HAPPY IN THE KITCHEN

This week, I decided to bring you three easy recipes that are perfect for people who don’t enjoy spending time in the kitchen, are not interested in learning new cooking or baking techniques, and yet still want to provide their families with tasty and nutritious meals.

Considering the variety of cooking shows on TV and social media, it would seem that everyone is spending hours upon hours in their kitchens. But that is not the case, and plenty of people want to limit the amount of time they spend preparing meals to the absolute minimum.

To that end, I have provided three recipes this week for dishes that taste great, are nourishing, but are super quick and easy to make. The one thing that is common to all three recipes is that they all have a yellowish-green color, which in my mind is a gentle sign that it’s time to set out on a new path.

The first recipe is for green bean and ginger tofu stir-fry. This recipe is great, since it doesn’t require much work. All you need to do is cut up the vegetables, heat a frying pan or wok, and sauté the vegetables. This dish is what I call the game of tastes and textures. In just 20 minutes, you have an excellent vegan dish, and all you need to do to have a complete meal is add a side dish to serve with the tofu stir-fry.

The second recipe is for chicken and vegetable stew. I used to make this dish often when my children were in school and I wanted to quickly put something together to feed them when they would arrive home for lunch. I would grab the chicken breast I had in the fridge and cut it up into chunks. Then, I would chop up cabbage, bell pepper and onion into strips, cut the carrots into rings, and then add some seasoning. All that’s left to do is stir the pot every once in a while, and 35-40 minutes later, a rich and appetizing lunch was ready. This dish is great served with rice or ptitim.

The third recipe is for pesto bread. Although this recipe might look complicated at first glance, it really isn’t. Despite the fact that it comes out gorgeous, preparing the dough is actually super easy and quick. You do, though, need to prepare the dough the night before and put it in the fridge overnight. Before you put it in the fridge, the dough will look watery, which might make you think that you did something wrong, but this is normal. The dough will set overnight. Then, all you have to do is spread the contents of a store-bought jar of pesto on the dough, and sprinkle pine nuts or ground walnuts on top and cook it in a wonder pot. Best served hot.

GREEN BEANS AND GINGER TOFU STIR-FRY Makes 6 servings.

3 Tbsp. olive oil

1 large onion, sliced thinly into rings ½ package (400 gr.) thin French green

beans

½ package (400 gr.) Brussels sprouts 6 cloves of garlic, crushed or sliced 2 Tbsp. water

1 package of tofu

2 Tbsp. sesame oil

1 Tbsp. honey or silan (unsweetened) 1-2 Tbsp. soy or pomegranate sauce ½ tsp. grated ginger

Salt and pepper, to taste

5PQQJOH (optional)

2 Tbsp. roasted sesame seeds

Heat the oil in a large wok or frying pan, then add the onions. Sauté for 2-3