by D.Chazan

Created on: September 15, 2009   Last Updated: May 12, 2011

After a long day of work and running around, you sometimes don't have a clue what to feed your family for dinner. Moreover, you probably don't have the energy to make something fancy. But if you still want to make something quick that's also healthy, here are some ideas you can try.

Shakshuka

This is a delicious middle-eastern dish that couldn't be simpler and won't take you more than 15 minutes to prepare. All you need is:

1-2 eggs per person

1 cup of tomato sauce per every two eggs

salt, pepper and spices to taste

In a large frying pan simply put your favorite tomato sauce with the spices you like into the pan and then gently crack the eggs onto the top of the sauce. Lightly salt the eggs and let this begin to come to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and let simmer for about 6-8 minutes or until the yolks have hardened. We usually serve this over instant whole-wheat couscous, with a fresh salad on the side. If you don't have couscous, you can put these into pita pockets or over whole-wheat toast. If you prefer to make your own sauce, try taking a can (large) of crushed tomatoes and adding your favorite herbs and spices. Alternately, grind up red bell peppers, onions, garlic and ripe tomatoes in the food processor, and then add about of a cup of tomato paste and cup of water for the sauce, as well.

Hot & Healthy

If you've got a cooker, the world is your oyster when it comes to both fast and healthy food. Boiling foods in water depletes their vitamins and nutrients, as they leach into the water they're cooked in. Food prepared in a pressure cooker uses less liquid and therefore their vitamins and nutrients are preserved. While this might be said to be true for microwave cooking, a pressure cooker is still the healthiest way to cook. There are many other advantages to using a pressure cooker, and one in particular is the energy you'll save. Remember that while smaller portions may cook faster in a microwave, the larger the portion, the longer the time it will take. In a pressure cooker, larger amounts cook just as fast as smaller ones. You can prepare a whole meal in a pressure cooker, even if all you have is frozen meat. Just make sure the frozen pieces are at the bottom of the pot and add an additional 5-10 minutes cooking time.

One of our family favorites is "Chicken in the Pot". Simply put enough chicken pieces for the whole family into the pressure cooker along with onions, carrots, potatoes and any other vegetables you like (we like zucchini, celery,

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