Quick dinner before a terrible movie.

I made last minute plans to go see Adam with my good friend Jojo last night. So I had to make a quick dinner.

First off- the movie was LAME. So lame in fact that all three of us ended up walking out. I didn't even care what ended up happening. I wont go off though because this isn't a movie blog. Your lucky it isn't. I tend to get angry at films.

Anyway- I tossed together a few things and thought I would post it because it reminded me of:

Cooking Tip #2: Find Standard, Versatile Ingredients That You Enjoy.

This makes quick meals good. My standard veggies I buy almost every time I visit the market are:

• Brussel sprouts
• Spinich
• Kale
• Heirloom cherry tomatoes
• Basil (since I did my plant in trying to get rid of ants)
• Frozen corn
• Garlic

All of these can be used in a billion ways and styles. For instance you can steam, bake, broil, saute etc. brussel sprouts and make them Asian or Spanish or whatever you want really. This makes tossing together a quick meal a little more gourmet. Keeping a few key ingredients in your fridge at all times is key. Plus if they are foods you already know you enjoy it will urge you to try them in new ways.

So last night in 20 minutes I whipped up this:

I'm not really sure what you would call it but here is the recipe:

Recipe 2: Garlic Bread:

• Garlic,
• butter,
• sourdough roll.

1. Slap it all together,
2. broil it.

Watch it close. I almost always get it darker than I mean it to be!

Recipe 3: Baked Kale:

• A bunch of Kale
• Coconut Oil
• Salt
• Garlic powder
• Onion Powder

1. Preheat oven to 420f
2. Strip the kale from the stock and roll it around in oil, salt Garlic powder, Onion
3. Toss it in a pan and broil for 5-10 minutes then pull it out and flip it.
4. broil for another 12-15 minutes

Test out your levels of each. I like mine crunchy and salty so I add more salt and just eye-judge the oil depending on how much oil I feel like having.

Recipe 4: Grain Mix:

(Trader Joes has a good Harvest Grain Mix that's good to have around for times like this, it cooks in about 15 minutes Just follow the directions and add what you like to it. Otherwise here is the ingredients and recipe I used.)

For Grain:

1 1/4 cup mix of:

• Israeli Couscous
• Orzo
• Baby Garbanzo
• Red Quinoa
• Butter
• Spices (I used Garlic, onion, oregano, salt, pepper)
• 1 3/4 Cups Vegetable Stock

Get veggie stock spices and butter boiling, toss in Grains, bring it back to a boil then cover and let simmer for 10 or so minutes.

Add:

(I added Sauteed mushrooms, basil and corn to mine)

Sauteed Mushrooms:

• Any style of Mushroom
• Butter
• Garlic

I love the flavor of garlic and I knew I would be adding it to the grains so I used a bit of butter and TONS of garlic. On medium heat in a sautee pan I move the mushrooms around a lot until they turn brown. Keeping it on medium heat and keeping them moving keeps the garlic from burning.

Then I just stirred the Mushrooms, cut up basil and frozen corn into the finished grains.

AND BAM! Dinner.

20 minutes.

Add a beer. Treat yourself.

heartrl