A few weeks ago I was very fortunate to have Donna Hay come to my kitchen in Vancouver. Donna Hay is an Australian cookbook author and food magazine publisher who has a series of great-looking cookbooks that are beautifully styled with tons of easy and delicious recipes. Every recipe has an accompanying photo that shows you an inspiring finished product, but not so intimidatingly styled that you can’t imagine making it yourself.
Her latest book is called The Instant Cook, and she showed me how to cook in an instant, rummaging through my fridge and pantry and then telling me how to cook a delicious pork loin with Asian greens.
I have two copies of The Instant Cook to give away. Just click on the Comments link at the bottom of the page and tell me about your favourite quick recipe you like to make at home.
In the summer I love to make cheese quesadillas on the barbecue, with mozzarella or cheddar cheese, sometimes with some thin slices of ham or turkey in between and some pickled jalapeno slices. Or maybe it’s just some frozen prawns sauteed in butter and olive oil, stir in some pesto and white wine and throw over pasta.
Tell me about your faves and I’ll pick two winners. Deadline is Tuesday, May 31st. Good luck!
Wow this is easy – I found a great soup recipe a few years ago, put out by the Canadian Dairy Assoc. “Bart’s Black Bean Soup” – ready in minutes, teenagers love it, great for your bode and mind! You need – one tin of good black beans, chicken stock, salsa, one tin corn (I add more than it asked), chive or green onion, splash of lime juice and good old cheddar grated on top. We eat this on a busy family night with garlic bread and a spring green salad -also an easy/fast thing to prepare. Nibbles of good dark chocolate to end the meal.
Love Donna Hay and your radio show always makes me hungry.
Jill
A quickie: braise asparagus in butter until tender-crisp, set aside and poach fresh farm eggs. Toast thin slices of Cobb’s sourdough bread, make a raft of asparagus on top, and crown the whole thing with the lovely poached egg.
I am cooking for a family of four and often fing it hard to please everybody! Quesadillas seem to be our quick answer to all left overs. Two tortillas (corn or wheat), a can of black or refried beans, any veggies or meat and of course Cheese to glue it all together. Just last night my son (age 5)requested a Pizzadilla so he added pizza sauce to his left over pork chop creation and loved every bite! Talk about Fusion in the kitchen!!
My Favorite Quick Recipe:
diced or sliced boneless chicken breast
garlic cloves, crushed
olive oil
thinly sliced carrots
sundried tomatoes in oil
feta cheese
white wine
salt and papper to taste
finely chopped parsley
Sautee chicken breast in olive oil, when partly cooked, add carrots.
Add sundried tomatoes in oil, stir well.
Add generous quantity of feta cheese, make a sauce with white wine. Season with salt and pepper.
Garnish with chopped parsley.
One can modify this recipe as desired. It is excellent over rice and served with a large green salad. Quick and easy.
Cooking is our leisure, so quick cooking is not necessarily a priority. For those nights when we arrive home exhausted, with no fresh food in the house…home-canned clams made into a light sauce for linguine. Shallots sauteed in olive oil, a few red pepper flakes, basil, clam juice, (there is always a heel of white wine around, some parsley from the patio…reduce, then add in clams…pour over pasta. If we are really fried…then the old rezfood standby of rice and fish..(home canned sockeye).
Favorite quickie recipe to win me a Donna Hay cookbook #1
Black Bean Mushroom Chicken Dinner for two
½ lb thinly sliced chicken breast
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp water
Mixed chicken, water and cornstarch together and set aside while you organize the sauce & veggies.
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp honey
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp water
1 tsp black bean garlic sauce
Mix together to make the sauce. Adjust amounts according to you sweet or pungent taste buds! (My Chinese cook book says black been sauce adds a pungent, salty flavor.)
½ lb mushrooms – I cut them into quarters
1 tsp (or more) finely chopped ginger root
2 green onions cut into 5 cm lengths
2 tsp olive oil
1. Have everything prepared before you start cooking including the rice or Chinese noodles you are planning to eat this excellent dish with.
2. Heat oil over high heat
3. Add ginger – stir-fry for ½ minute (I’ve thrown the ginger in at the same time as the chicken and it just isn’t as good as flavoring the oil first with the ginger.)
4. Add chicken – stir-fry 2 minutes or until chicken turns white
5. Add mushrooms and sauce – Cook another 2 minutes until sauce becomes clear
6. Remove from heat and add green onions
The key to great taste is in the quality of the black bean sauce. Good quality sauce can be bought in the Asian condiment section of most BC grocery stores.
One of the greatest contributions Chinese Canadians have made to our multicultural society is the demand that our grocery stores stock shelves with Asian sauces – chili garlic, hoisin, honey garlic…the list goes on and on. A few simple ingredients, such as the recipe above, add a little sauce and one has a meal fit for a king.
Our good friend and houseguest was under the impression I was a great cook. He has also become a great cook since discovering my secret of the Asian condiment section of the local grocery store!!
Favorite quickie recipe to win me a Donna Hay cookbook #2
Ever heard of the one bowl chocolate cake…while this is the one bowl chicken pasta caesar salad!!
Mary’s Caesar Chicken Pasta Dinner for 4 or 5
Found the basics for this on the back of a romaine lettuce bag. Who would have thought to mix warm pasta with lettuce…sounds yucky…guess what…it works and tastes great!
Put on a large pot of water on stove to boil for pasta
Prepare veggies – 10 minutes give or take a couple of minutes
· 1 medium head of thinly sliced romaine lettuce
· Basket of cherry or grape tomatoes halved
· ½ – ¾ cup of fresh chopped parsley
· ½ – ¾ cup of finely chopped green onion
· 250 gms feta cheese – I buy the cubed feta in brine – yogurt style container – saves preparation time and tastes way better than the dry feta in plastic bag containers.
Mix all the above ingredients in a large bowl and set aside while you cook chicken and pasta
· 450 g tricoloured rotini – or equal amount of you favorite twirlly pretty pasta!
Water should be boiling by now so throw in those noodles
Prepare chicken – another 10 minutes give or take a couple of minutes
· 4 medium chicken breasts – cubed
· Basil – smother the cubed chicken
· Pepper – fresh ground – to taste
· Let chicken wallow in the basil and pepper while you turn your attention to preparing the pan
· 3or4 large garlic cloves – thinly slice or press
· 2 tbs olive oil or butter or some combination
· Heat up the oil/butter in a large pan
· Add garlic – cook for 30 seconds
· Add chicken – cook until it turns white – turn off the heat – cool a little
Hopefully the noodles have cooked perfectly on their own while you cooked the chicken.
· ½ cup caesar dressing – I used to make my own dressing but the brands sold in the refrigerated section of the grocery store are pretty darn good and save a great deal of time – I’ve just started buying the ‘Light’ types and they are okay
Throw everything together: salad, chicken, warm pasta and toss with the caesar dressing. Serve with warm buns or garlic bread…… mmmm mmmm good!!!!
Hi. My husband and I own/operate a fishing resort in NW Ontario. I love to cook but don’t always have a lot of time. I also love to eat, so quick recipes that taste good are essential. Here’s an incredible pork loin recipe:
I use a 1 1/2 – 2 lb. pork loin roast for the two of us.
Combine 1 T soy sauce and 1 T worchestershire sauce. Rub mixture on pork loin.
Combine 2 t each: seasoning salt, garlic salt, and Mrs. Dash. Roll roast in mixture.
Place roast in pan. Pour 1 C Pepsi over the roast. Cook, uncovered for about 1 – 1 1/2 hours (depending on size of roast).
Delicious!
Thanks.
Favourite quickie recipe to win me a Donna Hay cookbook #3
I think I must really want to win this book! I promise this is the last recipe. It is just soooo good I had to share it!
Mallory’s Asparagus Tortilla Omelet
Mallory is my husband and this is his original recipe. He makes it this time of year when he picks the asparagus fresh from the garden.
You will need a frying pan, with a lid, the size of a large soft tortilla.
· Two eggs and a dash of milk well beaten – add an extra egg if extra hungry or eggs are small
· 1 green onion finely chopped and added to eggs
· Cheddar cheese – thinly sliced – amount to be determined by your love of cheese
· 1 or 2 cloves of garlic – thinly sliced or pressed
· Butter – enough to cover bottom of the fry pan when melted
· 1 tortilla – spinach, pesto, plain – pick your favorite flavor
Melt butter in frying pan – med heat.
Add garlic – sauté for 15-20 seconds.
Spread egg, milk and onion mixture evenly on the bottom of the pan
Lay cheese over egg mixture
Lay tortilla over cheese
Cover and let cook until the egg is set – error on the side of under cooked rather than over cooked
· 4 or 5 asparagus depending on size
Well the eggs are cooking; zap the asparagus in the microwave with a touch of water for 45 seconds to 1 minute. (or cook it using your favorite method)
Flip the omelet onto a dinner plate tortilla side down
Roll the asparagus in the tortilla
Goes great with a glass of cold skim milk
Tastes especially good when someone else makes it for you!!
Hi..I’d love a copy of the book. My husband and I work late every day and are tired when we get home. I try to have something quick to serve. One of my favourite fast recipes is to cut up chicken breasts into 2 or 3 pieces and place into an oven-proof pan. Pour your favourite salad dressing over the chicken and bake at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. In the meantime, take your dog for a walk…get home, make a nice big salad with fresh greens and various vegetables and serve the tasty chicken!
I cook for one and have a small fridge in which I can’t store too much… And I’m always looking for something easy and delicious and nutritious to make for myself, because, well, I deserve it 🙂
I’ve recently received compliments on my own version of chili. It’s delicious and covers several food groups.
1 onion
as much garlic as you like
extra firm tofu, chopped into cubes or small bits
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1 can kidney beans, or any other type of beans
spinach
fresh mushrooms
green pepper
chili powder
cumin
Start by cooking the onion and garlic together in a large pot. Add the chopped tofu and brown it as you would ground beef. Add everything else, to taste, and let it cook for about 20 minutes.
This was enough for 6 meals for me! I put the leftovers into individual serving containers and into the mini freezer, and brought them to work for lunch. Inexpensive, convenient, delicious, nutritious 🙂
I love to hear your program and it was a double treat to listen to Donna Hay too as I am an Aussie living in Saskatchewan.
Here is my family’s all time favourite recipe and it is so quick and easy (apart from Pesto).
It’s called Roasted Tomato Fettucini
Fill a lasagne dish with juicy tomatoes sliced in half. Make sure they are packed in tight.
Put a bunch of parsley and a whole knob of peeled garlic in food processor and blend for a few seconds. Sprinkle over top of tomatoes.
Pour 1/2 cup cold pressed olive oil over top.
Sprinkle 1tsp sea salt and freshly ground pepper over top.
Bake in oven for 1hr at 375 degrees.
Meanwhile cook fettucini. When done tip into dish with roasted tomatoes and mix well.
Delicious with or without fresh Parmesan.
Fast and Easy Pie shell
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour{pour into a 9″ pie pan}
Make an indentation and add 1/4cup oil and 2 tablespoons of buttermilk. Stir together. Pat into pan to make a crust. Cook at 375*F until done or fill and cook according to the filling
Cheese Perogies with Black Bean Salsa
1 bag Cheese Perogies
I can of good black beans
500 ml Pace Chunky Medium Salsa
1 Lime, juiced
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
Sour cream for dipping
Steam & pan fry perogies until golden. Alternatively, toss perogies in olive oil, ground black pepper and your favourite herbs. Roast in 450 oven until golden.
Mix salsa ingredients in a bowl and top the perogies. Use the sour cream as a dip or place a little on top of the salsa. Great as a meal or as a passed appetizer at a party. Great patio food.
Something discovered while pubbing on Main street–Grilled romaine caesar salad.
drizzle olive oil over and into a heart of romaine. Sprinkle with lemon pepper. While steak, fish or what-have-you is grilling on the bbq, add the romaine(probably one each). Let it get toasty and grilled (the blackened bits add a certain something). Remove and serve whole with a tasty salad dressing and freshly grated parmesan.
My favorite quick dish is a shrimp stir-fry with chee hou sauce. I know chee hou sauce is normally used with ribs, but it adds a nice sweetish flavor to the shrimp. I used frozen tiger shrimp, which just need to be thawed under running water. For vegetables, carrots and snap peas, blanched briefly to make them more tender and reduce stir-frying time. The dinner, from start to finish, takes about 20 minutes.
Ingredients
340 grams frozen Black Tiger Shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup baby carrots
7 ounces snap peas
2 slices ginger
Sauce:
4 tablespoons catsup
1 tablespoon wine or dry sherry (you can use Chinese cooking wine if needed)
1 tablespoon Koon Chun Chee Hou Sauce
1 tablespoon chicken broth (low-sodium is best)
Sauce Thickener:
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water
Vegetable oil for stir frying as needed
Run the frozen shrimp under water until thawed. Pat dry with paper towels. Remove the tails if needed.
In a large pot of boiling water, blanch the snap peas and the baby carrots until the snap peas turn bright green and the vegetables are crisp but tender. Remove from the water and drain thoroughly.
In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients and set aside. In another small bowl, combine the cornstarch and water and set aside.
Heat a wok or frying pan. Add 3 tablespoons of oil and turn the heat up to high. When the oil is hot, add the shrimp. Cook briefly, stirring, until they turn pink. Push the shrimp up to the side of the pan.
Add the ginger slices into the hot oil and stir-fry very briefly until they are aromatic (Less than 1 minute). Turn the heat down to medium. Add the baby carrots and snap peas and stir-fry briefly until they are hot.
Make a “well” in the middle of the pan by pushing the vegetables up to the side. Give the cornstarch and water mixture a quick re-stir. Add the sauce in the middle and then the cornstarch and water mixture, stirring quickly to thicken. Mix all the ingredients together and serve hot over rice or noodles.
Hi, Don
I’d love a copy of Donna Hay’s cook book. I’m a part-time stay at home dad and one of my family’s quick and easy favourites is this one.
Mix one or two cans of mushroom soup, one can of sliced mushrooms (including the water) with a little worchestershire sauce and/or HP sauce and lots of fresh ground pepper. Pour over skinless, boneless chicken breasts. Sprinkle seasme seeds (roasted seeds are the best) over top and bake in the oven covered at 350. We like it with basmati rice and green salad.
Buckwheat Pancakes.
For the fast paced life. (Buchwheat with nutrients for the nerves and aiding in arthritis.) I got this from cook Maggie Jones of Calgary. From her article in Synchronicity Magazine Feb/Mar 95.
Make this mix ahead. To use, simply mix equal amounts of the mix with liquid. You can use milk, soyamilk, or water.
Cook on a medium skillet with a minimum of oil. Choose a cold pressed, unrefined oil.
Serve with fresh fruit sliced on top and maple syrup. (I use a cooked mixture of applesauce and add either pineapple chunks or pears diced with raisins. And teaspoon of cinammon.)
Mix together and stir well:
(I cut this in half for one person.)
3 cups buckwheat flour
1 cup soft whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
2 teaspoons of raw sugar ( I omit this)
Enjoy!
As a Vancouverite living in Calgary I miss having fresh seafood readily available. I have found an excellent fish store in Calgary called Boyd’s. When I am feeling homesick I will go to Boyd’s to buy some fresh fish and indulge. This is a favourite recipe for shrimp. (can also be used with scallops or cubed firm tofu). Don’t be fooled by the number of ingredients this is a quick and delicious recipe. An entire meal cooked in one pan.
Marinade:
2 tbsp rice wine
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 ib deveined large shrimp
In a flat bowl or plastic bag marinde shrimp for 10 minutes.
Sauce:
2 tbsp black bean sauce
1 cup homemade stock
2 tbsp rice wine
2 tbsp orange juice concentrate
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch
In a small bowl combine sauce ingredients.
Set aside
To cook:
2 tbsp vegie oil
3 cloves garlic finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped ginger root
2 large carrots sliced diagonally
1 sweet pepper cut in chunks
3 green onion chopped.
Heat 1 tbsp oil in wok or large deep pan on high heat. Saute shrimp until they just turn pink. Remove from pan and reserve.
Heat 1 tbsp oil in pan. Add garlic and giner Cook stirring for 30 seconds until fragrant.
Add carrots and peppers. Stir fry for 2-3 min. Add 1/4 cup water if they stick.
Stir up reserved sauce and add to pan. Bring to boil. Add shrimp and green onions until heated through.
Serve over rice.
Serves 4.
Don,
Hey, when it comes to easy AND versatile, I turn to crepes for myself and my family (or as they’re known to me since I was a child, palacinka).
Countless variations for crepes exist (and I have used a recipe from one of Donna Hay’s books at some points in the past), and countless fillings can be used, but the basic format is:
1 cup (or so) all purpose flour
1 tablespoon (or so) sugar
1 teaspoon (or less) salt
1 cup + milk (2% or homogenized)
1 – 2 large eggs (add up to 4 eggs for a richer batter)
1 – 4 tablespoons of cooking/vegetable/canola oil or melted butter
Whisk together dry ingredients in medium size bowl or 1 litre measuring cup.
Add milk until mixture is like thick cream, whisking out most lumps. Whisk in eggs. Now add milk until mixture is like thin cream. Let sit for 10 minutes (if you have time), to allow flour to absorb some milk. Then, if necessary, add a little more milk to bring mixture back to consistency of thin cream. Whisk oil/butter into mixture.
Heat medium size (8 to 10 inch) fry pan with shallow sides or crepe pan over medium heat. Oil surface of pan if necessary. Add 2/3 of a regular sized ladle of batter to the hot pan, rolling the pan to coat the bottom with batter. Cook for a minute or two, then flip; cooked side should be lightly browned in spots. Cook for another 30 seconds to a minute.
Plate, and spread with Nutella (chocolate hazelnut paste), or jam, or cover with fruit and whip cream, and roll up and eat. A light breakfast/lunch/dinner/dessert in 20 minutes or less. Of course, the crepes can also be stuffed with countless other sweet or savoury fillings. Or cool, then fold into pie segments with a couple types of cheese between the folds and bake with a sauce (tomato, meat, white, etc.).
Leftover plain crepes can be frozen between sheets of wax paper in a large ziploc bag for easy use another day. Just warm at a low temperature in the oven on a pizza pan or even the oven rack, once you remove the bag and wax paper.
For something a little different, add a little chocolate milk mix/sauce to make chocolate crepes, or cinnamon for cinnamon crepes.
Hi Don,
Our daughter gave me Donna Hay’s cookbook titled THE NEW COOK for Christmas and I’m enjoying it so much, especially her recipe for the “Baby Spinach & Proscuitto Salad” which caught my eyes immediately and I’ve made it several times now for family & friends and always draws compliments! TRUE, it’s great to SEE the photo presentations to give a delicious visual of a finish dish. Please put my name in for your contest to possibly win Donna Hay’s book THE INSTANT COOK. Thanks Don, also for your ongoing email tidbits!
Sincerely,
Deanna Wong
My quick recipe favourite is fresh gnocchi and pesto sauce. I keep homemade pesto in the freezer ready for a quick and delicious sauce. I find gnocchi in the supermarket in a cryovac pack ready for the table in approx. 1 min. Quick and yummy.
Thanks for the chance to win a cookbook.
Carol
I love chicken but sometimes have don’t have a lot of time to prepare so I use a slow cooker.
About 3 pounds of chicken thighs (or breast or legs or a mixture)with no skin. Then add one package of dried onion soup,1/4 cup of Apricot jam and 1/2 cup French salad dressing. You can vary the jam and dressing to suit your taste.
Cook all day at low setting and come home to a terrific flavourful meal. Delish.
I’m always hungry when it’s time to cook dinner, so it has to be fast! This is a regular standby mix of vegetables, with a variety of meat add-ins. Everything I’ve tried works well so it just depends on what is in the fridge at that particular moment in time. For 2 servings, slice about half an onion, a handful or two of fresh mushrooms, a couple of zucchini, and stir-fry in non-stick pan sprayed with some olive-oil spray. Add Mrs. Dash Herb and Garlic seasoning and saute. When it’s almost done, add any leftover meat from the night before, cooked chicken breast, cooked shrimp or prawns, or slices of grilled pork or steak. Serve with rice, or throw in some cooked noodles. This is also good with the addition of about a tablespoon of oyster sauce or black bean sauce while the vegies are cooking. I often add some fresh tomatoes at the end as well, and have added feta when I make it this way. The combination of onion, mushroom and zucchini is so good that I just never get tired of it!