Let’s lay down some ground rules. It’s OK to hate cooking. It’s OK to lose your cooking mojo. It’s not OK to cook and serve food devoid of nutrients. Let’s simplify matters by assuming that if it comes in a packet and doesn’t look like it was just picked form a garden or cut off a dead beastie, it’s nutritionally broken. Alright, settle, no need to jump up and down, I know that’s a broad generalisation but it’s a jolly useful one and there are some exceptions.

So, let’s begin stockpiling recipes for the can’t cook, don’t cook, won’t cook nights. It will be just as easy as calling for takeaway, a lot cheaper and definitely better for you.

Chilli Tuna Pasta.
1 medium tin tuna in spring water
1 400g tin good quality tomatoes (if it’s winter)
3 – 4 medium tomatoes (if it’s summer)
1 fresh chilli, finely sliced
Pasta
Grated grana padano
Salt and Pepper

Boil water. You can cheat and use the kettle to save time but it’s horribly environmentally unfriendly. Cook pasta.

Roughly chop tomatoes or open tin. Put in small saucepan with tuna and chilli. Heat through. Season to taste.
Serve sauce on pasta and top with cheese.

Quesadillas
If you can find a preservative free tortilla, you’re doing better than me. I use spelt flat bread from Old Time Bakery
Refried beans – homemade stocks from the freezer or a tin if necessary
Quick salsa – a couple of tomatoes roughly chopped with some oregano and chilli powder mixed through
Avocado, sliced thinly
Grated cheese
Sour cream

Start with a flat bread, top with everything else (except sour cream) in layers, another flat bread, another lot of layers. One more flat bread on top. Place in a large fry pan. Fry for a couple of minutes. Carefully turn. Fry for a couple of minutes more. When it’s cooked through and the cheese is melted, cut into wedges and top with sour cream to serve.

Warm Chicken Salad
1 chicken breast, cut through to make thinner.
1 tomato
Mixed lettuce leaves
1/2 green capsicum, sliced
1/2 red capsicum sliced
1/2 red onion, sliced
1 egg
Mayonnaise
Crusty bread and butter to serve on the side

Poach chicken breast in small saucepan of boiling water for 10 minutes (ensure it is cooked through) Have the egg in the same saucepan to hard boil. While it is cooking, slice salad ingredients and put in a large bowl. When cooked, slice chicken and egg and add. Mix mayonnaise through to serve.

Note: A tin of tuna and a handful of olives or capers makes a good variation to this.