Ask the Chef

I have written before on our blog about how much I enjoy The New York Times' health blog "The Well", as it features really healthy recipes that are heavy on whole foods, usually call for few ingredients, and often feature seasonal produce. One of the writers for the blog, Martha Rose Shulman, was featured in an "ask the chef" column several weeks ago, and I just found it today. It has got some great answers to questions that many of us have about eating and living well. I have posted a sample question below from the colum...if you'd like to read more, click on the following link:

consults.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/20/insert-credit-martha-rose-shul/

Putting Together a Quick Meal
Reader Question:

I would love to cook healthier meals for myself, but I work full-time and am finishing my M.A. degree so often I don’t get home until 10 p.m. At that point, I often go to bed hungry because I am too tired to cook anything or, more likely, don’t have anything in my fridge to eat! Can you suggest some recipes or cookbooks for healthy, quick cooking? And how can I stock on food, so if I am really tired I can just open a box of something before I go to bed?

Thanks
— Kimberli Gant

Answer

Martha: More than “quick cooking,” I think the key to easy healthy cooking is stocking your kitchen and pantry with a few food items. If you can get a couple of routines down, it will be easier to slap together a healthy supper when you get home from work at 10 p.m.

If you can make a trip to the market once a week and buy salad greens, some vegetables that you like and eggs, you’ll have the fixings for a quick dinner. Wash and dry the salad greens and seal them in a plastic bag so they’re ready to toss; steam or roast enough vegetables for two or three days so that you don’t have to cook them when you get home from work; and make enough salad dressing for the week.

A main dish salad is one of my most frequent fall-backs when I’m pressed for time or it’s late and I’m hungry and tired. You can add many substantial foods to make a salad a meal — canned beans or
tuna, boiled eggs, grains and cheese. Steam a pot of rice or other grains, like quinoa or barley; cooked grains will keep for three to four days in the refrigerator, and you can easily heat them in a microwave or throw them into salads.