Your GoTo Meal in Desperation?

[Katy]

You just got home from work. You're exhausted but starving. It's just you that needs to be fed. What's your goto meal?

Same situation, only it's you and your signif. other?

[maggieb]

only me: either a peanut butter sandwich or a bowl of cereal

DH and me: frozen pizza and salad

[thedoorchick]

Depends on what's in the house, usually for just me it's leftovers if we have any, or a bowl of cereal. Maybe a sandwich.

For the two of us I might throw together taco soup or beef stroganoff. Or grilled cheese sandwiches.

[Shapsgrl]

just me: quesadilla or lean cuisine
both of us: prob something frozen, or pasta.

[Tonysweetie]

If I feel like making a quick meal it'll be spaghetti sauce I have frozen in the freezer. I'll just pop in the microwave for about 8 minutes and boil noodles. If I don't feel like doing that we order takeout from Sonnys BBQ.

[cherry]

just me: frozen pizza and salad
both of us: cheese ravioli (trader joe's) with pesto sauce, salad

neither of which are particularly healthy, but both can be ready with minimal work in 20 minutes!

[myshel]

just me: toast or cereal, maybe leftovers

us: frozen pizza and salad or grilled sandwiches (deli meat, cheese, bread, throw onto the Foreman, serve with BBQ sauce)

[myshel]

If I don't feel like doing that we order takeout from Sonnys BBQ.

I wished I lived in a part of the country where take-out was more popular. Take-out in my area is limited to pizza anda few Chinese places.

[ee_chick]

Sandwiches or quesadillas if it's the two of us. Leftovers, cereal, salad or quick seafood dishes if it's just me.

[tlew12778]

Just me - spaghetti alla carbonara. It takes 8 minutes. Oh wait, plus the time to get the water to a boil. So say 15.

Him and me - frozen veggie burgers and peas or grilled zucchini.

[ignutzz]

Hot & Spicy Cheezits and some almonds (this has been my dinner the past two nights :p)

Us: See above. DH makes himself tomatoes and fresh mozzarella with flatbread (I don't cook and I don't like tomatoes :p)

[jennylou]

Just me: Grilled chicken on the foreman and frozen brocolli nuked in the microwave.

The two of us: Probably the same thing with some sort of carb thrown in there as well, for DH moreso than me.

[Dan's*Girl]

Me: grilled cheese and soup, pbj and milk, cereal

Us: spaghetti, sloppy joes w/ baked fries, tuna sandwiches and chips

[Katie&Micah]

Me: Scrambled eggs and toast

Us: Scrambled eggs and toast

Yeah.. we eat a lot of that around here since we're both too lazy to cook most of the time.

[BethIrish]

me: grilled cheese & tomato soup, cereal, or leftovers

me & DH: whatever he feels like making. I don't cook. If he doesn't feel like making anything we get takeout.

I'd say I don't really cook, but that's not even true any more. I honestly can't remember the last time I made a meal.

[tenofcups]

Peanut butter sandwich, with or without preserves depending on my mood. Or 2 scrambled eggs with half a bagel with butter.

DH's is mac and cheese. Although he's much more creative than I am -- he can be tired and hungry and decide to whip up some tacos or cheese steaks or a pizza (all the above from scratch, made at home) or crab legs or steak.

[SunnyAB]

Just me - leftovers when available, or popcorn.

Us - grilled cheese or scrambled eggs with cheese (& ham if we have some) and toast. Or cereal.

[laura]

For just me, whatever I can find. Maybe frozen taquitos, or maybe just chips and salsa or pita and hummus. Depends on the temperature and how tired/hungry I am.

For us... last night we ordered a pizza, or sometimes I pick up a rotisserie chicken or something from the deli at the supermarket on my way home. To cook something, our quickest meal is leftovers-frittata or throwing something on the grill, but that assumes the thing to be grilled is thawed and that is assuming a lot most nights. By himself, my husband will make himself an omelette.

[DaNiGaToR]

Me: bowl of cereal (which I just ate!) or left overs. If we don't have anything in the house maybe I'll pick something up on the way home.

FI: just about anything...he eats the weirdest combos of food but is so good about trying to eat up left overs.

Us: we'll usually go out.

[strwbrygirl]

Me: bowl of cereal, with some fruit (blueberries, strawberries, or banana) tossed in

Us: baked or grilled chicken over pasta or rice with some sort of vegetable. Takes 20-30 minutes if the chicken is already thawed.

[cari2]

me: salad
dh: pasta with jarred sauce or some sauce from the freezer

[QueenDillyDally]

Me: whatever I can scrounge up out of the fridge or freezer... leftovers or frozen lean cuisine meal

DH: Cereal or pbtr & jelly sandwich

[CarolinaGirl]

Me: toast with peanut or almond butter or cheese toast
DH: frozen pizza or Taco Bell

[bookworm]

Usually take out or delivery (the last people to live in my apt left a whole folder of delivery/takeout menus). If none of the menus inspire me, my fallback is English muffin pizza.

[silvergrey]

Me: cereal

Us: Bertolli frozen dinner bags (http://www.marco.org/213)--I always have one in the freezer. They're not terribly expensive at Sam's Club.

[Missy2U]

Smoked sausage and mac and cheese. In fact, it's whats for dinner tonight.

[kdotp]

Me: leftovers, cereal, sandwich or wrap

DH: leftovers, sandwich, wrap, random canned pantry items (tuna, spinach, green beans, etc...)

We've been eating a lot of sandwiches lately. :)

[Sol]

Me: a banana (with or without a glass of milk), or whole wheat spaghetti with tomato sauce if I missed lunch.

Us: if I make pasta for me, I sautee some veggies for him and we both have pasta. Otherwise, the freezer is usually stocked with enough Indian food (sambar or rasam and a couple curries) for him to have a quick meal if there's leftover rice. If there's no rice and I'm not making pasta, he'd probably go for a scrambled egg on toast.

[jesseybell]

Just me: pasta
Us: order in pizza, or we'll eat separate things

[heather1029]

Me: can of tuna over spinach or tuna mixed into gluten free pasta (I know, that sounds gross, but I love my protein!)

Us: gluten free pasta w/ meatsauce or omelettes or tomato soup

[andrew&shannah]

Mine is the same for both situations :)

lemon spaghetti

[Amuse Bouche]

It depends on what's in the house. Just me -- Cheese sandwich and soup, or frozen pizza. Both of us -- frozen pizza. If we're just tired but it's relatively early, takeout. Sometimes I'll make an omelet.

[ausi2b]

Me: Mac and cheese

Us: We usually plan one meal that is our "we're too tired to eat, much less cook meal" a week. It varies from grilled cheese and soup, frozen pizza and bagged salad, and pasta with butter, parmesan cheese and peas (sometimes we throw in the pre-cooked sliced chicken too).

[May27JnJ]

Me: Ramen Noodles

Us: Desperation Chicken

[Medako]

Us: bean burritos
Me: leftovers, toast or chicken strips

[LRL]

Me- Cereal

Us- Canned soup/Fideo, quesadillas, eggs and sausage w/ polenta.

[Adaya]

Depends on the mood I'm in and what I have in the house, but my options range from:

-pb&j and chips
-tossed salad and toast
-frozen pizza
-beans and franks

OR

-takeout

[malala]

Chicken taquitos or Stir Fry Vegetable Egg Rolls from TJ's

[lauren f s]

Pasta. We eat it every week and I always buy two boxes of whichever we're eating that week, so I always have some on hand. If no meat is thawed then I'll just chop up some veggies, saute in olive oil, then mix it and some fresh parmesan with the pasta. Fast, easy, and good.

[LittleFredPunkinHead]

Me: Cereal

DH: Takeout ;)

[Fenway]

Me: SmartOnes or Lean Cuisine

Us: Mac & Cheese, or Sandwiches, but most likely takeout

[Janey]

Just me: Lately - Smart Ones Santa Fe Chicken wrapped in whole wheat tortillas.
Me & B: Trader Joe's Thai Shrimp Gyoza & some sort of green vegetable.

[Katyanne]

me: depending what we have in the house anything wrapped in a soft tortilla whether it be scrambled eggs or maybe been and cheese quesadilla's. Either that or cereal.

Us: tuna fish sandwiches, (we had that last night) blt's, spagetti, or sometimes just breakfast for dinner. Or take out ;-)

I also always try to have either a lb of frozen cooked hamburger or cooked diced chicken in the freezer, add that with a bag of frozen mixed veggies and some egg noodles and a quick light sauce and dinners ready ;)

katie
PS years ago when I lived alone it was always a bag of frozen breadsticks and some marinara sauce.. Yum!

[KrissyCat7]

We usually will order take out. If that isnt an option we will make mac n cheese, grilled cheese, or eggs & bacon.

[AmandaLeigh]

Me: canned soup and popcorn
Us: Takeout

[margarita]

Me: frozen dinner

Us: take out, frozen pizza or frozen shrimp poppers

[Standrea]

Me: English muffin or peanut butter and jelly sandwich
Me and DH: Goolash or Quesidillas

[Ole Miss Bride]

Something from the freezer - I usually have a few leftover items stored in there. Usually red beans and rice or something similar.

Or black bean burritos are super easy and fast. Pop open a can of seasoned black beans, wrap in a tortilla with a bunch of cheese, grill in a pan with some olive oil until heated through. Top with sour cream and salsa. If I'm feeling really industrious, I'll add a chopped onion to my beans.

-Betsy

[petdoc08]

me: cereal

us: DH gets burger king and I eat cereal.

[Ohana]

Me: Something frozen (Smart Ones or pizza)

Us: French Toast and eggs

[Katy]

Betsy - thanks for posting that. Believe it or not, I didn't know it was that simple :o I might just have to add bean burritos to our menu!

[ysolde]

I make lemon linguine (Nigella's recipe):

I have modified it thusly:

No butter, half and half instead of heavy cream. If fresh lemons are not sitting around in your kitchen, that prepackaged lemon juice will do nicely. Use it to taste.




2 pounds of linguine
2 egg yolks
2/3 cup of heavy cream
1/2 cup of freshly grated parmesan
Zest of 1 lemon and juice of 1/2, plus more juice if needed
Pinch of salt
Freshly milled black pepper
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) of unsalted butter
2-3 tablespoons of chopped parsley

Fill just about the biggest pot you have with water and bring to a boil. When friends are coming for lunch, get the water heated to boiling point before they arrive, otherwise you end up nervously hanging around waiting for a watched pot to boil, while your supposedly quick lunch gets later and later. Bring the water to a boil, cover and turn off the burner.

I tend to leave the addition of salt until the water's come to a boil a second time. But whichever way you do it, add quite a bit of salt. When the bubbling's encouragingly fierce, put in the pasta. I often put the lid on for a moment or so just to let the pasta get back to a boil. But don't turn your back on it--give it a good stir with a pasta fork to avoid even the suspicion of stickiness once you've removed the lid.

Then get on with the sauce, making sure you've set your timer for about a minute or so less than the time specified on the package of pasta.

In a bowl, put the yolks, cream, parmesan, zest of the whole lemon and juice of a hair of it, the salt and a good grind of pepper and beat with a fork. You don't want it fluffy, just combined. Taste. If you want it more lemony, then, of course, add more juice.

When the timer goes off, taste to judge how near the pasta is to being ready. I recommend that you hover by the stove, so you don't miss that point. Don't be too hasty, though. Everyone is so keen to cook their pasta properly al dente that sometimes the pasta is actually not cooked enough. You want absolutely no chalkiness here. And linguine tends not to become soggy and overcooked quite as quickly as other long pastas (or at least I find it so). This makes sense, of course, as the strands of "little tongues" are denser than the flat ribbon shapes.

Anyway, as soon as the pasta looks ready, remove a cup of the cooking liquid and drain the pasta. And then, off the heat, toss it back in the pot or put it in an efficiently preheated bowl. Throw in the butter and stir and swirl about to make sure the butter's melted and the pasta is covered all over. Each strand will be only mutely gleaming, as there's not much butter and quite a bit of pasta. If you want to add more, then do.

When you're satisfied that the pasta's covered with its soft slip of butter, stir in the egg mixture and turn the pasta well in it, adding some of the cooking liquid if it looks a bit dry. (Only 2 tablespoons or so--you don't want a wet mess--and only after you think the sauce is incorporated.) Sprinkle over the parsley and serve.

http://www.stylenetwork.com/Shows/Nigella/Recipes/linguini.html

Takes all of 12 minutes from kitchen to table. Serves four, or you and a man who eats a lot.

[cosmic]

Linguine with turkey meatballs
Bottle of red wine


:) It's a crowd pleaser.

[Lizard]

Me - Spaghetti or some other pasta dish.

Us - We always have frozen burritos on hand, we put 4 in a pan, cover with Pace and cheese, cook for 40 mins. Soooo good. :)

[anemone]

Pasta with some pesto stirred through (always in the cupboard) and perhaps some grape tomatoes chopped and added.

Other option with DH, Pasta Puttanesca (chopped anchovies, garlic, kalamata olives and canned diced tomato with some tomato paste)

[rachrich]

Just me: cereal, pb & j sandwich, popcorn...really just whatever's around to put together without any effort.

Us: hot dogs and fries

[junkinmytrunk]

Just me - spaghetti alla carbonara. It takes 8 minutes. Oh wait, plus the time to get the water to a boil. So say 15.

Him and me - frozen veggie burgers and peas or grilled zucchini.

Tiffany: What's your carbonara recipe? I love it and in 8 minutes, I might actually try preparing it!

[sea74]

Ranch Chicken.
Dip chicken breast in some ranch dressing (I use fat-free)
Then coat it in breadcrumbs and sprinkle para. cheese on top and bake.
Takes NO time at all and it's my DH's favorite.

Then I'll do some veggies for a side.

[Ilovemygeek]

Me: Cereal or Trader Joe's cheese enchiladas

Us: Frozen pizza or hot dogs

[CarolinaGirl]

Grilled cheese sandwich on the Foreman with a salad or a cup of soup. The other night I made a grilled cheese with muenster cheese and a little pre-prepared pesto.

[betsyboop]

Me- Whatever pasta shape is on hand with veggies (whatever is in the fridge) and garlic sauteed in olive oil. Parm sprinkled on top. Salad with oil and vinegar.

Us- Cheese fondue (DH is a cheese addict) or burgers with baked beans and a salad.

[jajacobsen]

Company coming - no time to cook from scratch: Rotisserie chicken, bagged spinach salad with nuts and grated cheese added, rice pilaf from a box with chopped onion and toased almonds added.

DH - Omelet or frozen pizza

Me - fruit smoothie with slimfast, any fruit and crushed ice.

[msnicolea]

Cereal. In fact, I don't even have to be desperate--I just love me some cereal!

[lauren f s]

Cereal. In fact, I don't even have to be desperate--I just love me some cereal!
Right now it's cereal for us, too. We grocery shopped Friday and got home later than we had planned and I wasn't about to cook dinner. DH, DD, & I all had a big bowl of cereal. Yum!

[salysaturn]

me---Popcorn :)

me and DH...pizza bread.

[jajacobsen]

DH loves cereal as supper. In fact, he never eats it in the morning - onlyfor teh occassional supper!

[luvnbeng]

me alone--grilled chicken ceasar salad

both of us--see above!! :)