o Serve
with:
§
Package of self-serve, self-heat tortillas or
tortilla chips
§
Self-serve garnishes (cheese, sour cream, etc.)
§
A can of sliced pears or other fruit.
·
Chicken topped
salad. (When you resort to chicken nuggets, you know you’re almost there.)
o Prepare
frozen chicken strips or nuggets, breaded or grilled, in whatever number of
servings the bag calls for.
o OR … have your spouse or teenager buy a
precooked rotisserie chicken on the way home.
o Use
to top self-serve salad ingredients:
§
Dark leaf lettuce (spinach or spring mix).
§
Sliced strawberries, apples, or canned mandarin
oranges.
§
Crumbled feta or other cheese.
§
Candied or honey-roasted pecans.
§
Dried cranberries, or other garnishes.
§
Balsamic vinaigrette or other dressings.
Yes, there’s a lot of chicken here. That means you don’t
feel guilty when you order that big, juicy steak on the weekend to celebrate
meeting your deadline.
And now you tell me what I can feed my family next time I’m on deadline
in the comments, please!
