5 Minute Meals

During the winter I love to spend time in the kitchen making big meals and rich desserts. In the warmer months I prefer to eat lighter foods, and would rather spend my time outside. After grocery shopping this week I realized that I bought a lot of food (fresh fruits and veggies mostly) but didn't really buy anything to make for dinners. I've been so busy that I haven't really had much time to make anything terribly exciting, but I was able to put together a couple delicious meals using what I had in my fridge - and they only took a couple minutes to whip together. Perfect for warm summer nights that you're too busy to fuss with a long list of ingredients.

Open-Faced Apple, Fig and Cheddar Sandwich

You will need:

* 1 slice bread

* 1/2 apple, sliced thin

* fig spread

* few slices cheddar cheese

Chrissy brought over some really great fig spread the other day to have with cheddar cheese - the combination of the sweet figs and sharp cheddar is really remarkable.

I used the fig spread in my open-faced sandwich.

Start by lightly toasting a piece of bread (I used a slice of crusty rye bread from the bakery in Concord).

Spread your fig preserves on the bread. Chrissy said that less is more when it comes to fig. I think more is more!

Add a layer of sliced apples.

Cover apples with sharp cheddar cheese slices.

Bake in an oven that's preheated to 350 degrees for 3-4 minutes, until cheese is melted.

For a side I heated up some veggies from a frozen organic vegetable medley I bought at Trader Joe's. I added some pepper and garlic powder and was done!

Voila - the 5 minute dinner:

This sandwich was really satisfying - the rye bread paired well with the sharp cheddar and fig spread, and the apple slices added a little more sweetness and a crunchy texture.

Goat Cheese, Berries and Greens Pita Pizza

You will need:

* 1 pita pocket

* goat cheese

* handful mixed greens

* handful berries

* balsamic vinaigrette

I don't have a step-by-step of this for you, but I'm pretty sure you'll catch on quickly! Bake the pita in an oven that's been preheated to 350 degrees for a couple minutes, until crispy. Spread (or crumble) goat cheese on the pita. Cover the pita with mixed greens, then add berries (I used blackberries and strawberries) and drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette. 

This pizza was so quick and really good. I'm sure this would be really good if you filled the pita pocket or made a wrap with the ingredients as well, but I especially liked the crunch of the baked pita. Although it is a little messy to eat, this is certainly worth getting your hands messy for!

Honey Vanilla Oatmeal with Fresh Fruit

I've been on an oatmeal hiatus for a bit now but made myself a bowl a couple days ago and it was really good, so I wanted to share. I made my oatmeal the way I normally do, and when the oatmeal was almost done cooking, I added half a scoop of vanilla protein powder and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Once finished cooking, I added fresh blueberries and half a fresh peach (chopped) and then drizzled with honey.

This flavor combination was great. Lately I haven't been able to get enough berries, peaches and watermelon. Everything tastes so good this season! The protein powder made this bowl of oatmeal more filling and I didn't get hungry for several hours (note - if using protein powder - add it towards the end, if you add it in the beginning it changes the texture of the oats).