A well-stocked pantry and refrigerator filled with staple ingredients, such as flour, sugar, spices, fresh and canned fruits and vegetables, meats, pasta and rice, provides the backbone of quick, healthy, made-from-scratch meals. Pick a protein source, add some fruits or vegetables and a few other ingredients and have dinner on the table in 30 minutes or less. A little advance preparation every time you bring home groceries keeps chopped, sliced or diced vegetables, fruits and meats ready for use.
Homemade Noodles with Tuna, Chicken or Beef
Step 1
Combine 3 cups of flour, 1 tsp. of baking powder and 1/4 cup of beer or ginger ale with 2 large eggs in a large mixing bowl. Work everything together, adding more flour--1 tbsp. at a time--until the dough no longer sticks to your hands.
Step 2
Roll the dough to 1/8 inch thickness and cut it into 1/4-inch-wide strips. Pull gently on each strip to stretch it an additional 1/4 to 1/3 of its original length, even if the noodles pull apart into shorter pieces.
Step 3
Fill an 8-qt. stockpot with 6 cups of chicken, beef or vegetable broth. Bring the broth to a rolling boil and drop the noodles into it by handfuls. Boil the noodles for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender all the way through.
Step 4
Place a colander over the second stockpot and drain the noodles into it. Allow the pasta broth to cool. Reserve the pasta broth for the next recipe.
Step 5
Add 2 or 3 cans of chunk beef, chicken or tuna, 1/4- to 1/2-cup of grated Parmesan cheese and your favorite spices, such as onion or garlic powder, black pepper, basil or parsley.
Step 6
Serve 1 cup of pasta with chicken, tuna or beef and 1/2 cup of canned corn, peas or green beans.
Cheese Ravioli with Garden Salad
Step 1
Use the same pasta recipe as before to make ravioli. Cut the dough into squares or use a juice glass to make 2-inch-diameter pasta circles.
Step 2
Mix 2 cups of ricotta cheese with 1 tsp. each of basil, lemon peel and dried bell pepper flakes. Spoon the mixture into the center of a pasta circle or square, wet the edges with water or a beaten egg.
Step 3
Press a second pasta circle or square on top, pinching the edges tight with your fingers. Bring the pasta broth back to a rolling boil and add the ravioli.
Step 4
Make white sauce while the ravioli boil, using one cup of pasta broth, 1 stick of butter or margarine and 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese. Mix everything together in a saute pan on medium-low heat until it makes a smooth sauce.
Step 5
Make red sauce from a 30-oz. can of crushed tomatoes and 1 tsp. each of basil, oregano, garlic and onion powder. Add 2 cans of sliced mushrooms and simmer the red sauce for 15 minutes on low heat.
Step 6
Serve your choice of red or white sauce over the ravioli, along with a fresh garden salad of iceberg or Romaine lettuce, Roma tomato wedges, red and green bell pepper slices and chopped red onion, dressed with apple cider vinegar and olive oil.
Hawaiian Meatballs with Wild Rice
Step 1
Make instant wild rice according to package directions and set it aside.
Step 2
Pour a large bag of ready-made meatballs or 4 cups of tofu or seitan chunks into a 6-qt. Dutch oven.
Step 3
Add 1 to 3 cans each of pineapple chunks or mandarin oranges in any combination with a 16-oz. bottle of French or Catalina dressing or barbecue sauce.
Step 4
Add 1 cup of chopped yellow onion, 1/2 cup of fresh, diced red and green bell peppers, 1/2 cup of brown sugar and 2 tbsp. of cornstarch. Stir until well-blended.
Step 5
Bring the meatball mixture to a rolling boil for 5 minutes. Turn the heat to medium-low and simmer the meatball mixture for 20 minutes.
Step 6
Serve 1/2 cup of Hawaiian meatballs over 1 cup of wild rice.
Tips and Warnings
- If you use fresh hamburger, sausage, ground chicken or ground turkey to make fresh meatballs, saute them on medium-high heat until they brown on all sides before adding them to the stockpot. Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of several meatballs from the center of the Dutch oven. Cook ground beef, pork or sausage to 160 degrees Fahrenheit and ground chicken or turkey to 165 degrees.
Things You'll Need
- Flour
- Baking powder
- Beer or ginger ale
- Eggs
- Large mixing bowl
- Rolling pin
- Utility knife
- 8-qt. stockpots
- Chicken, beef or vegetable broth
- Colander
- Canned beef, chicken or tuna
- Parmesan cheese
- Onion and garlic powder
- Black pepper
- Basil
- Parsley
- Canned corn, peas or green beans
- Juice glass
- Ricotta cheese
- Lemon peel
- Dried bell pepper flakes
- Butter or margarine
- Saute pan
- Canned crushed tomatoes
- Oregano
- Sliced canned mushrooms
- Iceberg or Romaine lettuce
- Roma tomatoes
- Fresh red and green bell peppers
- Red onion
- Apple cider vinegar
- Olive oil
- Instant wild rice
- Ready-made frozen meatballs
- Tofu chunks
- Seitan chunks
- 6-qt. Dutch oven
- Canned pineapple chunks
- Canned mandarin oranges
- 16-oz. bottle of barbecue sauce
- French or Catalina dressing
- Yellow onions
- Brown sugar
- Cornstarch
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