Posted on 08/04/2009 5:55:02 AM PDT by Patriot1259
I had a girlfriend who once said, "If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'." We're talking about food, of course. Time is a commodity. Let's face it, we're all maxed out. Whether you're a working mother (who isn't), a single mother, a stay-at-home mom, or an empty-nester, we are all busy! Our busy schedules don't have to mean take-out or drive-thrus every night, though. Here are some tricks I've found that save time (and money!):
1. Since I don't grow my own vegetables, I have found that frozen or canned work just fine.
2. I don't make my own dough or pie crusts. I use the pie crusts that are in the refrigerated section.
3. I don't make my own whipped cream. Cool Whip is a staple of Southern families...and let's not forget the containers are excellent for leftovers.
4. I don't spend hours slaving away over homemade spaghetti sauce. Why do you think they invented Ragu? You can doctor it up with diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, spices (and don't forget that sugar cuts the acidity!).
(Excerpt) Read more at thecypresstimes.com ...
You can “doctor up” Ragu all day and it can never equal homemade. Ever.
ping
That’s because it’s loaded down with sugar to start!
Does FR really need every article from this web site posted as a separate thread? I see you signed up in June and imagine you’re associated with the web site—but you’re not really doing FR any favors here.
I have a repetoire of meals that take 30 minutes or less prep time. That doesn’t include cooking time, but prep time is what’s important to me. If I can get it from refrigerator/cupboard to cooking pot, fry pan, or oven in less than 30 minutes, then I’m a happy “chef.”
But I don’t use Cool Whip, LOL....real whipped cream only takes 5 minutes to whip up, can be used unsweetened and tastes a heck of a lot better, IMHO.
Ha! Great picture!
Is that what's going on here? You're using FR to generate hits for your website??
Really, that’s your biggest problem in life?
Since when did recipes become fodder for a forum that is basically for political information and discussion?
Not to mention that the discoveries, (frozen and canned veggies work just fine)are something only a person who has never cooked a meal would find enlightening.
Dawn whenever the holidays come and I make pumpkin pie I make “Bourbon whipped cream” I add a little more sugar and one tablespoon of bourbon to the whipped cream. It’s just warm happy pleasure.
Bill there is a large and longstanding cooking ping list on FR as well as a Celebrity Chef Ping list. We all have interest beyond politics and JimRob doesn’t object at all.
You can work on Ragu all day but you’ll NEVER pass it off as real gravy!
Agreed. She mentions crock pots. I put tomato puree, browned meats (assorted) and a few spices (lotsa whole garlic and a whole onion too) in the crock pot in the am and let it go til suppertime. Totally better than any jarred sauce!
You really don’t need to do alot of extra work to make homemade food, and forget about the fast food deal! The time it takes go get in line, take the orders for all family members, wait for the food, pay for the food and the drive to the restaurant and back for the food, I can pretty much have dinner on the table. Rachel Ray can whip up a gourmet meal in 30 minutes or less, every day :). So can anyone who plans.
I also cook double on many recipes, then freeze a portion. On busy days, I just pull it out of the freezer in the am, and by dinnertime, heat it up and done in 5 minutes! We especially do that with tomato sauce, pulled pork, meat loaf, ziti, casseroles, taco and fajita meat, and a few other dishes. When I was working full time, I would cook all day on saturday and have 5 or six meals ready for the next week. You don’t need prepackaged shortcuts, just a little better planning.
This thread poster will get flamed by real moms on this site LOL.
Stove Top Stuffing taste like styrofoam. Nothing beats Mama’s dressing. If I want it, I call Mama.
Stuffing is so easy to make too.
I made homemade spaghetti sauce in minutes the other night — it’s not like it requires a whole day’s effort. (Though admittedly, more time to slowly simmer and reduce would be ideal, but this “quickie” sauce was still massively better than jarred.)
I sauteed some garlic in a little bit of olive oil, added chopped tomatoes, salt, basil, and oregano. and cooked it until the tomatoes were basically mush. Then I strained the pulp and seeds away and thickened it with tomato paste.
Simple, quick, and allowed my 4-year-old son to appreciate dinner made from his very own tomato plant.
Stacey Winder is definitely my type of cook. I agree with everything she says.
I also love my “I Hate to Cook Cookbook.” And yes, for the record, I have many cookbooks around the house, but one can’t beat simple and fast and yet yummy. Life is too short.
Thank you for the article.
Your articles are fun. It also takes away from the continuous depressing news.
I didn’t know there was a ping list. How do I get on them?
Thank you.
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