Quick and Easy Meals

I'm sure that my daughter is laughing her backside off right now at the thought that I have now written several recipes to share with others. Except for my Kieflies, soups and a few salads, I've always been the delegate for the fresh veggie tray at Christmas. Some of my past failures have been the Blue Mountain Mash Potatoes and Landslide Birthday Cake. Just in case you're wondering, don't put blue food coloring in mash potatoes, your family won't eat them no matter how you place them on the plate. Also make certain that you grease and flour a cake pan well before you pour in the batter.

As noted before, we're trying to eat out of the garden. In a previous article I wrote about hoarding toilet paper. Now, more than ever before, it's really necessary. You might say I'm just a regular gal. However, our grocery budget is quite low now and I think I may be healthier.All the fresh fruits and veggies combined with a modified intermittent fasting diet has at least created that mind set and what you believe, you can achieve.

We're now in cucumber and zucchini overload. Who'd have thought that those few little seeds could produce such an abundance? As we approach the neighbors' homes with armfuls of green tubular produce, we notice doors closing and lights going off. I know they're in there, I can hear them breathing but no one is answering their door since the last cucumber and zucchini run. I now have to create recipes to use all our bounty. The zucchini is easier. You simply pack it in bags that contain 2 cups of the shredded delight for zucchini bread later. The cucumbers are a problem. How many cucumber and tomato salads are there? How long before you crack and in a crazed passion, pull those bougars out of the ground? BTW, I don't do pickles.

Fried Cucumbers

This sounds yucky but our neighbor assured us that it was delicious so we tried it. This not so healthy side dish, snack, actually tastes pretty good.

Ingredients:
4 smaller fresh cucumbers ( avoid ones with big seeds)
Flour
Frying oil
Salt or herbs

Utensils:
Frying pan
Spatula

Peel and slice the cucumbers into thin rounds. Fry until crisp. Lay on paper plate covered with paper towel to absorb the extra oil.

Eat!

While these taste a lot like potato chips, I'm not sure they're on the heart healthy list.

Mushroom Burrito

Another artery clotting quick and easy recipe that I love for lunch or supper is the burrito shell filled with everything from salad to mushrooms. This one is particularly tasty.

Ingredients:

Large whole grain flour burrito shell
Two large button mushrooms thinly sliced from top to bottom
One thin slice of onions cut in eighths
Shredded Mexican cheese blend
Tomatoes, lettuce, salsa or other toppings to taste.

Tools
Knife
Microwave
Paper plate

Place the burrito shell on the paper plate. Put a layer of mushrooms on half the burrito shell and sprinkle with onions. Top the entire shell with a handful of cheese. Microwave until the cheese melts.

Remove and top half with tomato slices, lettuce or nothing if you choose. Fold over and allow to cool before eating.

It's just that simple and quite delicious. You can add the onions after you nuke it or before. I think it tastes like my favorite, cream of mushroom soup.

Zucchini Mix

This recipe is known by about every person over 30 and many under it. It's a way to use up last year's bounty and clean up some of this year's. It is healthy for you and you can eat as much as you want. I include the hamburger but keep it to a minimum per serving by cooking a pound ahead of time with an onion . I then freeze it spread out on a cookie sheet. Freezing it spread out allows you to transfer it crumbly to the freezer bag so you can use just what you need later. We only use a little meat in our cooking and I take one fourth at a time for recipes such as this one. You can also divide it in fourths and freeze it.

Ingredients:
2 small zucchini or one large one
1 large onion
1 red or green pepper
1/4 lb of hamburger
4 cinnamon basil leaves
4 lime basil leaves
The leaves of one stalk of oregano
1 clove of garlic finely chopped
1 stalk of celery
The leaves of two 1 inch stems of thyme
4 whole tomatoes skinned (more if you they're small)
Salt and pepper to taste

Utensils:
Frying pan
Knife
Spatula
Large spoon

Directions:
Prefry the hamburger with 1/4 of the onion. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook down the liquid until thicker. You can adjust the spices and herbs. I use those because I have them.

I rate my suppers on two things, speed, minimal cleanup. and leftovers, since you can make another night's meal with the leftovers. The last two recipes score high!