ROANOKE TIMES 

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, May 11, 1994                   TAG: 9405110072
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: EXTRA3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

FRESH AND FAST

During these beautiful, balmy spring days, there's too much going on outside to be cooped up inside a kitchen. Still, we want our food to have fresh, wholesome ingredients and taste whenever possible.

Enter the new trend of "Speed-scratch cooking" - combining fresh and step-saving ingredients to cut meal-making and cleanup time. For example, you might collect your favorite vegetables from a salad bar, stir-fry them and toss with Italian or Mexican seasonings, add pre-shredded cheese and stuff it all into a pita-bread pocket. You could cook instant couscous and toss with cubes of cooked deli or meat-department chicken, seedless grapes, chopped almonds and a dressing of sour cream or plain yogurt with chutney and curry powder to taste. Or fold a ready-made pasta sauce with vegetables or one of the new Contadina chunky tomato pasta toppings into a favorite ready-made or from-scratch macaroni and cheese recipe; bake and serve.

For dessert, arrange scoops of your favorite ice cream in a prepared graham cracker or chocolate crust and freeze. Drizzle with prepared sauce and top with ready-made whipped cream before serving, or place a scoop of ice cream or yogurt in a tall glass and fill with cold coffee. Top with whipped cream, if desired.

Typical speed-scratch recipes can be prepared in about 20 minutes or less. They use few utensils and limited ingredients. Microwaving, stir-frying or broiling are popular cooking methods. Treating pans with nonstick cooking sprays further cuts calories as well as cleanup time, as does cooking enough ingredients to use in a second meal.

For more speed-scratch recipes and tips, write for the free booklets, "Healthy Eating Made Easy," 332 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 900, Dept. N, Chicago, Ill. 60604 or "Short-Cut Scratch," Land O Lakes, Inc., P.O. Box 26341, Shoreview, Minn. 55126-0341.

It may cost a little more to speed-scratch cook. But some beautiful, balmy spring days, it's worth it.

Recipes For: |MINI MEAT LOAVES WITH HONEY-MUSTARD SAUCE| |CAJUN-STYLE FISH FILLETS| |CHICKEN PASTA PRIMAVERA| |SUPER CALZONE| |FABULOUS 15-MINUTE CHICKEN A LA KING| |ORIENTAL BEEF LO MEIN| |LENTIL AND SPINACH PASTA BAKE| |DOUBLE CHOCOLATE COCONUT BARS| 


 by CNB