Quick and Easy Meals

On Monday, I discussed ways to shift from eating out frequently to eating at home. I touched briefly on the idea of having quick and easy meal options available when time and energy are limited. I want to expand on that today. My bias, of course, will be towards vegan meals. Use these ideas, suggestions, and recipes as a jumping off point in coming up with your own quick and easy meals.

I should also note that many list store bought foods, but you can make and store your own versions when you have time available. You can dry homemade pasta to have on hand. When you have garden excess, can your own sauces, vegetables, and cooked beans. Keep a stash of homemade jelly on hand. Grow your own peanuts for peanut butter. If you have room in your freezer, freeze vegetables, cooked beans, and cooked rice or grains. For any of the bread products, you can make these yourself, too. Keep some fresh or frozen on hand if you will need frequent quick meal options during the week.


FOODS TO HAVE ON HAND FOR FAST EATING


Grains/Starches - interchangeable in recipes

• Rolled oats - presoaking will speed up regular rolled oat cooking. Quick oats are also ... quick.


• Hot cereals - cream of wheat, cream of rice, and oat bran cereals can be purchased in bulk.


• Cold cereal - you can even make your own. See here and here for recipes and ideas for homemade cold cereals.


• Brown rice - precooked and frozen, or instant


• Quinoa - the fastest cooking whole grain (How to cook it.)


• Amaranth - another fast cooking grain. (Guide to cooking whole grains)


• Potato flakes - Barbara's brand has no added mono- and di-glycerides if you prefer to avoid those.


• Potatoes and sweet potatoes - both microwave quickly


• Couscous - whole wheat cooks in the same amount of time as regular


• Thin noodles - aim for quick-cooking varieties such as rice noodles, somen, and soba. Angel hair pasta cooks faster than linguine.


• Crackers - look for whole-grain


• Rice cakes - they've come a long way in flavor and texture since the old dry Styrofoam disks of the past.


• Pretzels


• Pita pocket bread - make your own or buy them in grocery stores or Middle Eastern markets.


• Bread - bagels, ciabatta, whole wheat or rye bread, cornbread, etc. Easy to make in quantity and freeze.


• Tortillas - flour or corn. These both freeze well. Corn tortillas can be quickly crisped in a toaster oven for homemade tortilla chips.

Chile's Fat-Free Whole Wheat Flour Tortillas

3 c whole 'white wheat' flour (can substitute whole wheat pastry flour)
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 c warm water

Mix dry ingredients.
Stir in water.
Knead for a couple of minutes on a floured surface until dough is smooth.
Place in a greased bowl and cover. Let rest at least half an hour.
Cut dough into a dozen pieces and roll into balls.
Start heating a large cast iron skillet or griddle over high heat.
Roll one ball at a time out on a floured surface into a thin round tortilla.
When the skillet is very hot, carefully lay the first tortilla on it. Cook until the edges start to dry.
Flip it over and cook on the other side briefly. There should be brown flecks on both sides, but it should not be brown all over.
Remove, place on a plate, and cover with a clean dish towel.
Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Note: I have found that if you leave too much flour on the tortilla, it ends up burning in the skillet and smoking up the kitchen pretty bad. I use a mushroom brush (very soft bristles) to gently brush all the flour off the surfaces of the raw tortilla before placing in the skillet. It takes an extra bit of time but it’s worth it.

Please Note: Because these are fat free, they won't be as flexible as traditional tortillas. Warming them up will help increase their flexibility. If you really dislike the fatfree version, you can add a small amount of oil to the recipe.


Legumes

• Canned beans - any variety, such as garbanzo, kidney, navy, small white, black, or pinto


• Frozen cooked beans - cook a large batch and freeze in small portions


• Dehydrated beans - "instant" pinto and black beans can be found in natural food stores. Other dehydrated beans can be ordered.


• Lentils - fastest cooking of the legumes. Red lentils cook the most quickly.


• Pressure-cooked beans - lima and pinto beans cook in the least amount of time. Use the speed-soaking technique to do this faster. I have often skipped the 1 hour soak time recommended after the brief initial cooking.

Vegetables

• Fresh - raw carrots, sugar snap pea pods, red bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, cauliflower, celery, jicama, etc.


• Cooked - baked or boiled small potatoes, and steamed green beans are tasty cold


• Frozen - handy for fast meals


• Canned tomatoes - fresh diced, fire-roasted, or flavored


• Canned - anything you like, such as peas, green beans, carrots


• Pickled - pickling is an easy way to preserve vegetables and usually keep well


• Fermented - low-energy flavorful way to preserve your veggies


• Dehydrated - convenient for emergencies as well as quick meals

Fruits

• Fresh - anything. Some are easier and less messy to eat when travelling: grapes, bananas, apples, plums, cherries, oranges


• Canned - preserve your excess harvest


• Frozen - handy for breakfasts


• Pickled


• Dehydrated - tasty snacks

Prepared Foods

• Fresh - leftovers!


• Frozen - freeze leftovers or cook specifically to freeze for later


• Dried - soups, food cups, convenience foods


• Dips such as hummus, salsa, bean dip, or low fat salad dressing.

Pinto Bean Dip
Cooked pinto beans
Chile powder, garlic powder, and salt to taste

Mash beans and stir in seasonings.

White Bean Dip
Cooked white beans
Roasted red pepper
Nutritional yeast
Lemon juice
Mustard
Onion powder
Garlic powder

In a food processor, process ingredients (to taste) until smooth.

Salsa-Bean Dip
Cooked pinto beans
Salsa

Mash beans.
Stir in salsa to desired consistency for dipping.
Great with toasted corn tortillas.

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FAST & EASY MEALS TO MAKE WITH BASIC INGREDIENTS

Here are some meal ideas and recipes. Keep in mind that many of these are great for travelling. You can eat many while driving and prepare most of them in a campsite or hotel room.


Quick Breakfasts

• Quick oats with sugar, chopped fruit, and rice or soy milk. Apples and pears make a nice change from the traditional bananas, strawberries, peaches, or blueberries.


• Overnight Oats: per large serving, soak 1/3 cup steel cut oats and 1/3 cup regular rolled oats in 2 cups of water overnight. In the morning, bring to a boil on the stove and cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit 10 minutes (good time to shower and dress). Serve with brown sugar, fruit, and rice or soy milk.


• Mixture of cold leftover brown rice, regular rolled oats, and Grape-nuts type cereal with sugar, and rice or soy milk


• Cold cereal with chopped fruit, and rice or soy milk


• Toast with applesauce or homemade jam, jelly, or preserves

Quick Lunches

• Veggie sandwiches - spread whole wheat bread with vegan mayonnaise, mustard, or smashed avocado, and pile on the vegetables. Cold roasted vegetables (red bell peppers, eggplants, mushrooms) are tasty as are fresh vegetables such as lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber slices, and sprouts.


• Baked potato - plain or with toppings. Cold whole baked potatoes are great road food because you can eat them with your fingers. Try hot baked potatoes with a wide variety of toppings.


• Baked yam or sweet potato - plain or not. Tasty tossed with a little curry powder and served with mango chutney.


• Soup cups - rehydrate and eat! Add shredded or minced fresh vegetables if desired.


• Leftovers - the ultimate easy lunch.


• Pita pockets stuffed with hummus, sprouts, tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion


• PBJ sandwich - for lower fat, make with Better 'n Peanut Butter


• Mock Tuna sandwich – mash drained chickpeas to replace tuna and mix with your favorite tuna salad ingredients such as minced onion, sweet pickles, vegan mayo, mustard, celery, and dill.


• Leftover rice, grains, or noodles topped with pickled or fermented vegetables. Dress up with Sriracha sauce, if desired.


• Bean burritos - fill a tortilla with mashed beans. Optional additions include cooked brown rice, roasted green chiles, and nutritional yeast or cheese. Roll up and heat in microwave or fold over to toast in George Foreman grill. Top with tossed salad and salsa.

Quick Snacks

• Whole wheat bread with jam


• Raw vegetables - try eating a red bell pepper like an apple


• Cold cooked vegetables


• Fruit


• Crackers, pretzels, chips, rice cakes, breads - alone or with dip


• Bread & 'naner - Lay whole banana down the center of a slice of whole wheat bread and fold the bread over like a taco. Very easy snack to eat on the road.


• Graham crackers dipped in applesauce


• Baked mini-doughnuts

Quick Dinners

Easy Spaghetti
12-16 oz spaghetti
Frozen vegetables (your choice - peas, peppers, green beans are good)
Jar of spaghetti sauce

Cook spaghetti and frozen vegetables. Drain.
Heat sauce in pan. Toss with pasta and vegetables.


Pasta with Peas
8 oz package of pasta
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
1 can chopped tomatoes, with juice (Use Italian-seasoned tomatoes for more flavor.)

Cook pasta and peas together. Drain.
Return to pan. Add tomatoes and heat through.
Season to taste with salt, pepper, and garlic.


Simple Soup
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 small can mushrooms, with juice
1 small can peas and carrots, drained
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 envelope Lipton Onion Soup Mix (Vegans will need to substitute a vegan version.)

Heat together in pan with enough water to moisten.


Rice and Lettuce Salad
2 cups cooked brown rice, hot or cold
Clean lettuce
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
Fat-free Italian salad dressing, salsa, or BBQ sauce.

Layer on plate for dinner.
Top with dressing or sauce.


Veggie burgers
Boca or veggie burgers
Whole wheat bread or buns
Vegetables: sliced tomatoes, red onion, lettuce
Condiments: pickles, mustard, ketchup, vegan mayo

Microwave or grill burger.
Assemble.


Instant Mexican Rice
Instant brown rice
Water
Green or yellow onion, chopped
Bell pepper, chopped
Salsa

Boil water. Add vegetables and rice. Bring to boil, cover and cook on low 5 minutes.
Remove from heat, stir, cover and let sit 5 minutes.
Stir in salsa. Serve in fat-free tortillas if desired.


Almost Instant Mexican Rice
Cooked brown rice
Green or yellow onion, chopped
Bell pepper, chopped
Salsa

Saute vegetables in skillet.
Add rice and salsa. Heat through.
Serve in fat-free tortillas if desired.


BBQ potatoes
Potatoes, microwaved
BBQ sauce
Clean lettuce

Toss potatoes and BBQ sauce together.
Top with lettuce.


Curried Chickpeas
1 can chickpeas, drained
Frozen spinach
1 can diced tomatoes
Cumin & curry to taste
Cooked rice or toast

Heat together. Serve over toast or rice.


Chickpea-Sweet Potato Stew
1 large can sweet potatoes, drained
OR 1 large sweet potato, microwaved and peeled
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, with juice
Garlic powder to taste
Salt & pepper

Combine in pan. Heat.
Season to taste.

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Bon appetit...in a hurry!