Substitutes

I've said it before, and it remains true, that as soon as I start working, I stop cooking. But a family of two healthy adults can't survive on bologna and cereal, so tough times call for tough measures, and throughout the years, we've discovered more than acceptable substitutes for cooking. I know that plenty of people have the same problem - and takeout pizza does nothing for one's waistline, so, I thought I'd share our non-cooking secrets.

Non-Cooking Cooking:


Whole Foods rotisserie chicken and mashed potatoes
-It costs $10 for the chicken, which is not that much more than to actually buy a chicken and roast it - minus all the trouble and waiting

-It's juicy and delicious

-It feeds 2 people for 2 days




IKEA Rosti

-It's a fried potato pancake

-takes no time to make whatsoever

-You can pile stuff on top (cheese, ham, eggs, spinach, tomatoes, anything you want) and make a large meal out of 2-3 of them

IKEA Swedish Meatballs

-I don't want it to look like I grocery shop there, but - you buy a big bag of meatballs, frozen, take out what you need, lay out on a tray and bake

-No preparation, no thawing, and they taste authentic, not fake

-Buy the sauce powder - just add cream

Buitoni fresh pasta and sauces

-It's pasta and sauce, so really can't go wrong

-It takes about 5 minutes to make +/- 5 for water boiling time

-1 pack feeds 2 hungry adults for 1 day, but if it's just you, you have lunch for tomorrow

Shrimp

-If you keep a big bag of frozen shrimp in the freezer, you basically have a rapid meal on your hands

-Take out a bunch, and thaw - or put'em in water to thaw faster

-Cook anyway you want: sautee, boil, add to salad - meal!

These are my secrets....

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