Saute

This is one of my fancy fake-out meals. It looks like it came out of an Asian influenced bistro, but the difference between your Express Lane receipt and your dinner check, not to mention the prep time, is substantial.

French bread pizza from Stouffer’s was my favorite frozen food as a kid. Now that I’m all grown up I make my own, because I can overstuff them. (My appetite grew, too.)

This quick pasta has big flavors and lots of texture. Salty, sweet, crunchy—Delish!

This is my make-at-home version of one of my favorite brunch items at Union Square Cafe in New York City. Chef Michael Romano makes a mean Italian-style hoagie with sliced steak, tomato sauce, and capers—yum-o! When I’m up at my cabin, out in the sticks, I gotta make a knockoff for myself. (Michael, aka Mikey here, isn’t really from Philly. Rather I am referring to his riff on Philly’s famous cheese-steak sammies.)

Make your own take-out. When you MYOTO, you control the salt, fat, and quality of ingredients. This dish is not only healthful, but you also don’t have to make any decisions like whether you want chicken or pork. This recipe has got everything in it but the kitchen sink.

Make a Thanksgiving dinner, Southwestern style, any night of the year with this stuffing shortcut.

Just like Grandma might have made for you, if she were Hungarian.

I’m famous for my sausage sandwiches . . . my homemade relish is the secret that makes them great. Double the relish recipe and use it on any Italian cold cut sandwich. Either traditional Italian sweet or hot pork sausage will work fine in this.

I loved and still miss Julia Child. She consumed life as robustly as she did a good, crispy skinned chicken. If I had ever had her over for lunch, I would have made her this simple stew.

Try halibut, mahi-mahi, or tilapia in this recipe, too. Leeks and bacon are so delish . . . add some fish and they become good for you, too.

Mushrooms are beefy and delicious. This is a great quick supper for meat-free-ers and meat eaters alike because it is so hearty. To round out the meal, serve a simple green salad dressed with Dijon dressing or sliced apples or pears.

Pasta with butter, ricotta, and Parm cheese is an Italian children’s standard. Add a little broccoli—we grown-ups need our fiber—then be a kid again and enjoy.

Another easy chicken dinner: good for you, a good go-to, and good to go!

Sweet and simply delicious, this dish is a real mild-child, for nights when you feel less than wild.

The ingredients list is the whole sales pitch. Need I say more?

I loved corn so much as a kid that you couldn’t get that cob out of my hand for hours. In the summer months substitute fresh kernels scraped from the cob for the frozen.

Eat this meal in front of the TV. Invite Clint Eastwood and the cast of your favorite spaghetti western (mine’s The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly).

Love Chicken Piccata? Try this warm and flavorful super-salad-supper!

This Roman dish is as old as the city’s seven hills. It doesn’t get any easier, really. As a side, I fry up some garlic in oil and toss it with chopped defrosted spinach and some rinsed canned white beans.