Forgive me for moaning about being busy all the time. Life just seems to be relentless. I’m up in London at the moment, working very hard indeed. And there hasn’t been much time for cooking. Or anything else apart from work.
My time up here has really got me thinking about cooking in a hurry. I have always thought I’m quite good at rustling up something pretty tasty in a hurry. I hardly ever spend hours preparing a meal – what I cook on a day to day basis is generally quite quick. But being up here has really got me thinking about quick cooking. It’s not just the time spent in the kitchen, it’s the shopping (particularly when all you can get to in the time you have is a crappy Sainsbury’s Local (or whatever they are called)) and the cost: these little shops seem to charge twice times the price of other places. Then, it’s lugging the shopping back – be it on the bus so packed you haven’t a hope of a seat for the 45 minute ride, or the train, equally as packed, and there’s a change at London Bridge (don’t get me started). But you get the picture.
You see, most of the time, when I am back home in Dorset, I will think of pizzas or something similar as quick. I will invest little time to make them, but I will be around whilst the dough is proving. This is the case for most of my cooking – it’s not labour intensive, but requires my presence.
This was a surprisingly successful meal I cooked for us recently. Chicken breasts stuffed with sundried tomatoes, red pesto and some nice charcuterie from Barcelona. Served with some salad and roasted heritage tomatoes with rosemary. The chicken and tomatoes were baked at 200C for 20 minutes. The salad was served on its own, as I’m not a great fan of salad dressings. It tasted particularly good whilst eaten on the balcony, admiring the view across Dulwich.
If anyone has any good suggestions for quick suppers, I’d love to hear them.
This looks lovely, really quick cooking is a challenge isn’t it? And I often think a new market or shop can slow you down pre cooking too. Like you I’m always on the look out for quick and tasty meals and will cook this soon, I’ve been blogging a few quick suppers and you can find them under simple suppers.
Jude x
Thank you Jude – I’ll be over to take a look. I loved your tapas x
This was a great quick meal idea, sounds lovely! Im often stumped for quick meals, especially ones that dont need to rely on pasta!
Thank you Jayne – I agree, I try not to eat too much pasta…
Yummy! Risotto is my go to favourite. At the moment I’m eating it with lots of asparagus and goats cheese, but I love that I can chuck anything in, I often have bits of things slowly wilting that need using!
Love your blog so much!
Thank you Lucy! I do love a good risotto – goats cheese and asparagus sounds amazing!
Your quick roast chicken breast meal looks delicious. I too have so little time and still like to eat home prepped food so any quick recipes are most welcome! Grilled fish is always a winner for us.
Thank you Nazima – it’s not just me then!