One of our favorite meals is a big, honkin salad with either sliced top-sirloin steak, or a store-bought rotisserie chicken picked to pieces (leave the skin on!!). With a wicked dressing and serving it in a giant bowl, it really is a great meal. Good the next day cold or just reheat the chicken or meat before tossing in the salad. Make sure it's a full salad though, to make it worth it, with green onions and onion and tomatoes and carrots and celery and radishes and cucumbers and whatever else you can find. Next time you go to the market, look in the asian aisle for dried shallots. They are the best on salad!!
Chop potatoes (thin), onion, leeks, carrots, garlic, zucchini, and yellow squash. Toss in olive oil on a cookie sheet and toss with herbs/salt & pepper. Bake at 400 for almost an hour, scraping the bottom of the pan a few times. (When you can incorporate dairy again, add feta and bake with the veggies).
(Also, go buy Annie's brand Goddess Dressing [not to be confused with Annie's brand Green Goddess dressing]) Yummy and dairy free. I usually make a half-batch of this: http://www.recipezaar.com/22627 and combine it with the Annie's Goddess to stretch it out and it's quite healthy. Just throw all the ingredients in a blender or processor. Keep adding salt or pepper or lemon or Tamari until it tastes awesome.
Hope this is a good start!
Sharon's Minnestrone Soup
2 Tbl olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 strips of bacon, diced (I like to buy the platter bacon that you get at the meat counter)
1 small head white cabbage, shredded
4 celery stalks, chopped
1 can beef stock
4 cans chicken or vegetable stock
1 can of white beans
salt and pepper to taste
1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
2 Tbl tomato paste
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 cup any other vegetables such as eggplant, cauliflower, broccoli, turnips, parsnips, peas, green beans, zucchini, etc. (I use quite a bit more than a cup. The more you put in the heartier the soup.)
1/2 cup of very small or broken pasta
1 tsp dried basil or thyme
Heat the oil in a stock pot. Add the onion and fry very gently with the lid on until soft but still white. Add the bacon and fry another 3 minutes
Add the cabbage, celery, stock and beans. Bring to a boil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Lowe the heat and cover the pan. Simmer for 2 3/4 hours.
Add the remaining ingredients and continue to simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes or until the pasta is tender.
