I have been very busy planting my vegetable garden. I am almost done, so hopefully tonight after work I will be able to plant the last few beds. That won’t leave a lot of time to cook dinner though, but I have a plan: Frozen cheese ravioli, left-over marinara and a quick salad. By the time the water boils and the ravioli are done, I will have the sauce warmed and the salad made. We even have some rolls left from last night if someone wants bread with their dinner.

The vegetarian marinara sauce is really easy and tasty. Here’s the recipe:

Vegetarian Marinara Sauce (double batch)

Ingredients:
2 large onions, chopped finely
2 bulbs of garlic, minced finely
2 bell peppers (red, green or one of each), chopped finely
1 can black olives, drained and chopped finely
1 pound mushrooms, chopped finely
5 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons sugar
2 – 26 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes
handful dried oregano
handful dried basil
salt to taste

The reason I chop every thing finely for this sauce is that it gives a consistency resembling ground beef in the sauce. It took a very long time for my kids to realize there wasn’t any meat in this sauce.

In a heavy bottomed pan sauté the onions until softened. Add the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes. Next add the bell peppers and garlic and cook until soft. Add the rest of the ingredients to the pan (except the salt) and bring up to a boil. Turn down and simmer for at least 30 minutes. The longer it simmers, the better the sauce will taste. After the first 30 minutes, taste the sauce to see if it needs any salt. It may not because the olives are salty and the canned tomatoes usually contain salt also.

A trick I use if the sauce gets too thick, is to add a can of V-8 juice. It has most of the same ingredients as the sauce so it adds liquid and maintains the flavor.

So if the weather holds, my garden will be completely planted tonight before dinner. My Quick Fix Dinner will be less than 30 minutes from start to finish. Everyone will be satisfied with the garden and the dinner!

SAUSAGE LENTIL SOUP

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion chopped

4 cloves of garlic finely minced

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon oregano

1 tablespoon basil

16 oz. turkey or pork sweet Italian sausage

8 cups vegetable or beef broth

1 pound carrots chopped

3 stalks celery diced

2 large bell peppers chopped

1/2 pound dry lentils

1 – 16 oz. can crushed tomatoes

Parmesan cheese for topping

Cut the sausages into 1/2 inch slices.  The slicing is easier if the sausages are slightly frozen.  In a large heavy bottomed pan, brown the sausages in the olive oil.  Add the onion and sauté until tender.  Add the garlic and sauté until softened and fragrant.  To this mixture add the remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer.  Allow soup to simmer until the lentils are tender.  Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

You can also make this soup in the crock pot.  Just brown the sausage and then put everything into the crock pot for about 10 hours on low or 6 hours on high.

This soup is so tasty and filling.  Serve it with some nice fresh bread and maybe a salad and you will definitely be satisfied.  Hope you enjoy this one!

I organized my thoughts the night before.  Planning my meals ahead really saves me time and energy.  So, when I got up in the morning, I threw two coarsely chopped onions, 1/2 a bulb of garlic (peeled and minced), a jar of roasted red peppers, salt, pepper, one can of beef stock and a three pound London broil into my crock pot.  I set it on high and off to work I went.

When I got home six hours later the beef was totally done.  A quick taste let me know that the meat was very well seasoned and quite tasty.  I took two forks and shredded it right in the crock, leaving it in the juice and vegetables.  I then separated it into three portions.  One went into the freezer and one into the refrigerator for another meal in a day or two.

With the last portion of the shredded meat, I added one cup of my favorite bold and spicy barbecue sauce and re-warmed it.  At my six year old’s request, I made a pound of frozen broccoli and a batch of macaroni and cheese.  I served the beef on hamburger buns and dinner was done in about 20 minutes.  It wasn’t fancy, but it was wholesome and delicious.

With the other portions of the beef I am planning to make beef-stroganoff on Wednesday and a big pot of beef barley soup (in the crock pot) on Saturday.  I will let you know how it goes, but I know that it will be easy and scrumptious.  Dust off those crock pots!

With all the cold weather we’ve been having, I am ready for some comfort food. One of my favorite cold weather comfort foods is definitely Minestrone Soup! Here is my recipe for a very quick version.

MINESTRONE SOUP

Ingredients:

In a large heavy bottomed pan, brown the ground beef. Add the onion and sauté until tender. Add the garlic and sauté until softened and fragrant. To this mixture add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer for 30 minutes or until the carrots are tender. Cook the pasta separately until al dente. You can mix the cooked pasta into the pot of soup or add just as much pasta as you want to each bowl. Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

For a really quick cooking version – use your seasoned ground beef from the freezer and 1 jar of pasta sauce instead of the can of tomatoes and other seasonings. See Organization – the key to quick cooking! for details. Or, if you want dinner ready when you get home, use your crock pot!

Serve this soup with some warm, crusty bread and enjoy!