Hi Reader,

There comes a moment—usually around 6:17 p.m.—when I stand in the kitchen staring into the refrigerator as if it might suddenly reveal the meaning of life. Or at least dinner.
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This typically happens after a long day of writing, editing, testing recipes, photographing, answering emails, and generally pretending I’m the sort of organized adult who plans meals in advance. Ha! NOT! Thank you, ADHD! By the time evening rolls around, I have the energy of a damp sponge.
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Now, Vovó Costa would've found this deeply suspicious. The woman cooked no matter what. Tired? Cook. Busy? Cook. Just finished cooking? Cook. Pissed at the entire human race? Especially cook.
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Me? I didn't inherit that particular superpower. What I inherited was a huge appetite and a slow metabolism. The desire to eat something deeply satisfying without summoning the strength for a full-blown production.
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Over time, this led me to curate a small arsenal of what I privately call my Lazy Man Food. Recipes so forgiving, so undemanding, that they practically cook themselves while you regain your will to live.
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And somehow—this is the part that still surprises me—they often end up being the meals I crave the most.

The Lazy Cook’s Survival Guide

• Choose recipes with very few moving parts. If a dish requires juggling five pans and a timer, it’s not an off-night meal. Look for one-pan dinners, quick pastas, sheet-pan roasts, or anything that mostly minds its own business.
• Let great ingredients do the heavy lifting. Good olive oil, ripe potatoes, decent bread, a wedge of cheese, a handful of herbs—these ingredients can carry a meal almost entirely on their own.
• Embrace “assembly cooking.” Not every meal has to be cooked from scratch. A good dinner can be built from roasted vegetables, leftover grains, pantry staples, and a quick protein.
• Keep a few pantry heroes on standby. Eggs, pasta, canned beans, good tuna, and jarred olives are the quiet champions of the “I cannot possibly cook tonight” dinner.
• Aim for comfort, not brilliance. Some nights the goal isn’t culinary greatness. The goal is a warm, satisfying plate of food that makes the day feel a little less exhausting.

WHAT'S INSIDE...

• ​Pan-Seared Scallops​
• ​Parmesan-Crusted Chicken​
• ​Leftover Pasta Frittata​
• ​Garlic Butter Steak Bites​
• ​Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough​
• ​Pasta Al Limone (Creamy Lemon Pasta With Parmesan)​
• ​Shrimp Salad From Ina Garten​
• ​Tex Mex Migas​
• ​Sautéed Romaine With Pine Nuts & Lemon​
• ​Classic Shrimp Scampi​
• ​Mussels In A Creamy White Wine Garlic Sauce​

​Pan-Seared Scallops​

The secret to these pan-seared scallops on the stove in butter is to cook them in a hot skillet with ripplingly-hot oil and occasionally baste them with butter. That's it. Simple, quick, and impressive. Twenty minutes from fridge to table.

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​Parmesan-Crusted Chicken​

This Parmesan-crusted chicken is made from chicken, Parmesan, egg, and nothing else. It's baked, which means you don't have to constantly tend it or clean up a spattered stovetop afterward. A swell weeknight dinner from the pantry.

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​Leftover Pasta Frittata​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.7 from 20 votes

This mashup of pasta and frittata combines some of my favorite comfort foods for a rich, cheesy, inexpensive pantry meal. And the variations are endless, too.

​☞ ​Try This Recipe​

​Garlic Butter Steak Bites​

Tender pieces of sirloin steak are pan-seared and finished in a garlicky herb and butter sauce. It's an easy, yet truly impressive weeknight meal.

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​Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.89 from 35 votes

This eggless chocolate chip cookie dough tastes just like Toll House chocolate chip cookie dough except it's specifically made without eggs. But it boasts exactly the same flavor and mouthfeel as the real deal. Safe for children and anyone else a little leery of raw eggs.

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​Pasta Al Limone (Creamy Lemon Pasta With Parmesan)​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 from 10 votes

Bright, creamy, and done in 20 minutes, this Pasta al Limone is pure weeknight magic. With butter, cream, lemon, and Parmigiano-Reggiano, it’s a zesty, cheesy, no-fuss pasta that tastes way fancier than it is.

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​Shrimp Salad From Ina Garten​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.66 from 63 votes

This luscious shrimp salad from the Barefoot Contessa herself--Ina Garten--is made with shrimp, mayo, mustard, vinegar, and more. Excellent for picnics, brunch, showers.

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​Tex Mex Migas​

Serve these softly scrambled, cheesy eggs plain or in a tortilla as migas tacos with lots of hot sauce. If you want to serve these for breakfast, as we often do, you can reduce the amount of tortilla chips if you like.

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​Sautéed Romaine With Pine Nuts & Lemon​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.89 from 17 votes

Sautéed romaine is a quick and healthy side dish that's gonna upend your notions of what purpose romaine was meant to serve on this planet. Bye bye, salads.

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​Classic Shrimp Scampi​

This version of shrimp scampi keeps the shells on for maximum flavor and moisture, slowly infuses the garlic into the butter and oil for a gentler, deeper flavor, and doubles the sauce—because, let’s be honest, you come for the shrimp, but stay for the sauce.

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​Mussels In A Creamy White Wine Garlic Sauce​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.79 from 89 votes

Mussels in a creamy white wine garlic sauce is such a quick dish, you almost won't believe that something so devastatingly delish is faster than takeout. Mussels, white wine, cream, lemon, and garlic are just about all it takes.

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