I need re-heatable ideas of things to cook/prepare...

[4_Legs_Good]

My wife is 3 weeks from being due with our 2nd kid. Her mom (80 years old and very inactive) comes over for dinner every Friday night (before I get home from work).

Anyway, the wife is too exhausted to cook anything, so basically they all wait until I get home at 6:45ish to eat, which is pretty late, particularly when we're feeding her mom too.

So, I need some ideas and recipies for stuff that I can prepare the night before for cooking/eating the following day, that require very little preparation by the wife.

So far all I've come up with is Enchilladas, which work great, of course, but once a week is more than enough for them.

What else can I make? Preferably not too complicated, as even I'm totally wiped out these days and don't have a lot of time.

I will be SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO x 100,000 happy when this pregnancy is over and the baby is a month old and healthy.

david

Edit: changed MONTHS to WEEKS

[flvegan]

1. Google "unstuffed shells" from the Vegan Vittles cookbook

You should stumble over the recipe. I would post it here, but I'm sure that's copyright infringement.

I usually make a huge batch, then take it all to work for lunch over the course of the week. Yummy hot or cold.

[livetohike]

2. Homemade soups always taste better reheated

imo, here are a couple recipes that I like.

Mushroom Barley Soup

1/2c Uncooked barley
6 1/2c Water
1 T Margarine
1 Medium onion, chopped
2 Garlic cloves, mince
1 lb Mushrooms, sliced
1/2 t Salt
3 T Soy sauce
3 T Dry sherry
Black pepper to taste

1) Place the barley and 1 1/2 cups of the water in a large saucepan or a Dutch oven. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer until the barley is tender(20 to 30 minutes).
2) Meanwhile, melt the margarine in a skillet. Add the onions and saute'for about 5 minutes over medium heat. Add garlic, mushrooms, and salt.Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until everything is very tender about 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in soy sauce and sherry.
3) Add the saute' with all its liquid to the cooked barley, along with the remaining 5 cups of water. Grind in a generous amount of black pepper,and simmer, partially covered, another 20 minutes over very low heat.
Taste to correct seasonings, and serve.

White Bean and Black Olive Soup

3 T olive oil
3-4 cloves crushed garlic
1 heaping cup chopped onion
½ cup diced celery
½ cup diced carrots
½ cup chopped bell pepper
1 cup zucchini chunks
1 ½ t salt; black pepper
1 t oregano
1 ½ t basil
4 cups stock or water
3 oz. tomato paste (1/2 small can)
¼ cup dry red wine
2 cups cooked beans (I've used canned, no problem)
1 cup sliced black olives
1 T fresh lemon juice
Sauté garlic, onion, celery, carrots, bell pepper, zucchini, salt, black pepper, oregano and basil in olive oil.
Add stock or water, tomato paste, dry red wine, beans, black olives, and lemon juice.
Simmer, covered, over very low heat, about ½ hour. Just before serving, add freshly chopped parsley. Optional garnish: freshly diced tomato.

[Warpy]

3. Tofu stuffed shells or manicotti (or ricotta, if you eat dairy)

are really easy to do and reheat well the next day. Just mix the tofu (or ricotta) with some cracked black pepper and parsley while the pasta is cooking, use a spoon to stuff them, put them into a baking dish and cover the whole business with spaghetti sauce from a jar. You can throw cheese over the top or not, depending on your taste. All it requires is half an hour or so in the oven the next day.

Spaghetti sauces and soups are always better the second day.

French bread pizzas are easy to throw together, no reheating is necessary. Just remember to keep the sauce and cheese available.

Now that it's finally getting a little warmer, cold veggie and salad plates with veggie cold cuts would be easy to do.

If you're feeling ambitious (say on a Sunday night when you've had a little rest), consider making spinach pie. It's more an assembly proposition than a cooking one, and you can freeze it when it's put together. Just take it out of the freezer the night before you plan to cook it and let it thaw in the fridge, then cook as usual.

[Kenneth ken]

4. wok food

this is my favorite easy recipes.

Get a wide variety of vegetables, and maybe some fruit,chop it all up and put it in separate containers. Then you can cook up a big batch of rice and portion it out for two or three or four meals.

When you get home, pop the rice in the microwave for about a minute; pick and choose from your selection of veggies, and toss them in a wok; dinner fresh and hot in about 5-10 minutes.

You can also throw in any variety of spices, or use those sauces that come in bottles; spicy one day, sweet and sour the next, then teriyaki. It's easy to get a meal that is healthy, delicious, easy and varied.

[Trailrider1951]

5. How about my daughter's Greek pizzas?

Several days prior to the meal mix together 2 cups crumbled feta cheese, basil, oregano, rosemary, tyme, savory, dill, and/or any other of your favorite spices, about 5 or more cloves of chopped garlic, and enough olive oil to cover. Mix well and store in refrigerator (will keep for a week or two). When time for the meal, place whole wheat pita breads on a cookie sheet, one for each person, and top the breads with thickly sliced roma tomatoes and a dollup or two of the feta cheese and olive oil mixture. Top with sliced black olives. Run these pizzas under the broiler until cheese begins to melt and bread turns brown on edges. Serve hot with tossed salad, and brace yourself for the compliments. :9