THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, April 27, 1995 TAG: 9504260037
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BEVERLY MILLS WITH ALICIA ROSS, SPECIAL TO FLAVOR
LENGTH: Medium: 59 lines
WHEN I REALIZED I had become a truly desperate cook, three things saved my sanity: bottled minced garlic, frozen chopped onions and a complete change of attitude.
That was four years ago. I was six months pregnant and waddling around the kitchen with an 18-month-old wrapped around one leg.
I thought about how I once enjoyed the culinary arts. A relaxing Saturday once meant six hours of chopping, kneading and deboning. Now, my free time focused on strolls to the neighborhood tot lot, and propping up swollen ankles.
And my family and I survived on frozen entrees, delivery pizza and Chinese take-out. Rather than serve anything below my personal standards, I had given up cooking altogether.
Then it dawned on me: While buried between the pages of Bon Appetit, I had been brainwashed.
Like the female body-image thing, those perfect photographs had seduced me into believing that's what my own table was supposed to be - free of flaws.
But my then-current alternative wasn't working, either.
So I went on a scouting expedition to the supermarket, and came back with a sack of convenience items I'd never noticed before.
I heated up a tablespoon of olive oil and dumped in a cup of frozen chopped onions.
Then I added two teaspoons bottled minced garlic.
Next came a jar of spaghetti sauce and a can of minced clams.
I took a taste: Not bad!
I threw in some dried herbs and a shot of Worcestershire sauce.
In 10 minutes, we were eating clam spaghetti fine enough to brag about.
You know, I used to be a good cook.
I still am.
Only now, hundreds of bags of onions later, it doesn't have to be perfect - only tasty, quick and relatively healthful.
You can do it, too.
From organizing the freezer to shortcuts on the stovetop, we'll show you how to feed the family - without losing your mind.
Here are some easy recipes to get you started.
By the way, those bags of recipe-ready diced onions can be found in the frozen vegetable section of most supermarkets.
Look for jars of minced or chopped garlic in the produce section. MEMO: [For copy of recipes, see microfilm]
ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Alicia Ross, left, and Beverly Mills will offer tips each week on
fast and healthful family meals.
Color illustration by Adriana Libreros
by CNB