Healthy comforting convenience meals.

[catfunk]

I like to think I'm a good cook. Make most things from scratch and on a Sunday I prep healthy work lunches for during the week and a good meal for Monday and Tuesday such as veggie curry or pasta dish.

However due to various stresses (no dc) I'm EXHAUSTED after work by a Thursday evening, sometimes Wednesday. So last night we ordered (nice) pizza & tonight was eggs beans and potato waffles from the freezer 🥴 And when I'm feeling shattered and emotional, I'm not craving an easy to throw together salad but I can't keep eating like this!

What's a nice middle ground ? Something ready -ish made, convenience but comforting and not total junk. Requiring no prep or cooking. Ready to serve or Chuck in the oven. Needs to be veggie. I'd love some recommendations - thanks in advance !

Something on toast.

Mexican rice microwave pouch, topped with avocado and salsa, 2 mins, could add sour cream too, v tasty and properly quick

Have you considered steak tartare, very little cooking required?

I don't understand why people post suggestions without reading the OP.
Who is a vegetarian.
Is it something to do with being on a phone and not easy to scroll back ?

This is my new favourite lunch.

Scramble some eggs and pesto in a sauce pan. Once they’re almost cooked, put a tortilla wrap on top. Then flip it over so the wrap is under the eggs. Fill one side with cheese, spinach and sriracha sauce and then fold the other half on top. Cook on both sides so the wrap is crispy.

@Startuplife

This is my new favourite lunch.

Scramble some eggs and pesto in a sauce pan. Once they’re almost cooked, put a tortilla wrap on top. Then flip it over so the wrap is under the eggs. Fill one side with cheese, spinach and sriracha sauce and then fold the other half on top. Cook on both sides so the wrap is crispy.

that sounds amazing!

Another suggestion - Strong Roots do these lovely frozen spinach nuggets. They take about 10 mins in the oven and are fabulous in a wrap with salad, mayo and sriracha/sweet chili. It's a bit like a McDonalds spicy veggie wrap but loads nicer IMHO.

Most of the supermarkets do a good range of fresh, prepared vegetarian food such as filled peppers/mushrooms, bean burgers, falafel and so on that you just need to stick in the oven and add bagged salad, shop bought hummus, pesto, whatever.

Halloumi tray bake using shop bought tray of Mediterranean veg, crusty bread. Have the leftover veg the next evening in an omelette with some cheese or with couscous or filled pasta, both of which cook in minutes with zero prep.

You don’t need a microwave for frozen stuff, just move it to the fridge before work or the night before, then heat on the hob. Batch cooked soups, curries, vegetarian stews, chilli are great comfort food and sides such as bread, rice or pasta take minimal effort.

Filled pasta parcels with a ready made sauce. I particularly like the spinach ricotta or porcini mushroom one. My other go to for a quick no fuss tea is quorn chicken stir fry with pre frozen veg served with microwave rice. Very quick and tasty.

Beans on toast with grated cheese
Aldi spicy bean burgers with salad sauce on a bun
Get those roasted vege trays, stick in pot, add jar of passata salt pepper then you had instant pasta sauce

[quote peridito]@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie

Lidls beef dripping triple cooked chips are very good[/quote]
Erm... thank you, but I'm a vegetarian.

@FleshLiabilities

Have you considered steak tartare, very little cooking required?

@FleshLiabilities Is this a joke?

@CarrieMoonbeams Thanks for trying but it didn't work.

My go to easy comfort food is a stack of sandwiches, wraps, bagels, pancakes etc. I usually toast the bread, sometimes if I can be bothered I break out the toastie machine.

You can have them with crisps, soups, chips etc if you're really hungry.

On days like those I all hail the Simon Howie veggie breakfast kit. Veggie sausage, Lorne sausage & black pudding- 10 mins in the frying pan while you heat a tin a baked beans, fry a couple of eggs and stick tattie scones in the toaster. Quick comfort food of the gods. Maybe not the healthiest but good for the soul.

Another fave is eggs florentine using crumpets. Crumpets in toaster, wilt spinach in microwave, poach eggs & heat a jar of hollandaise. Maybe not as good as making your own hollandaise but quick and perfectly lovely.

Cheese on toast always goes down well here.

I also like doing Welsh rarebit - it can be frozen in portion sized pieces as long as you remember to defrost in advance or have a microwave. Add some chives etc. Let me know if you want my recipe.

I really like jacket potatoes with mixed up with mustard, creme fraîche, spring onions (and bacon for me) then topped with cheddar and popped back in the oven.

Eggy bread is another lazy dinner favourite.

I also like blue cheese pasta: literally cook some pasta, mix in blue cheese, creme fraîche and some white wine then eat. Ideally I fry some onion as well but it's not essential.

Quesadillas are another super easy dinner - I love one made with cheddar, blue cheese, caramelized red onions and a splodge of sun-dried tomato paste spread over one side.

"Beans on toast with grated cheese"

And worcestershire sauce. Mmmm

Veggie chilli and rice ready meal

The first thing to came to mind was "Po-ta-toes! Boil em, mash em, stick em in a stew".

*that came to

Take a look at the merchant gourmet pouches of flavoured grains and pulses. Lots of different options. Really handy for so many things. The Cajun one with halloumi, tinned pineapple rings, and tenderstem broccoli all cooked together in the George Foreman is popular here. (No judgement on the pineapple, it makes it!)

Mushroom burgers

Take the largest 2 mushrooms out of a pack of Portobellos - pull of stalks and chuck in a blender with the other mushroom (why do they always come in 3s) a teaspoon of pesto a clove of garlic and some feta. WHizz and pile onto the 2 big mushrooms. Bake for 20 mins and serve in burger buns with lettuce and tomato.

Quick pasta

Pack of gnocchi or stuffed pasta in an oven dish, cover with carton of passata and some grated cheese - in the oven for 30 minutes - the pasta cooks in the passata. (If you have time batch cook your own tomato sauce at the weekend and chuck in any spare medietrranean veg you have - blitz and freeze in individual portions so you can use for a pizza topping or a sauce as well as passata).

For convenience, I pre-prepare stuff & just shove in freezer. So when I have time, I make a massive batch of onions, peppers, courgettes, aubergines & toast with garlic. Then divide up & freeze, ready to add to tagine or shashouka.

But pre-sliced onions, cubed butternut squash, etc.

I know these are not “ready made” but they really cut time. I made a chick pea & butternut squash tagine earlier in just 15-20 mins. I do double of everything so my freezer is well stocked. I even order double Gousto stuff, so all the spices etc are pre-packaged ready to roll!

Also quick -
omelettes (can use those roasted veg or just chuck spinach straight from bag)

gnocchi - add Boursin or fry spinach ones in butter & sage, pasta with broccoli, blue cheese & walnuts

Sachets of flavoured cous cous

Ready sliced mushrooms to fry in butter & garlic, only takes a few mins & add to ready prepared garlic bread

I sometimes make a batch of rice & put in fridge then make special fried rice. Only takes 10 mins.

Toasted sandwiches in Breville maker. Mostly cheddar & onion, Brie & relish, that sort of thing.

I don’t own a microwave so the above are all do-able & quick!

• roast not toast *buy not but

tuktukmart.co.uk/products/maesri-thai-green-curry-sauce-400ml?variant=35452536258713&currency=GBP&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&utm_campaign=gs-2020-11-07&utm_source=google&utm_medium=smart_campaign&gclid=Cj0KCQiApL2QBhC8ARIsAGMm-KHSzse9MYq9oIiMbamcwVDq9K7aU13t5yXp-iAcIVDzooLl844kPPoaAnusEALw_wcB

Sorry about the link but this is a premade Thai sauce which we think is delicious. No preservatives or artificial colours (the ingredients are on the link). It's not quite a ready meal but with some frozen veg thrown in and some rice (we have a rice cooker, but microwave rice would be fine) would be a good compromise maybe?

The brand does pastes and soups too but I've not tried them so can't comment. We've had the red thai and the massaman sauces too, we like the green the best.

Apart from that I think chilled soup is probably a happy halfway house, and I also like Charlie Bigham's.

The Spice Tailor pastes are really nice too.