So, I am a notoriously bad cook. Yet, I can walk into my kitchen, throw a few things together, and walk out with something delicious! How is that possible? Two reasons:
1. I’m willing to mix ingredients that have never been mixed before.
2. I am not that picky.
These are all you need to be a wonderful chef! I consider this bachelor cooking, though I’m not a bachelor. (My husband says, “you should call this bachelorette cooking!”)
Here are a few combinations to get you started. (Note: all of these recipes CAN be gluten free. Use rice pasta or gluten free cereal. Substitute a gluten-free bread for sandwiches.)
Southwestern Lasagna
Follow a lasagna recipe. Substitute salsa for all or part of the tomato sauce. It’s that easy!
Trail Mix and Cereal, or, Trereal
1. Put cereal in bowl.
2. Add 1/4 cup of your favorite trail mix, even if it includes chocolate. Especially if it includes chocolate!
3. Add milk (or in my case, almond milk).
4. Enjoy the spectacular deliciousness!
Salad with Tahini Dressing
Why do all the work of making tahini dressing? Do this the easy way:
1. Put salad in a bowl.
2. Distribute some tahini (1-2 tablespoons should do it) across the top of the salad.
3. Add your favorite oil and vinegar salad dressing.
Ventil Soup
My husband came up with the name for this one. It’s one can of lentil soup, mixed together with one can of vegetable soup. So good that you won’t need to add crackers.
Everything Stir Fry
Have extra rice in the fridge? Dump it in a frying pan with an egg and whatever vegetables you have on hand (spinach and kale are good). Add ginger powder, maybe some garlic, and soy sauce. And water so your concoction doesn’t stick to the pan.
Have extra pasta in the fridge? Do the same thing. If you don’t have soy sauce, garlic, or ginger powder, try melting cheese on top, or adding salsa or tomato sauce. It will be delicious! You’ll feel like a real cook!
Honorable Mention: Peanut Butter and Nutella Sandwiches
My ten-year-old invented peanut butter and Nutella sandwiches while visiting her grandparents (I’m sure many other children of all ages have invented them as well). But you can also do pb and honey, pb and sugar (my friend Lara Weeks taught me that one in 2nd or 3rd grade), pb and leftover broccoli (no, my kids won’t eat those, and right now, the broccoli sandwiches are still just a theory for me–they remain to be beta tested…).
Happy “cooking”! And, if it doesn’t turn out perfectly, remember my mother’s sage words of wisdom: “Bonnie, the reason you’re not a good cook is that you just don’t care how things taste.”
Quiet Mystic 