Any cooks here?

Me and the misses love to cook. When we have time our kitchen turns out many a tasty meal. But during the week with jobs and kids it's hard to come up with quick, easy, tasty meals.

Post some of your staples people…I'm tired of boca burgers for christ's sake!

Are you a vegetarian? I have a really good recipe for tofu (w/ a little ricotta cheese added) stuffed shells.

I take two 28oz cans of chopped tomatoes and heat them in a sauce pan w/ a little sauteed onions, garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Simmer about 15-20 mins.

Then, in a food processor, process a block of pressed and drained firm tofu, about 1/4 cup ricotta cheese, a package of frozen spinach that has been thawed and drained, and some garlic, salt and pepper to taste.

Boil the pasta (stuffed shells, but you can also use manicotti) while this is being done. I usually don't cook them the entire way because they'll cook a little while they're baking.

Lightly spray a 9x13" baking pan. Pour some sauce in the bottom of the pan. Fill the shells, and then pour the rest of the tomato sauce over the shells. Cover with foil.

Bake at 350 for about 35 mins, or until hot and bubbly. I usually put some shredded mozz cheese on top at the end and bake uncovered for 10 mins or so.

(I'm pretty sure it's 350 degrees….I'll have to double check on that one)

I have a vegetarian cookbook that is sectioned off according to types (Mexican, Caribbean, Italian, Middle Eastern, Asian, Eastern European, Indian) that I swear by. Unfortunately, I can't think of the name of the book and don't know if it's still available. If it is, I'll look it up and post. Totally rocks.

My wife is more the creative type and just makes shit up off the top of her head. She really should have been a chef. Someone please give us a million dollars so she can quit her job and open a cafe.

I guess I really haven't posted a helpful recipe, have I?

Nope, we're not veggies at all. We pretty much eat anything. We're not stuck on meat though and I'd say at least half our meals don't contain any, esp in winter when grilling isn't as fun. Just looking for a little inspirations. Sick of our same old staples.

The key is quick and easy! Thanks K8eebug but that recipe hardly sounds quick….It sounds good though.

Fresh ravioli from Whole Foods.

Originally posted by ggwâ?¢:
Fresh ravioli from Whole Foods.

Nice one…we do that from time to time.

I call this "redneck pesto":

Boil up some macaroni. Grease it up (but not too much) with some margarine. Stir in some parsley flakes and garlic powder. Mmmm! Cheap and fast. And vegan, if that matters to ya (add some grilled yardbird if that vee-gun stuff is too hippie).

Stolen from my man-crush, Bobby Flay:

Cuban Style Burgers on the Grill

1 lb ground chuck
Salt and freshly ground pepper
½ cup best quality mayonnaise
3 cloves roasted garlic, pureed
¼ cup Dijon mustard
4 soft, classic hamburger buns,
4 slices thinly sliced smoked ham
8 slices thinly sliced Swiss cheese
2 dill pickles, sliced into ¼ inch thick slices

1.Preheat grill to high. Form the meat into four ¼-inch thick burgers. Season the meat with salt and pepper on both sides and grill for 2-3 minutes on both sides for medium doneness.
2. Combine the mayonnaise and roasted garlic in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spread both sides of each bun with mayonnaise and mustard. Place a slice of cheese on the bottom portion of each bun, place the burger on top of the cheese, then top the cheese with a slice of ham then another slice of cheese then the pickle slices. Place the tops of the bun over the pickles, wrap the burgers in aluminum foil and place on the grill. Using a heavy pan or a brick wrapped in foil, press down on the burgers for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Lower the lid on the grill and continue grilling for 1-2 minutes or until cheese has melted and the bun has become pressed and firm

Get the can of Goya black beans and extrapolate on the recipe on the back for black beans and rice. Add meat if you want (I do), more veggies, whatever. It is a great starting point to a good meal. And you can easily ziplock leftovers and freeze for another day.

Take a can of cream of mushroom soup, some rice, and some boneless chicken breasts.

put the rice in the casserole dish and put in a little bit of water. next put the chicken breasts on top (maybe three or four) then pour the cream of mushroom soup on top so that it totally covers the chicken and rice. Bake in the oven at about 350 covered for about 20 minutes, then maybe 10 min. uncovered or at least until you can check to see that the rice is cooked. You can even approximate with all of the serving sizes.

An easy meal and tastes even better as leftovers the next day. I like to make it on Sunday nights and then have something for lunch on Monday.

Originally posted by Chaz, Lover of all Beings:

Originally posted by ggwâ?¢:
Fresh ravioli from Whole Foods.

Nice one…we do that from time to time.

I easily have that once or twice a week. so easy but so good.

you can make all kinds of lasagna with minimal prep time, although cooking will take about 45 minutes

just layer it with whatever you want, make sure to have some water in there to boil off so that the pasta layers cook and the filling doesnt burn

it may take a couple of mistakes but once you have it down it is real easy, i usually cook at 425 for 30 minutes with top on and then around 15 minutes or until it looks right with the top off for a traditional lasagna, sorry i dont really follow recipes

Originally posted by P.J.:
Take a can of cream of mushroom soup, some rice, and some boneless chicken breasts.

put the rice in the casserole dish and put in a little bit of water. next put the chicken breasts on top (maybe three or four) then pour the cream of mushroom soup on top so that it totally covers the chicken and rice. Bake in the oven at about 350 covered for about 20 minutes, then maybe 10 min. uncovered or at least until you can check to see that the rice is cooked. You can even approximate with all of the serving sizes.

An easy meal and tastes even better as leftovers the next day. I like to make it on Sunday nights and then have something for lunch on Monday.

Thanks P.J…..sounds great!

I'm more of a baker/brunch guy myself. Our in-laws are constantly cooking awesome filipino food so we're pretty much covered during the week.

Besides the ravioli, we like the Whole Foods soup and corn bread for a quick and easy meal. The sushi used to be good, but they recently dropped Sushi-ko as their provider. The new one - Genji Express - is total crap.

but they recently dropped Sushi-ko as their provider. The new one - Genji Express - is total crap

I was wondering how the switch would affect quality - thanks for the heads up

Originally posted by brennser:
I'm more of a baker/brunch guy myself. Our in-laws are constantly cooking awesome filipino food so we're pretty much covered during the week.

What's filipino food like…spicy?
We'll be over at 7:00!

For a quick pasta dish, heat up a good quality jarred pasta sauce, like Rao's Arrabiata (very spicy) or Marinara, which are often on sale at Rodman's. Separately, crumble and saute a few sausages, either hot or mild, and add to the sauce and serve with pasta.

We just discovered that the frozen corn from Trader Joe's is delicious, and our 18-month-old loves it.

Originally posted by Chaz, Lover of all Beings:

Originally posted by brennser:
I'm more of a baker/brunch guy myself. Our in-laws are constantly cooking awesome filipino food so we're pretty much covered during the week.

What's filipino food like…spicy?
We'll be over at 7:00!

no, not spicy at all - really delicious and savoury, pancit (noodles), lechon (roast pork shoulder), adobo (whatever meat you want marinated in soy sauce and vinegar), sinigang (tamrind based soup usually w/ fish or pork - very easy to make), lumpia (egg rolls), sticky rice

I'll have to see if I can arrange some samples for family Chaz!

Originally posted by eip:
For a quick pasta dish, heat up a good quality jarred pasta sauce, like Rao's Arrabiata (very spicy) or Marinara, which are often on sale at Rodman's. Separately, crumble and saute a few sausages, either hot or mild, and add to the sauce and serve with pasta.

We just discovered that the frozen corn from Trader Joe's is delicious, and our 18-month-old loves it.

Hmmmm…sausage.
Our little boy loves corn too…and peas and carrots and…..that little hog eats anything!