Great-Tasting Solutions for Meals on the Fly

Looking for ways to streamline dinner preparations during a hectic weekday? Consider items like refrigerated pasta and thin cuts of meat to help you get dinner on the table in minutes.

When you're in a hurry to prepare dinner, one thing you don't want to deal with is using ingredients that require a substantial amount of prep time.

Refrigerated pasta products are a terrific time-saving product. You can easily stash these in the refrigerator for those days when you need to get dinner on the table quickly. Just toss the pasta of your choice with freshly chopped basil, a few cloves of finely minced garlic, a few tablespoons of melted butter and a generous grating of Parmesan cheese.

Or, try mixing and matching varieties of fresh pasta with purchased sauces. Here are some fun combinations to try: chicken ravioli with alfredo sauce, tomato and herb linguine with red bell pepper sauce, and spinach tagliatelle with garlic herb butter.

You'll find pastas to suit just about any occasion and palate. Tortellini and ravioli stuffed with meat or cheese make an excellent main dish. If you want to experiment with flavors, try using gorgonzola cheese and walnuts or prosciutto and herbs.

When hungry family members beg for a meal in a hurry, reach for cuts of meat that can be ready to eat in just minutes. When shopping, look for thinner cuts of meat since these will cook much quicker than thick cuts of meat (select cuts of meat that are less than 1 inch thick). Also, boneless cuts will take less time to cook. Just be sure to watch the cooking time and temperature; overcooked meat tends to be tough and dried out.

The following cuts of meat will suit the needs of most busy cooks: boneless chicken and turkey breasts, pork loin chops, beef sirloin or tenderloin steaks, and ground beef, chicken, turkey or lamb.

In this week's article, I'll be sharing two recipes designed for a quick-cook dinner in minutes. That's coming Wednesday to Recipes at Suite101.com!