Help!!!!

I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.

Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary

"Pool Dood" wrote in message
...
I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.

Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary

I can't help you there. I don't know how to cook and my kid is 14.

(Get a cookbook... something with 30 minutes or less in the title.)

Tiff

"Tiffany" wrote in message
...

"Pool Dood" wrote in message
...
I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.

Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary

I can't help you there. I don't know how to cook and my kid is 14.

No wonder you are so skinny! ;-)



(Get a cookbook... something with 30 minutes or less in the title.)

Tiff

"Tiffany" wrote in message
...

"Pool Dood" wrote in message
...
I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.

Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary

I can't help you there. I don't know how to cook and my kid is 14.

(Get a cookbook... something with 30 minutes or less in the title.)

Tiff

Well... At least I no longer feel like the oddball!
I'm glad I'm not the only one who can't cook. I try, but if it doesn't go
in the microwave, it often doesn't get made, unless, of course, it's a
Mickey-Mouse meal, like grilled cheese, spaghetti or mmm... potato skins...

Potato skins are great... They cover food groups (if you have potatos,
cheese, bacon, chives or green onions and maybe some sour cream or cottage
cheese for dipping - also ranch dressing is good)

I quite fancy http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/
They've got some good, fast recipes on there. They all follow food guides
and there's all kinds of links and support for meal planning.

--
A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
A: Top-posting.
Q: What is the most annoying thing on usenet?

"'Kate" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 10 Apr 2005 20:28:10 -0600, Pool Dood
the following was posted in blue crayon:

I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.

Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary


Plan your meals in advance from the sales circular and make sure you
make enough to freeze some or to have the next day in a different
form. You'd be surprised how creative you can get with leftover
meatloaf (meatloaf parmesan, crumbled meatloaf in mac & cheese)'

snip

'Kate

Wow... I'd have never thought all these big meals were easy to make... And
they sound so good that I'm hungry right now...
The pork chops idea made me think of my mom's ideas with leftover pork chops
where she tosses the pork chops into a pan, adds some potatos (if she has
some leftover mashed potatos, they go on the bottom with the pork chops on
the top, or if she has some leftover roasted potatos, she'll spread those
around the pork chops) and then tosses some fresh mushrooms or canned
mushrooms, depending on what's around the house, and then just smothers it
with a can of mushroom soup. All you really have to do with leftovers is
warm them up, so taking 5-10 mins to toss items into a pan then heat them up
for 15 mins is all it takes and boy is it good and making me hungry right
now!
I'm so glad we're going to my parents' place tonight for dinner tonight!

--
A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
A: Top-posting.
Q: What is the most annoying thing on usenet?

Kate........you need to get away from the sugars and heavy sauces. ;-)

"'Kate" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 10 Apr 2005 20:28:10 -0600, Pool Dood
the following was posted in blue crayon:

I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.

Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary


Plan your meals in advance from the sales circular and make sure you
make enough to freeze some or to have the next day in a different
form. You'd be surprised how creative you can get with leftover
meatloaf (meatloaf parmesan, crumbled meatloaf in mac & cheese)'

tuna mac & cheese with packaged Mac & cheese, cream of mushroom soup,
and durkee fried onions, and a small can of peas and carrots (mix
those in last or it'll turn green).

Pork chops ... spread yellow mustard on both sides, cook them in a
shallow baking pan lined with non-stick foil (400 F for 15 minutes),
coat the top with brown sugar (about a spoon full), cook for another
10 minutes, turn, coat the other side, cook 10 minutes. Serve with a
baked potato & veggie.

Frozen chicken breasts can be cooked without having to defrost. Add
some frozen, sliced peppers, onions, butter or olive oil, and sprinkle
with pre-mixed italian seasoning or rosemary. Serve with pasta
w/pesto & olive oil & garlic. Great with salad, broccoli, or
asparagus.

Have the rest of the chicken the next day as a hot chicken and gravy
open-faced sandwich (buy a jar or package of chicken gravy). You can
also use deli roast beef w/gravy on baked potato or bread.

Ham & cheese w/thousand island dressing on half a bagel broiled until
it's all warm & melted.

Chef salad with thin sliced deli meat rolled and cut into pinwheels

Pot pies made with a can of gravy or cream of chicken soup, a can of
mixed veggies with potatos, leftover chicken cubed, and store bought
pie shells. Cook until the middle of the top of the pot pie is flaky
(maybe 50 - 60 minutes at 350F).

warm canned chili on top of fritos with shreaded cheddar cheese &
optional diced onion (frito pie, a regional favorite that can be
served *IN* a small frito bag).

crock pots are wonderful. Throw in some frozen chicken breasts,
spaghetti sauce, and a bag of frozen stew vegetables before work and
you can come home to a home cooked meal. There are a ton of recipe
sites online for this.

Brown a pound of ground beef. Add spaghetti sauce (prepared jar),
serve with spaghetti or elbow macaroni & salad.

If you plan your meals and have some easy throw togethers that are
always in the house, you'll get into the habit of putting everything
together in your head before you leave for work.

Keep frozen hamburger patties in the fridge. Make chicken soup and
freeze half for when you're feeling unwell.

I freeze a LOT... sliced peppers, onions, meatballs, soups, gravy,
etc. I can always make something from something in the house.

I dunno what else to tell you. Maybe just to get out of the habit of
thinking that dinner has to be some elaborate affair every evening.
Times have changed.... we have to adapt to them. Lots of two parent
wroking couples out there who make dinner in a hurry every night.

'Kate

"Pool Dood" wrote in message
...
I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.

Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary

Well, since I am notorious for not knowing how to cook anything, really, I
find the following to be pretty healthy and follow food guides and all
that... Everything I make IS fast, but often revolves around pastas...

I like: Baked spaghetti...
Some spaghetti noodles, ground beef or buffalo with tomato sauce, some
chopped carrots, mushrooms, mix it all up in a caserole dish, then add some
grated cheese on the top and bake it in the oven for 15-20 mins, until the
centre is hot and the cheese is all nicely melted...

Potato skins (mm... my fav!)
I poke some potatos with a fork, toss them into the mic until they are
cooked (completely cooked, like a baked potato) and then I cut the potatos
in half, scoop out the insides of the potatos (which can be stored for
frying or something the next day) and leave just a small amount of potato on
the skin... Then I put in some chopped, fried bacon and smother it with
grated cheese... Norm likes mozza, Bran prefers cheddar, I really don't care
as long as it's not unmelted mozza, so I just grate mozza and cheddar
together and put both on top... Then for Norm, I'll add some green onions or
chives on top and bake them for about 10 mins. Add some sour cream for
dipping them in, or cottage cheese, and I also really like them with ranch
salad dressing, maybe even some salsa, and you're set.

Another fast (pasta) one I like is...
Macaroni noodles, cooked, mixed in with a can of corn, ground beef,
mushrooms and tomato soup (no milk or water added to the soup) Mix it all
up and it's another fast, easy meal... I like making this because it warms
up the next day really well for lunches or snacks. Add some garlic bread
and make it almost like a sloppy joe type meal.

Oh... Another one I recently found to be REALLY fast (I mean like 5 mins
fast) are those beef dip sandwiches... I go and buy some sliced roast beef
from the deli, then make the dipping juice with that au jus powder stuff,
when it boils, toss in the roast beef slices. While boiling the juice, have
some of those long (french?) buns open and browing in the oven, then put
your pieces of boiled roast beef (keep them boiling for about a min or so,
until they get juicy and start to curl up a bit) on the browned buns and
serve with some of the boiled juice in a bowl beside it... I like to add a
salad and/or some deep fried fries with the sandwiches - just to add
something more than bread and meat to the meal.

I like, also, a macaroni type salad, but it offers no meat, but is great to
make in mass amounts to take as lunch or to add as a side dish with almost
any meal...
Some type of bite-sized pasta (shells, macaroni, whatever) then chop up some
bite-sized cucumber, carrots, green pepers and mix that all up with the
pasta and some ranch dressing. Then add some tomatos on top (either cut
them up like a regular salad or use the little cherry? tomatos that are
already bite sized and chill it for about half an hour then serve cold as it
is.
It's sooo good, and right now, I wish I had some cucumber and ranch dressing


There's all kinds of easy recipes out there... I like 'Kate's suggestions,
and, really, I think I'm going to try HER suggestion of those pork chops...
They sound so good!

--
A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
A: Top-posting.
Q: What is the most annoying thing on usenet?

"'Kate" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 12 Apr 2005 10:38:24 -0400, "P.Fritz"
the following was posted in blue crayon:

Kate........you need to get away from the sugars and heavy sauces. ;-)

ROFL... I don't eat what the kids eat!

'Kate


Well, you should get them aways from the sugars and heavy sauces ;-)

(It just masks the flavors)

"'Kate" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 12 Apr 2005 23:31:05 -0400, "P. Fritz"
the following was posted in blue
crayon:


"'Kate" wrote in message
. ..
On Tue, 12 Apr 2005 10:38:24 -0400, "P.Fritz"
the following was posted in blue crayon:

Kate........you need to get away from the sugars and heavy sauces.
;-)

ROFL... I don't eat what the kids eat!

'Kate


Well, you should get them aways from the sugars and heavy sauces ;-)

(It just masks the flavors)


Hold on. I have to go check my Perfect Parent Handbook.

Let's see.
Page 149.

Yep. There it is.

The section on moderation.

Ok.. it's ok. Whew! One nasty black mark avoided!

;-p



'Kate

On Sun, 10 Apr 2005 20:28:10 -0600, Pool Dood
wrote:

I know this is prolly a strange time to be asking this after being a
single parent for two years almost. But does anyone have any meal
planning tips or tricks. I find we go to the store and buy lots of
groceries but somehow never can figure out what to cook with them.


Don't go to the store hungry :-)

Crock pots ( the oblong ones work best )

Throw in some pork chops, couple cans of cream of mushroom soup (
cover the chops ) simmer all day cook up some frozen veggies and
instant potato's ( unless you like to mash )

Throw in a roast, sliced up onion, add a bag of frozen veggies, cup
of water. little garlic


Alex



Any help is appreciated. TIA!!

Gary