Late night eatting disasters

[Trista El'Torra]

ok so my finacee and i both work afternoons

i work from 3pm -11pm and he works from 4pm=12:30am..

i useually get home around 11:30 and he doesn't arrive homuntil somewhere around 1am.. so normally we eat dinnr at this time .. but

that late in the day normally i am wiped right out and can't think of anything to make


any ideas?

[Drea Beth]

My first thought would be to prepare something before you go to work, so when you get home you can just pop it in the oven. Or let a crockpot do the cooking so that dinner is ready when you get home.

Personal experience says that both work well! :star:

[Rhia]

Batch cooking!

Dedicate one day (I know, but it's worth it) to makeing up a BUNCH of different things: Spaghetti sauce, chili, red beans and rice, enchiladas, casseroles... you get the idea. Then portion for two, label and freeze.

You can also pre-slice and marinate meats for stirfry - they thaw a lot faster than steaks or big pieces of chicken. Thaw them out, toss in a hot skillet with some veggies (fresh or frozen) and some (pre-cooked) rice and voila.

you can do up sauces (not cream ones, but tomato and pestos work great) and freeze them in ice cube trays (each section is about 1.5 oz) then thaw what you need for a pasta or even over grilled chicken or fish.

There are tons of great books and websites on batch cooking; you can also check out once-a-week cooking as another search term.

If it's any consolation, I totally understand... been there, done that!
That's why I have a full-size freezer in my garage! To hold all the frozen goodies for some Thursday night when I'm just too wiped to do anything but push a button on the microwave or shove something inthe oven.

[Trista El'Torra]

thank :).. i am definatly going to have to try to dedicate one day a week for cooking LOL

the only reason i don't use my crock pot is cause i am unsure about leaving it for 8 and a half hours while i am at work .. i have never been one to leave anything on other then a light for that length of time

[Bean]

As long as the crock pot in question is in good working order, you can leave it alone. If it is old or questionable, I would invest in a new one.

Also, go to foodtv.com and check out recipes by Rachel Ray from "30 Minute Meals". Her stuff is easy and fast!

[Trista El'Torra]

my crockpot is a year old and **giggles** has been used only about 30 times :).. i mainly use it for soups and stuff like that

[Isabelle Warwicke]

Crockpots rock! I have a small one that hold a small chicken nicely and cooks up just enough for two. It also has a multi-temp gauge. Some just have HI-LO-OFF. I can set mine a leave it all day on low-med...when I get home I crank it up to a high setting to bring dinner up to a good HOT temp.
Batch cooking is a great idea! I use it often. Not my whoel source of meals but when I make a casserole or sauce, I'll double the recipe and freeze 2/3. SOme times friends and I will get together and batch trade...adds variety. We'll all cook up a a couple of different batches of "our specialty" and portion it then get together and trade out.
Cooking for two, you get a whole lot more out of most recipes. Plan ahead and use leftovers as inspiration...grill chicken one night then have chicken enchiladas or chipolte chicken sammiches two days later. I always plan to have leftovers in parts that make up different dishes...kind of like batch cooking but on a short term.

Happy creating....

[Isabelle Warwicke]

Also.....EGGS
Omlettes, skillets, fritattas are great cold, quiches keep for days and can be frozen....plus that late at night, they aren't such a heavy meal. And you can make 'em anyway you want with all kinds of ingredients.

My Knight works midnights and I usually close the restaurant so I get home and he takes lunch at about the same time every night at about 12:30 - 1:00...
I completely understand your situation...

[Trista El'Torra]

thanks :).. i have tried those 10 minute roast thingers bymaple leaf foods .. and they arn't that bad and take a very short time to cook .. also i have been using instant mashed potatoes .. LOL cause i hate to peel them

but i think i shall being my crockpot back out of the cupboard and sstart using it more :)

[Rhia]

[quote="Trista El'Torra"]... also i have been using instant mashed potatoes .. LOL cause i hate to peel them [/quote


OH! That reminds me! I have the BEST potato casserole using instant 'tatoes!
I loved this recipe when a friend brought it for a pot-luck and just about fell over when she told me it was instant - I'm skeptical of freezdried vegetables.... *g*

You make the recipe like they say on the box, then add butter, sour cream, cheddar cheese and REAL bacon bits (yes, even that comes packaged now!) - basically a loaded baked potato! She says to top the whole mess with more cheese and bake in the oven for like 20 min - but that's just to heat it through, I don't like waiting that long!
I've stirred in leftover sauteed onions and peppers and served it with grilled steaks.
and I keep meaning to try it with those french fried onion things (you know, the ones for that horrible holiday green bean casserole?) I bet they'd be great on it!

Anyway - super quick and nummy sub for baked potatoes