Nuke It!

Your subscription includes Quick & Easy Dinners, a FREE digital recipe booklet featuring 8 delicious Vegetarian Times recipes that take less than 30 minutes to prepare!

First name
Last name		City
Address		State
Address Line 2		Zip Code
Email (required)		Country	UNITED STATES
	If I like it and decide to continue, I'll pay just $14.95, and receive a full one-year subscription (9 issues in all), a 67% savings off the newsstand price! If for any reason I decide not to continue, I'll write cancel on the invoice and owe nothing. Offer valid in US only. Click here for Canadian and International Subscriptions

Nuke It!

Faster than a frozen dinner! Better for you than a bag of popcorn! Able to cure the midnight (or mid-afternoon) munchies in a single bowl . . . every one of these simple recipes can be made in minutes in the microwave.

Okay, so we don’t actually have culinary superpowers. But we have been stuck in plenty of situations that found us stressed, starving and wishing lunch were more than just a Lean Cuisine. So we cooked up a batch of recipes that taste gourmet—but take no time at all. You can make a bowl of miso soup that’s both satisfying and healthy, or whip up a wilted spinach salad worthy of any restaurant in town. On a high-stress day, try comforting polenta smothered in sauce and cheese, or a pesto baked potato. Finally, treat yourself and a friend or two to an ultra-easy fondue. It sure beats another pizza! To get cooking, just apply these three minute-meal tactics:

1 - Stock up on a few basics
Fill a desk or dorm drawer with nuts, dried fruit, instant miso soup, a head of garlic and a whole potato or two— all items that keep a long time and don’t need to be refrigerated.

2 - Hit the salad bar
Prewashed spinach and prechopped, perfectly sized veggies mean you don’t have to worry about leftovers when you’re cooking for one. And for college kids on meal plans, salad bar fixings are there for the taking.

3 - If you’ve got access to a fridge, stock it with some baked tofu, soy crumbles, a tube of prepared polenta and useful flavor boosters: pesto, curry paste and cheeses that have a kick—crumbled feta, sliced fontina, a wedge of Gruyère. They add lots of flavor—and a little goes a long way.

Pesto Potatoes
serves 2 l 30 minutes or fewer

A baked potato tastes good 24/7 and fills you up like a meal. Stuffing spuds with tofu, pine nuts, artichoke hearts and Parmesan-laced pesto turns them into a protein-packed one-dish lunch or dinner with a Mediterranean flair. Share this overstuffed treat with an office mate or college roomie, or just save half for later.

1 medium-size baking potato
3 canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 Tbs. soft silken tofu
2 Tbs. prepared pesto
2 Tbs. pine nuts
3 purchased croutons, crushed

1. Prick potato 4 or 5 times with fork. Microwave on high 3 to 5 minutes, or until tender in the center. Cool slightly.

2. Meanwhile, mash together artichoke hearts, tofu, pesto and pine nuts in bowl. Hold potato in paper towel, and cut in half lengthwise. Scoop out flesh, leaving thin layer of potato on skin, and mash it into tofu mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Refill both halves of potato, mounding filling. Sprinkle with crushed croutons, and return to microwave. Cook 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until hot.

PER SERVING: 295 CAL; 10G PROT; 13G TOTAL FAT (2G SAT. FAT); 38G CARB; 2MG CHOL; 639MG SOD; 4G FIBER; 4G SUGARS

Related content:

Archive of Editorial

Earth to Table Herbs

Why do we dig these 6 herbal beauties? They're easy to grow and loaded with flavor.