Tips for Quick, Easy Meals

This column is for Cynthia, and for anybody else who needs meals that take a minimum of prep time, and not too many ingredients. For the vegans and vegetarians among us, I suggest pasta with beans in a red sauce. The proteins in the pasta compliment and complete the proteins in the beans. All you need to go with this dish and make an easy meal is a couple of handfuls of ready-made salad greens and a bottle of your favorite dressing.
When you’re cooking for just you, cook the recipe as stated below. Eat half of it tonight, and the other half tomorrow night, or at least within the next three or four days, or freeze the other half of the recipe for later thawing and reheating in your microwave. If you’re cooking for four or five, just double the recipe
I label leftovers with the dish’s name and the date I stored it. Eat in four days or less, or else freeze.
PASTA WITH BEANS
Pasta e Faggioli
2 servings
The Sauce:
1 small yellow onion, chopped
½ green bell pepper, chopped
1 (14.5 ounce) can dice tomatoes
2 Tablespoons salsa piquante, or to taste
1 (15-ounce) can pinto or red kidney beans
Combine all ingredients. Bring to a low boil. Simmer until the onion and bell pepper are done. Keep warm while the pasta cooks.
The Pasta:
4 ounces (1/4 of a 1 pound package) spaghetti, shell noodles or other pasta
½ teaspoon salt
4 cups boiling water
2 Tablespoons olive oil or canola oil, divided
While the sauce cooks, bring the water to boil in a 6-cup saucepan. Add the salt and 1 Tablespoon oil. Add the pasta. Stir to expose all the pasta pieces to the oil in the water. Reduce the heat. Cook the number of minutes indicated on the package. Drain, transfer to a bowl. Drizzle with the other tablespoon of oil. Toss to coat all the pasta with a thin layer of oil. This keeps the pasta from sticking together
Complete the meal with a tossed salad, or a few handfuls of pre-washed spinach or salad greens topped with crumbled feta or blue cheese. Dress with vinaigrette or dressing of your choice.
Another quick meal consists of pan-fried sole, microwaved potatoes to be split and topped at the table with butter, salt and pepper or with sour cream, and a salad.
 PAN FRIED SOLE
2 to 3 servings
1 package fresh Dover sole
Dredging flour:
1/2 cup flour
¼ cup cornstarch
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons cooking oil
Lemon wedges
Parsley for garnish, optional
Mix the flour and cornstarch on a plate. Dredge the fish filets in it, both sides. Salt and pepper them.
Heat the oil in a wide skillet. When a drop of water bounces and vanishes, the pan is hot enough. Lay the fillets in it in one layer. You may need two skillets if they are too large to fit into one pan. Cook a few seconds, until golden on the pan side. With a wide spatula, carefully turn. Sole is very tender and fast cooking, needing only a few seconds on each side.
Transfer to a platter. Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley.