Have I reached the peak of laziness? No! I'm just striving to live a balanced life.
As I get ready for the big 4 - 0 and beyond, I’m doing more to simplify many areas of my life, making some things easier and freeing up time.
This year, my mom and I are sharing the preparations and cooking for the Jewish holidays. She knows I love to cook and bake, and I’m usually very happy to go it alone. She must have been surprised when I accepted her offer to help out. Remembering my mom’s great cooking, I also was secretly waiting with great anticipation for these meals.
After we finalized the menu and split the dishes to prepare, I found myself — for the first time — thinking about shortcuts in the kitchen. I knew they existed, but I haven’t been a fan.
In recent years, I’ve been amazed at the amount of shortcuts used on cooking shows. It seems like most of our celebrity chefs are teaching us how to open up a can, just add water, and mix in a few extras. Staunch food snobs like myself have turned up our noses and declared these ways not on par.
But, I’ve reconsidered and am admitting I’m wrong. There are ways to save time in the kitchen and still produce healthy, tasty, and economical meals.
I’ve been helping people live balanced lives for more than 10 years. We focus on time management, commitments, lifestyles, levels of importance for activities, positive and negative implications, and realistic expectations.
As my own responsibilities and commitments grow over the years, I regularly evaluate my life’s balance and make adjustments. When I do this well, I feel good and thrive in all areas of my life.
Finding acceptable shortcuts to prepare my favorite dishes is a great alternative to losing my coveted time in the kitchen. It’s win-win all around.
Many of you have asked me to share some of my recipes on Countdown to 40, so I’ve chosen this opportunity to introduce the first one.
Lisa-Michelle’s No-Time-To-Spare Potato Kugel (Potato Pudding)
- 1 Bag (30 oz.) Ore-Ida Country Style Hash Browns Shredded Potatoes, Defrosted
- 6 oz. (1/2 12 oz. Bag) Frozen Diced White Onions
- 2 Teaspoons Minced Garlic
- 6 Eggs, Beaten
- 1/2 Cup Unseasoned Matza Meal
- 1 Teaspoon White Pepper
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
Defrost the shredded potatoes overnight in the refrigerator. If they’re not fully defrosted, spread them on a cookie sheet while preparing the rest of the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Brown the onions and garlic in a nonstick pan with cooking spray or a drop of olive oil. In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients well. Grease a 13” x 9” pan, and add the potato kugel mixture. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes till golden brown.
Enjoy this dish and having more time for whatever you want or need.
Best wishes to you all for a healthy, happy, good, balanced, tasty, sweet, and successful year.
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