Everyone loves a parfait. Isn’t that what Donkey says in the Shrek movie? And just think, you can use the movie tie in to actually get your kids to eat the healthy yogurt parfait.

But what exactly is a parfait?

Behold, the layered goodness that is the parfait.
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Nataly emailed me last week asking if I had any no cook recipes in my repertoire and could I pretty please share them.

My first thought was, “Well, I can pour a mean bowl of cereal!” Because who among us doesn’t try to convince our children that it was THEIR idea to have a bowl of cereal for dinner every now and then.

But I got thinking about summer schedules and the heat and how most of us want to be out enjoying the weather, not tied to our hot stoves once we get home from work. So I thought I would offer up some tips to making summer cooking easier.
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This side dish is oh so yummy. Perfect to pair with a nice grilled steak. Eaten outside on a glorious warm evening. With a big glass of wine. Some smart funny friends. Where there are no bugs. Or whining children.

I guess you can say that if there was going to be a perfect, albeit imaginary, evening this side dish could be there.

You might notice something different about this post. “Where are the photos, Chris?” you might be asking.

They were lost in an unfortunate delete all images slip of thumb from the SD card. I had thought I could remake the dish and rephotograph it in all its glory. But this morning I was staring at my Blackberry, all the ingredients laid out before me on the counter. I scrolled past the rest of the week and weekend: 6 baseball practices, 5 baseball games, one art lesson, one afternoon of kayaking, tickets to a play, a doctor appointment, horse back riding lessons times three, a desperately needed hair appointment, tile that has to be ordered and picked up by tomorrow, a bathroom that needs to be painted before the tile is picked up but after the paint is bought, and well, I realized that it just was not going to happen.

Instead I will give you the recipe, just in case the stars align and you can have the perfect evening and need this dish.

You will need:

[Insert photo of artfully arrange ingredients on the kitchen table. Make sure breakfast dishes are strategically placed out of the view of the camera.]

1/2 cup dried mango
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup basmati rice (any kind will really do, but I love the way this one tastes with fruit)
14oz chicken broth, either from a can or if you saved some when making soup last week
3/4 cup water
1tsp basil
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

This is the part I like, because it is SOOOOOOO easy.

Cut up the dried mango into 1/4 inch pieces.

[Insert obligatory photo of knife wielding child.]

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan that has a well fitting lid.

[Insert photo of pan. WITH a lid.]

Bring to a boil. Give it a quick stir.

[Insert photo of spoon inside of a pan. For really artsy fartsy look capture steam rising from pan.]

Cover. Turn the heat down as low as it can go.

[Insert photo of low flame on the stove. Make note to photoshop out spills on burners]

And let it cook until the rice is done. Just as if you were cooking rice regularly. If you have some toasted pine nuts, throw them on top. I never do so I just skip this. I bet it would make it even more delicious though.

[Insert photo of beautiful rice on a plate, smiling child with fork poised to eat it]

And that is the end. Really. That is it.

[Insert on least photo of rice with a half empty glass of wine in the background]

Enjoy!

I used to think that making a whole roaster chicken or turkey was difficult. I am not sure why. Maybe too many Thanksgiving dinners eating dried out meat?

Over the past couple years I have discovered that roaster chickens and turkeys are easy, tasty, and economical meals. The trifecta of a good recipe, in my opinion.
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Do you ever see those recipes in magazines that say they will be done and on your table in ten minutes or less. And you laugh because you know it will take longer than that just to chop up whatever it is that needs to be chopped, or to find the ingredients in your cabinets?

I won’t promise ten minutes. But this delicious recipe takes only as long as your pasta takes to boil. That I will promise.

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I love my crockpot. I really do. But sometimes I get bored of all the food tasting the same. Do you know what I mean? Sometimes I want crunchy meat or less liquid, darn it!

This recipe is a two parter. I toss the ingredients into the crockpot so that it will be cooking all day and I don’t have to mess with it.

But then when the spaghetti is cooking I take the chicken out and turn it into a sauce on the stove top. It is easy and worth the extra effort. You are going to be standing there with your pasta anyway.
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I have one son who is not a big fan of sweets. I know, I don’t understand where he came from either. He likes the idea of sweets, but more often than not he will pass them by.

Every year for his birthday he requests carrot cake. The past few years he has baked it himself. Everyone loves this cake.

This is his recipe.

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This is another one pan wonder dish. I love making things for dinner that do not require multiple pans. I hate cleaning up after I have already slaved away cooking. (Okay maybe I don’t exactly slave away, but when I have a huge sink filled with dishes and pots and pans I feel overwhelmed.)

You will need:

green beans
potatoes, scrubbed and diced, not peeled
lemons
chicken breast
extra virgin olive oil
a few cloves of garlic (I used 4)
salt and pepper to taste

Don’t you love recipes that don’t have exact measurements? I do because it means odds are I can’t mess it up.

The most labor intensive part of this recipe? Washing and trimming the green beans.

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When my eldest son was about 4 years old I made meatloaf. Since it was something I rarely made, he did not remember ever seeing it. He was oddly excited when he saw me take it out of the oven.

“What is that?” he had asked.

“It’s a meat loaf!” I replied.

“Oh, I love that meatloaf.” he had said.

Dinner time came and I sliced a piece off the meatloaf for him and put it on his plate. He excitedly dove his fork into it. Put it into his mouth. And then spit it back out onto the table.

“That is a yucky cake! I do not like that cake!” he yelled.

Poor child, he thought we were having cake for dinner. I could only laugh. To this day whenever I make meatloaf I say, “Oh honey, remember this is not a cake.”
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My favorite thing about cooking in a crock pot is the way the house smells so good all day. Mmm mmm mmm. Though I think it probably causes me to gain weight since all I can think about is food all day long.

Ignore the food a moment. Isn’t that a pretty plate? It was given to me as a wedding present. There used to be a matching platter that sadly fell and broke one day. Along with my heart because I loved it so. Anyway, I was at the orthodontist the other day waiting for my son and I was browsing through Martha Stewart’s magazine when I saw one of her recipes on this plate. My plate! She is such a copy cat.
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