Deadbeat cooking

I’m an indifferent cook at best, trying to stay healthy on a few quick, simple dishes. But sometimes I get into a funk and don’t want to bother cooking. For those occasions, I have a few meals I can toss off with a minimum of fuss. These aren’t recipes, this isn’t really cooking. They’re just a few ingredients I can throw together and tell myself I’m still making my own meals, I haven’t stooped to a frozen pizza.

• Pasta and sardine sauce. Cook some pasta and drain it. Open a can of sardines in tomato sauce. Add them to the pasta. Break up the sardines a bit. Heat through.
• Pasta and spinach dip. Cook some pasta and drain it. Add spinach dip and heat through.
• Scrambled egg on toast for one. Put egg in a cup and stir. Mix in some garlic powder, parsley and pepper. Put in the microwave for 20 seconds, stir the mixture, put it back for 20 more seconds; keep doing this until the egg is done. Toast some bread. Spread with tomato paste or ketchup. Spread egg mixture on top.
• Baked beans on toast. Just what you’d imagine. Toast some bread, heat up some baked beans, spoon them over the toast.
• Corn on the cob. Dampen a paper towel, wrap it around the corn and put it in the microwave for a couple of minutes.
• Grilled cheese sandwich in the toaster oven. If you have an adjustable rack, move it down to the lowest position. Leave the baking tray inside, and turn on the oven to 425 degrees F. Get two slices of bread, and spread butter or margarine on one side of each. Put cheese in the middle, against the unbuttered sides. Using oven mitts, take the hot tray out and put the sandwich on it. Put it back in, toast for 4 minutes. Carefully flip with a spatula and put back in for another 3 to 4 minutes, or until the second side is browned and the cheese is melted.
• Baked potatoes with toppings. Preheat oven or toaster oven to 400 degrees F. Wash, scrub and dry some baking potatoes, eg Russets, or sweet potatoes. Stab them here and there with a fork so they don’t explode. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until a fork goes through easily. Slice them open lengthwise and fluff the pulp with a fork. Toppings ideas: baked beans, grated cheese, plain yogurt and chives, salsa, guacamole, chili, pesto.
• French toast for one. Slightly stale bread works best. Cut two slices in half. Heat some oil in a frying pan. Mix one egg, a bit of water or milk and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Dip bread pieces one by one in the egg mixture, then brown for a few minutes on each side. It’s traditional to have maple syrup with this but I love it with plain yogurt and some strawberries or blueberries.
• Tomato and rice soup. Cut up an onion, celery stalk and carrot, and sauté until softened. Add ¼ cup long grain rice and cook for 2 minutes. Add a can of diced tomatoes and 4 cups of water, sprinkle in some dried basil, and cook for 15 minutes or until the rice is ready. Nice with cheese and crackers.
• Chicken and potatoes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Pour some canola oil into a cup, sprinkle in some garlic powder and paprika, and mix well. Cut some potatoes into chunks. Put in a lasagna pan and toss with some of the seasoned oil. Put some bone-in chicken thighs or legs on top, and spoon more oil over them. Roast for 40 minutes. Add some green vegetable, eg broccoli or green beans, toss with the oil, and put back in the oven for 10 more minutes or until everything is done.