Sports practice, music lessons, homework and more leave little
time to cook up an old fashioned three-course meal for the family.
When the afternoon bustle is complete and
the kids are clamoring “What’s for
dinner?” here are some quick and tasty meals that don’t come out
of a cardboard box.

Frittata

† Mix eggs, salt and pepper in medium bowl. Melt butter in large
skillet over medium heat. Add onion, mushrooms and peppers; cook
until tender, about 5 minutes. Preheat broiler.
† Pour egg mixture over onion, mushrooms and pepper in skillet. Add
tomatoes. Cook over medium heat until bottom and edges are set,
about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Lift edges, with a spatula,
and allow uncooked egg to flow underneath. Reduce heat to
medium-low. Repeat lifting two or three times, allowing uncooked
egg to flow underneath. Once the top is set, remove skillet from
heat and sprinkle parmesan cheese over frittata. Place skillet*
under broiler until cheese bubbles and eggs are set. Let stand 1
minute before serving. Serves 4.
Noodle Soup
4 14 oz. cans chicken broth
1/4 package angel hair pasta
11/2 c. fresh or frozen vegetables;
cut green beans, peas or sliced carrots
1 chopped shallot
† Bring chicken broth to a boil in a large, covered saucepan. Reduce
to medium heat.
† Break pasta in half before placing in broth. Add vegetable and
shallot. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally. Cook 5 minutes
until pasta and vegetable are tender. Ladle and serve. Serves 4-6.
Mozzarella Meat Pie
1 lb. ground beef
1/3 c. chopped onion
1/3 c. chopped celery
1/2 tsp. salt; dash of pepper
1/2 tsp. oregano
6 oz. tomato paste
3/4 c. grated mozzarella cheese
1-8 oz. can of refrigerated crescent rolls
† Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Using large skillet, brown the meat
over medium heat; drain. Add onion and celery to browned meat;
cook until tender, approximately 5 minutes. Add tomato paste, salt,
oregano, pepper and 1/2 c. mozzarella cheese; mix well. Reserve
1/4 c. mozzarella cheese for topping.
† Separate crescent rolls; place in greased 9-inch pie plate,
pressing seams together to form crust. Pinch edges to flute. Fill
with meat mixture and top with remaining cheese. Bake at 375
degrees for 15-20 minutes. Serves 6-8.
No Bake Lasagna
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 Tbsp. minced garlic (fresh or jar)
2 141/2 oz. cans of diced tomatoes, with basil
1/2 tsp. salt; 1/2 tsp. pepper
1 c. low-fat ricotta cheese
1/4 c. grated mozzarella cheese
8 lasagna noodles; cooked and cut in half,
across the width of the noodle
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
† Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic;
cook 3 minutes. Add canned tomatoes and salt and pepper; simmer
until slightly thickened about 10 minutes.
† In saucepan, place ricotta cheese over medium-low heat to warm.
Add mozzarella cheese; stir until melted.
† Assemble: Spoon 1/4 c. tomato mixture into bottom of 4 pasta
bowls. Place two lasagna noodles halves, side by side, atop sauce
in each bowl. Top with 1/4 cheese mixture; top with 2 more noodle
halves. Divide the remaining sauce atop the noodles between bowls.
Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. 4 servings.

Cornmeal Crusted Catfish
11/2-2 lbs. catfish fillets (2-3 fillets)
1 egg
2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 c. yellow cornmeal
2 Tbsp. Old Bay seasoning
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
† In a shallow bowl, beat together egg and milk. On a plate, combine
cornmeal and Old Bay seasoning with a fork. Line a counter top,
cutting board or baking pan with waxed paper.
† Dip each fillet in egg-milk mixture, then coat with cornmeal
mixture. Set aside on waxed paper.
† In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook
each fillet for about 4 minutes per side, until cornmeal is browned.
On second side, check that catfish is cooked through by cutting into
the thickest part with a knife. It should be firm and white
throughout. Serves 6.
† If your kids’ palates are delicate, coat one fillet in the egg
mixture and dip it in cornmeal only, as Old Bay is a little spicy.
Serve with lemon wedges and roasted baby carrots, tossed with a
little olive oil, kosher salt and pepper and cooked in the oven at
450 degrees until slightly browned (15-20 minutes).

Greek Pita Pizza
4 medium-sized pita breads
8 oz. pkg. feta cheese
3 ripe Roma tomatoes, diced
2 tsp. dried oregano (fresh if you have it)
4 tsp. olive oil
† Preheat broiler. Crumble the feta cheese and sprinkle evenly over
pitas. Top each with 1/4 of the tomatoes, 1/2 tsp. oregano and
drizzle 1 tsp. olive oil on top. Broil on cookie sheet for 5-8 minutes
until cheese is bubbly and pita is browning. These also cook well
two at a time in the toaster oven. Serve warm, folded or cut in
half. (Note: If your kids aren’t fond of feta, you can broil theirs
with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese.) Serves 4.