healthy dinner in 20 minutes flat

“Everyday” recipes are my biggest blogging challenge. People want quick, healthy weeknight recipes, but they aren’t my forte. Prep time is not in short supply when I work at home, nor do I begrudge one minute invested in a delicious meal.

That’s not to say I don’t eat a lot of quick meals; they simply don’t have recipes. My coworker and I share a similar meal philosophy for these dishes, affectionately dubbed, “Bowls of Crap.”

The unappetizing name sounds like a meal that doesn’t taste good — not the case. It’s simply whatever “crap” you have at home, cooked quickly, and tossed in a bowl.

The Bowl of Crap concept encompasses a wide variety of thrown-together meals. It’s faster than stir-fry, but healthier than pasta with jarred sauce.

“What did you make for dinner last night?”
“I was pretty tired, so I just threw together a Bowl of Crap.”

Start cooking the base (it takes longer) while you prep the topping. Pasta, quinoa, and millet are all reasonably fast, or I often have pre-cooked brown rice in the fridge.

While my starch is cooking (or reheating), I chop an onion and toss it in a hot pan with olive oil. Next up are whatever veggies I have: carrots, summer squash, potatoes, cauliflower, radishes, eggplant, peas, whatever. A protein gets tossed in, complementary spices go on top, garlic to finish, et voila.

Into the bowl it goes. I happened to have cooked chickpeas, but tempeh or tofu would have been great in this. The pea sprouts added a pop of green, but spinach would have been lovely. Whatever you’ve got!

It’s an easy meal for one or two, or it’s dinner plus lunch the next day.

A small base of whole grains and tons of vegetables on top make a hearty, filling meal that’s full of vitamins, minerals, and fiber, without leaving you sluggish and full. Rotating the base and using different vegetables and spice profiles give you endless permutations for quick dinners.

It’s hard for me to write about dishes that feel pedestrian — really, it’s a Bowl of Crap. There isn’t much technique involved, they’re not glamorous meals, and the end result isn’t going to elicit gasps of amazement at your next dinner party.

But if you’re hungry and don’t want to look up (then read and follow) a recipe? Try a Bowl of Crap. It might be a few more minutes of hands-on time, but I promise you’ll feel better than if you take that 17 minutes to heat up a frozen pizza.

The fantastic Melissa Lanz who I met at Camp Blogaway, suggested that food bloggers post a healthy recipe today. There are a lot of bloggers out there, and Melissa asked us, in the vein of Gandhi’s famous quotation, to “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

If just one of you throws some veggies together for dinner this week (or next), I’ll be happy. This blog isn’t my soapbox — or maybe it is, and I’m extremely subtle — but I think there are many benefits to eating more vegetables, and I try to post recipes to inspire you to do so. Is it working?

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Millet with Spiced Vegetable Saute

by Stacy Spensley May-30-2011

Whatever starch base you have on hand, whatever veggies are laying around, sauteed, spiced, and thrown in a bowl. Easy, quick, healthy, and pretty darn good. I use soaked, cooked chickpeas so I add a decent amount of salt. Canned chickpeas are fine, just rinse them and use a pinch of salt to taste.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup uncooked raw millet
• 1/2 small onion
• 2 summer squash or zucchini
• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
• 1 large handful pea sprouts or other greens, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced

Instructions

1.) Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a lidded pan over medium heat. Add millet and stir to coat. When millet is fragrant and toasty, add 1 1/4 cups water. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Set timer for 15 minutes.2.) Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Chop the onion and toss in the pan. Toss a few times. Dice the summer squash while the onion softens; add to pan when onion is translucent. Toss a few times. Mince the garlic in between tosses.3.) Add chickpeas, spices, and salt to the pan. Stir to coat. Add sprouts or chopped greens, garlic, and a tablespoon of water, cook until greens are wilted. Remove from heat.4.) Check millet after 15 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of water if too dry. Cook another 5 minutes if too wet. If tender and fluffy, scoop 3/4 cup into a bowl and top with veggies. Enjoy!

Details

Prep time: 3 mins Cook time: 17 mins Total time: 20 mins Yield: 1-2 servings

Tagged as: dairy-free, easy, gluten-free, greens, millet, quick, summer squash, vegan, vegetables, whole grains, zucchini