The Simplest and Fastest Tomato Sauce

Spaghetti and meatballs in less than half an hour!

Difficulty: Very Easy

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Cost per serving: $0.25 to $0.40

Useful leftovers: Yes

The Fastest and Tomatoiest!
1 can very good tomatoes.
1 onion
1 rib of celery

A bit of oil

One of the better canned tomatoes from California is fine. Check the label and if you find some without a lot of salt and without calcium chloride pick that.

Chop the onion and celery and saute in a heavy bottomed pot until translucent in a bit of oil. Add the tomatoes and heat through. Let it simmer for a while. Mash up the tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper.

This is surprisingly good and so simple. You can jazz it up by adding garlic, red wine, rosemary, cumin, pesto, basil, sausage, salami, ground beef, cheese, lemon, tiny shrimp or any number of other goodies!

You can use this sauce with pasta of course but you can also use it to cook chicken or fish or as a seasoning for other sauces. You can add it to macaroni and cheese to make it tomatoey or put it on top of a roast or meat loaf. So handy!

The reason we look for tomatoes without calcium chloride is that they add it to keep the tomatoes whole and firm, and we want them to break down into the sauce.

Dry Fried Asparagus

Difficulty: Very Easy

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 4 minutes

Cost per serving: $0.25 to $0.40

Useful leftovers: Yes

Dry frying is my technique of cooking vegetables in a dry hot pan until done then dressed lightly with oil or butter and seasonings.

It is really easy and fast and the veggies taste fantastic.

You need a heavy bottomed pan. You can't make this in a thin bottomed pan. Maybe you can, but I can't.

This recipe works really well with asparagus, green beans, squash, carrots, onions, celery, etc.

Asparagus, washed carefully and dried, tough stalks removed and cut into 1/2" pieces
A tiny bit of butter
Salt and pepper

Heat a cast iron pan until it is fairly hot. You don't want it extremely hot but if you drop a drop of water on it it should sizzle and the water should evaporate quickly.

Put the chopped veggies in one layer in the pan. It's ok if they don't all quite fit but if you have two complete layers the veggies will get soggy.

Shake the pan every couple of minutes while they cook. Let the veggies cook until they are slightly brown and just barely done. Toss in the bit of butter and swirl the pan just until the butter is melted and pour out into a serving dish. Season with salt and pepper and stir gently.

Sauteed Celery

Difficulty: Easy

Prep time: 2 minutes

Cooking time: 5 minutes

Cost per serving: $0.25 to $0.50

Useful leftovers: Good reheated and good to throw in soup or use other ways

This is a simple dish but it's unusual and has a lot of flavor and texture.

Celery
Olive Oil
Salt, pepper and a pinch of celery seeds.

Wash and slice a few ribs of celery about 1/4 inch thick. Heat a dry, heavy bottomed pan and add the celery and let it sit for a minute or two until it starts to turn brown. Add a bit of olive oil (just for flavor really) and grind a pinch of celery seeds with your fingers over it, sprinkle with salt and serve.

Takes a couple of minutes, is low in calories and tastes great. Simple and delicious and unusual enough to serve at the fanciest tables.

You can vary the recipe by adding onions, corn, parsnips, parsley, etc. It's great for a bed for entrees.

How to cook Green Beans

Quick, easy and so tasty as a side dish.

Difficulty: Easy

Prep time: up to ten minutes

Cooking time: 1 to 5 minutes

Cost per serving: $0.50 to $1.00

Useful leftovers: Yes

I love this method of cooking vegetables. They steam in their own juices and get a little browning action.

Clean, dry and trim some green beans. Cut them into one inch lengths.



Get a heavy bottomed pan hot and add the beans. Do not put oil or butter in the pan first. Don't stir them, let them brown.

When you can see they are about a third of the way done shake the pan and turn them all over to cook the other side.

When they are about a third of the way done on the second side add a pat or two of butter and swirl the pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and remove from the pan immediately.

The beans will be crunchy and have a great deep flavor.

This recipe also works with zucchini, celery, parsnips, etc.

Clams and Celery with Vermouth

Difficulty: Easy

Prep time: 10 minutes plus an hour to soak the clams

Cooking time: 5 minutes

Cost per serving: $1.50

Useful leftovers: Good served cold with a flavorful sauce

Fast and easy and so tasty

Serves 1

4 clams
1/4 rib of celery
1/2 shallot
1 teaspoon of olive oil
1 tablespoon of water
1 tablespoon of dry vermouth
Zest and juice of a lemon

Soak the clams in cold water for an hour. Scrub them to make sure they are clean and have no grit.

Finely chop the shallot and cut the celery into 1/2 inch pieces. Saute them gently with the zest in the olive oil.

When they are translucent and slightly browned take the pan off the heat and add the clams, the vermouth and the water. Cover the pan and put it on high heat.

Cook for two  minutes then peek to see if the clams are starting to open. If they are, remove the open clams to a bowl. Season the liquid in the pan with salt and lemon juice. Pour the liquid over the clams and serve.