I generally love to cook. I am not fancy or anything but cooking food that I love and serving it to the people I love brings me joy. Many times, throughout this quarantine I didn’t feel like cooking because I either didn’t have the energy, was bored of cooking and feeling uninspired, or more recently it has been a million degrees outside. Here are some go-to meal ideas when you just don’t feel like cooking: 

Charcuterie Board (pronounced shahr-cute-uh-ree)

Don’t let this fancy French word scare you. It simply means a board or plate with smoked, dry-cured or cooked meat on it. These are trendy right now and they are so fun to make and eat! The great thing is that you really don’t have to have anything fancy to throw one together. (And if you’re vegetarian, you can assemble a cheese board instead.)

This is also a go-to when people are coming over at the last minute or if you’re hosting a dinner and don’t know what to make. Just tell each guest to bring one of the items below! I try not to overthink hospitality. I don’t want fears of perfection keeping us all from fellowship. It’s our calling to bring people into our homes and break bread with them. If we overthink it and try to be the perfect hostess with a perfect meal and a clean house, it’s never going to happen. We want to make sure to make time to sit at the feet of our guests just as Mary sat at the feet of Jesus (Luke 10:39). For a further look at this idea read my blog on hospitality here. 

Also, as a side note, guests are usually really intrigued by charcuterie boards. I usually just put everything on display on my big wooden cutting board (it’s nothing special) but you could do something really pretty like this one or this one. Here’s what I will normally include on mine:

•  Crackers – can be anything basic from Ritz crackers to some of my favorite Trader Joe’s crackers. I usually put 2 different types of crackers out.  For a blog of all the foods we love at Trader Joe’s check out this blog.

• Nuts – almonds, cashews or candied pecans or walnuts

• A couple different types of cheeses - my favorites are sharp cheddar, gouda, and montego.

• Fruit – apples, grapes, peaches, strawberries

• Dried fruit – again whatever is in my pantry – dried apricots are great for this but sometimes I will sprinkle some dried cranberries since I always have them on hand.

• Veggies – carrots, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers.

• Meat – lunch meats or sausages

• Chocolate – a few little Dove dark or milk chocolates never hurt anyone!

Good salads 

There are salads, and then there are GOOD salads. You know what I mean? I’m defining “good salad” here to include many food groups, textures, flavors and ingredients. The typical “house salad” at a restaurant just isn’t satisfying for me most of the time, and it certainly won’t be sufficient as a meal. If the salad has some of the items below, then chances are that it will be a GOOD salad. 

• Lettuce – romaine, spinach, arugula, spring mix or a mix of all of these. 

• Cheese – whatever you have in your fridge, sometimes I chop up or shred my favorite sharp cheddar cheese or blue cheese.

• Nuts – usually I go with candied pecans or walnuts. 

• Dried fruit – cranberries, cherries, raisins are among my favorites. 

• Fruit and Veggies – fresh apples, pears, berries, avocado, tomatoes, cucumber…the possibilities are endless here. 

• Meat or meat substitute – if I have any leftover chicken breast, I will shred that and throw it in here, or I will sometimes take lunch meat or frozen veggie patties and break that up. 

• Other proteins – chickpeas and hard-boiled eggs sure bring a salad up to the next level.

• Croutons! If you have any leftover bread you can easily make some croutons to add to your salad. You know the heals of the bread, that nobody wants on their sandwich? Cut those up into squares and sauté them in a pan with a little oil, some salt, garlic, and onion powder, and voila – homemade croutons!

• Quinoa, or other starch – you need the carbs to make it a more well-rounded meal for both satisfaction and for health. If I don’t have anything on hand from previous meals I may just toast up a piece of cheesy toast, or crumble up some tortilla chips, if I’m making a taco salad. 

• Dressing (of course!) – salad dressing gets a bad rap because they’re higher in calories. But did you know that the fat in salad dressing helps us absorb the fat-soluble vitamins found in the salad? Plus, salad dressing is the key to making a salad actually taste good. And if you really want one of God’s magnificent creations, try salad dressings with the first ingredient as olive oil or better yet, try an olive oil, seasonings and vinegar combination. Click here for the easy recipe.  Did you know that there are about 25 references to the olive tree and more than 160 references to the oil in the Bible?

Kid-themed dinners

This one is going to sound silly and simple but if the idea is to stay out of the heat and create something satisfying this one is perfect. Just make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, turkey sandwich, tuna melt, or quesadilla and cut up some fresh fruit and veggies (dipped in hummus or ranch) and you’ve got yourself a great meal!  

Cereal and a smoothie 

 I love cereal because you can eat it anytime of day and it’s good. Have a bowl of cereal with a smoothie and you’ve got yourself a satisfying well balanced meal. 

Here are my basic ingredients for smoothies: 

1.     Frozen fruit 

2.     Banana 

3.     Yogurt 

4.     Fruit juice 

5.     Spinach or other leafy green (turns the smoothie green but you don’t taste it if it’s got the fruit juice in it). 

I hope this list helps you survive the summer and the rest of quarantine!

Want more?

Food Freedom Bible Study is now available for individuals and Registered Dietitians who want to earn CEU’s. It’s a simple, online, gospel-centered program for breaking the bondage of food, exercise and body issues.