super easy slow cooker stuffed peppers ( my absolute favorite!), we also used the toaster oven alot, and we put the microwave in the basement, and used it too. You can cook just about anything on a grill, the only issue is the clean up. I found that since we did the reno in the summer, it was easier just to fill a big waterproof bin with everything i needed, paper cups, plates, bowls, silverware, plates, condiments, knifes, etc. and just used the patio table for my prep area. It's like camping - but with your own bed! have fun!

We kept a list, because we decided to make it an adventure. We were lucky enough to have a fairly decent temporary kitchen set up in the basement: the old oven was plugged into the 220v dryer outlet, so we could use the broiler. I had a rice cooker, which also works as a slow cooker, and a simple saucepan (we cooked pasta in it), plus a single electric ring. In addition I have an electric kettle. The coffee maker was put upstairs in the bedroom. But here's our list:

Chicken a la King & rice
Cassoulet
Hamburgers and tabbouleh
Cassoulet, fried artichokes and salad and breadsticks
Egg fried rice
Strawberry shortcake
slow-cooked porkribs and tabbouleh
Pasta with fish sauce (shrimp, canned chopped clams)
Grilled pork tenderloin and corn and vidalia onions
Cauliflower in lemon sauce and brown rice
Smoked fish risotto (flake the already cooked fish into the rice)
Grilled chicken, mashed potato and broccoli
Roast chicken, roast potatoes, peas and gravy
Chicken pot pies (two days) and salad
Chef's Salad with shrimp and ham
Beef stew and noodles (two days)
Pizzas
Tuna salad, tabbouleh and salad
slow-cooked pork ribs
Stir-fried shrimp and vegetables and egg fried rice
Pasta and marinara sauce
Steak, corn and string beans
soup, roast peppers, breadsticks and fried eggplant
Roast chicken legs, new potatoes, beans, eggplant and gravy
Chicken in red wine over noodles
strawberry rhubarb pie
Pizzas
Escarole and beans
Fried eggplant and courgettes; pasta with vongole; veal rolatini; strawberry shortcake
Salad with prosciutto
Smoked fish risotto
Poached eggs and ham; mushrooms and chips
Broccoli vichyssoise; tomato soup (twice)
Fried eggplant; courgettes and artichoke
Bison burgers, corn and salad
Baby back ribs, corn and salad
Stir fried pork and peppers; shrimp and vegetables; fried rice
Broccoli soup and salad

You can get really creative - as I'm at home, I had time to shop and prepare food, which I realise isn't easy when you're working, but I really hope these give you some inspiration. Having the broiler available was a real help, but you could substitute with an outside grill if you have one.

Because we have a proper sink in the basement, we carried on using all the regular plates and cutlery too, because washing them up was just as it had been throughout my childhood, with no dishwasher.

AND

I am serious. Those two will take care of all your kitchen remodel demons :)

The absolute BEST recipe I found (prepared on day 2 of our demo, which started 3 weeks ago): Crock Pot Peanut Butter Cup Cake. No lie-it was like a peanut butter hot fudge pudding cake.

Unfortunately, it only lasted 2 days. (and there are just 2 of us)

pharaoh, what is the green drink?

rc

(only green drink I know is a margarita)

rc, apple martinis, of course. The best.

My recipe - 1 part sour apple pucker, 1 part vodka, ice, shake, serve with a slice of green apple. or add a apple sour candy instead :)
Rim the martini glass with sugar before serving!!

sara, very impressive list!

How do you use your rice cooker as a slow cooker for non-rice things?

rc

(demolition starts Friday)

Thanks pharaoh! Sounds deee-lish.

rc

Our kitchen was fully out of commision for about 3 months and we had 3 main staples:

1. Jim Beam pulled bbq chicken from Costco (microwaveable)

2. Yakisoba noodles from Costco along with their frozen stir fry veggies in an electric fry pan topped with teriyaki sauce

3. Refried bean (from the can) burritos - heated in microwave

Lots of eating out, eating with family at their houses, and lots of toast and cereal.

Trader Joe's frozen food section was invaluable. We are just getting back into our kitchen. We had a toaster oven, microwave, & grill. We also took advantage of school "spirit" nights (local restaurants donate a percentage of week night proceeds to school -- primarily fast food). Lots of paper or styrofoam plates (I had to quit styrofoam. I can't stand the thought of that going into the landfill) & bowls. Used regular stainless, coffee cups & drink cups, & washed those by hand. Ten weeks! I'm glad we're back.

I had to laugh because I was going to ask the same question. My kitchen was just demo'ed a week ago Monday. I don't have a crockpot, toaster oven (gave it to my daughter in college or electric skillet. I do have a real sink in the laundry room/kitchen, microwave, rice cooker and grill and a friend just loaned me her camping gas burner. I had planned on doing tons of BBQ however, the weather here is Northern California has been unexpected rain on and off for the past week. So I ate up my left-overs from before the remodel, grilled burgers once, ate out a couple of times and have been exploring the frozen food at Trader Joe's and Costco. Not great but not awful. It's supposed to rain for the next few days and then BBQ here I come!

lol Carecooks... same here.. obviously Nashville has had it's share of rain. Our grill has a griddle, which is a plus.. but I really don't relish trying to figure out how to cook bacon and eggs outside in weird weather.

I don't have a toaster oven, which i think is BLAH... I can't make biscuits!

Pharoah when I got your post I read it on my iphone and there were no pics.. I was wondering which 2 recipes you were referring to! LOL.. When I saw the actually thread I totally laughed. Option 1 sounds great to me. I think a good bottle of Pinot Grigio or Cabernet should be it's own food group. Hey aren't there antioxidants in there????

I thought this might be a fun thread and it truly is. Keep the ideas coming. Remember, there are 7 days in a week and I got 6 to 8 of those coming my way.

PS... I saw a range for sale in "good condition" for $50 on craigs list. I was tempted to just get it and cook in my den. I'll post pics later of how crowded my den is right now with all the stuff I THINK I'll need, plus the stuff there was just more room left to put it other than here.

by the way Calimama, dadinlaw just informed me he wants those stuffed peppers this week.

I purchased a Fagor induction single hob portable unit (sitting on the maple cart). I was able to do a lot of stir frying with it as well as make pasta to go with my slow cooker pasta sauce. I made lots of other things as well and also had been previously cooked and frozen items for those work days that got too long. We rarely ate out during those long two months and we used our melamine boatware which we washed in the basement laundry sink. That was a bit of a pain but it worked for us. Here is a picture of our temporary kitchen. I had a dining space and food and dish storage in my sun room off the living room.

I spent almost as much time planning that temporary kitchen as I did my renovation. LOL! The white material on the floor was crown molding that was acclimating to the house. My contractor thought that right in the middle of my temporary kitchen was the best place. You see the bourbon and wine on the right -- very useful!!

I know there have been threads on temporary kitchens but I know many things quickly fall off this forum.

Am handicapped by the circuit that our camper trailer is on: only one electric heat-producing device can be used at a time. Refrig. is in garage and until recently was hard to access because of logistics. Freezer in basement is accessible. We just had another 4 days of intermittent no water, which meant that we had to stockpile water in containers--now there's adventure! even when water is on, I tote it in jugs from the outdoors spigot. Electric service is partial; some circuits have been turned off and the new outlets in kitchen don't have power yet, so coffee and tea are usually heated in camper.

Camper is cramped. If weather is good, we eat at picnic table on deck. If weather is cool, we eat in camper. If weather is insufferable as it has been this week, we eat indoors, hauling things back and forth from camper. Nothing is done easily; I'm much better at cooking in camper when we're camping. Why is that?

We're lucky that the March warm-up here allowed us to seed lettuces and spinach which are now eating size, so I can make good fresh salads, IF the house's water is on that day so I can rinse them. We splurged on some very good vinegar and some oil, which don't need refrigeration. Yesterday I simply cooked up some chicken breasts in olive oil and served them on the salad.

For spaghetti: Using bulk frozen Italian meatballs, I dump them in storebought spaghetti sauce in crockpot in afternoon; later boil water for noodles. Rooted around and found the parmesan in a packing box. Have also chopped up chicken breasts, done the same thing for the spaghetti.

Bought (awful) bulk burritos. We microwave them and bury them in lettuce and cheese and canned salsa. Beer helps.

Bought bulk bags of cashews and almonds. Am trying to leave sweets and oily snacks alone but it's hard, so the nuts are prominently put out in bowls throughout the living quarters as incentive to snack properly.

Am having trouble keeping bread from spoiling, so have been using flatbread crackers, etc. for some lunches.

DH and I have our own containers of yogurt in refrig, each with a spoon nearby. We simply scarf up some when we need a snack. Digusting, so don't watch.

Have been making "egg bake" in mornings in the toaster oven. I have a wonderful little oblong glass baking dish. Eggs, old bread chunks, water, herbs and spinach from garden, and dried tomatoes make a good, hearty breakfast. If I sequence the heating elements right, I can make coffee in percolator, use induction burner to heat dishwater while I prepare egg bake, put the egg bake into the little oven, and wash last night's dishes while it bakes.

Buy a grocery store roasted chicken. Eat it for a meal. Then dump bones and skin and whatever in crock pot. Let it stew a long time. Work over the bones once there's a lull in your life. Dump chopped celery, onions, rice, leftovers, spuds, whatever, into the stock. Let it stew a long time. This might serve for another couple meals.

We eat a lot of smorgasbord-style lunches. Sausage, good cheddar, tinned meats, hummus, lettuce, cut up fruit and avocado. I splurge on good French bread and Asiago bread. Food is served on a board with a knife and we eat with fingers or forks.

Remember ice cream.

wish we bought a portable induction hob. They seem to be a cheap/safe fix.

we learned to cook new things on the bbq -
Hobo Potatoes - slice potatoes uniform, add season (salt, rosemary, whatever), oil, SEAL in tinfoil, cook on bbq for 30-40 mins

We are in the same boat right now - it's been 2 weeks without a kitchen. Our temporary is in the basement because we have the laundry sink down there. DH put in a kitchen faucet with sprayer head, which helps with the dishes, but still somewhat of a pain.

We have a toaster over, MW, electric wok, electric griddle, and we bought a one hob induction burner, and the grill outside. We are really happy with the induction hob (it was $75 and totally worth it - we figured if it saved our family going out to dinner twice, it payed for itself). So, I recommend the portable induction hob, but you need magnetic pans. Not a big deal for us since our new range will be induction.

I, too, made a list of things we could make, although mine is much shorter than sara's! We are mostly grilling the usual: burgers, steaks (we always get the filets at Costco - not bad at all!), chicken, pork chops, shrimp kabobs etc. I have also compiled a big list of crock pot recipes that were rated well at allrecipes and other websites - the only one we have tried so far is the first one (it was fine for the remodel, but not something I would make otherwise). I almost never use my crock pot when not remodelling, but it is nice to have a decent dinner ready when you get home. One other thing - they sell crock pot bags at the grocery store so there isn't even any clean-up!:

BBQ-Pork-for-Sandwiches
Awesome-Slow-Cooker-Pot-Roast
Slow-Cooker-Beef-Stroganoff-I
Easy-Slow-Cooker-French-Dip
Slow-Cooker-Chicken-Tortilla-Soup
Slow-Cooker-Chicken-and-Dumplings
Opkikid's Slow Cooker Beef Tacos
Tried-and-True Crockpot recipes please!
Top rated crock pot recipes at recipeczar
Scroll down for crock pot mongolian beef recipe
A year of slow cooking blog
Chicken Makhani in the Slow Cooker from a fellow GWer

You can do lots with a microwave. I still don't have my cooktop in and really don't miss it. I always thought I had to boil tators on the stove for mashed tators but the microwave works just the same IMO, as it does for many items. If I need to brown meat before the oven, I use my fry daddy. I also bought a Nuwave oven thingy, sets on the countertop. I havent really used it much though yet but I should. It cooks a little quicker and cooler than the big ovens but seems like I use the larger rectangular dishes which won't fit in the Nuwave.

I never really cooked much before, and my kitchen doesnt have cooktop or countertops and I have cooked more since moving in than I have what seems like my whole life.

I started using allrecipes.com Seems like they have different sections like slow cooker and grilling. Then I use Living Cookbook to plan my meals on the calendar. Both have a shopping list feature. Cut our food bill in half because we use to eat out all the time - BEFORE building the new house. I just hardly ever cooked. Now I LOVE my kitchen, even though it isnt even finished. I plan my menu, print my shopping list based on those meals, and head to the store once a week. Martha Stuart move over.

wow! some great recipes that pudgybaby posted! Cindy- I just used some Trader Joes frozen rice, but you could use left over take out rice - mixed it with a lb. of hamburger, added some grated garlic and season it to taste. stuffed that into the hollowed peppers and poured some tomato sauce over it all (I used two little cans) in the slow cooker. I cook on high for 4 hours, but it would be fine all day low. The peppers get a smoky flavor that is just wonderful! You can also find more creative stuffings if you do a recipe search. Have fun!

We also got an induction hob (Max Burton), which is working well but when it is on we can't turn on anything else in that room, like the toaster, rice cooker, etc. Has not been a big problem. The GC hooked the dishwasher up to a basement sink, which means hauling dishes in bus bins up and down two flights but still love having a d/w. Our remodel is scheduled to last six months and I could not face washing dishes in the tub for that period!

I've cooked the hobo potatoes several times. Also, fish with veggies (from whole foods salad bar), salt, pepper, herbs, olive oil, little white wine, sealed in foil and cooked on the grill. Almost no prep and no clean up.

I'd love to hear more about using a rice cooker for things other than rice. I have a "fuzzy logic" model, does that matter?

I think it might - mine's a really basic one, with two settings "cook" and "warm". I found some stuff on the internet about using it to cook other things with.
To use it as a slow-cooker, for example, for the slow-cooked country ribs: I used it to brown the ribs first, then dumped all the recipe ingredients in, and set it to "cook". Once the sauce was boiling, turned it down to 'warm' and put the lid on. Mine has a small vent in the glass lid, which you don't want when slow-cooking, so I put a sheet of foil over the top before putting the lid on, for a tight seal. Then walk away and leave it for at least 6 hours.

If you want to use it as a saucepan (say, for heating soup of boiling pasta) you need to keep hitting "cook" when it clicks over to "warm", to keep it boiling. Watch water level and don't bother with the lid once it's boiling.

I'm so impressed with how creative we all are! Just think what you'll be able to do once your kitchens are finished!

I did something my husband thought was crazy, I sold off our old appliances except the dw on craigslist a month ago. June 1 the demo is supposed to start, but things have gotten a little off track. I also emptied my cabinets so that I could pack slowly and figure out the least that I could live with. We will be out of a kitchen for 9 months to a year, so I really can't afford to count on eating out, which isn't something we did more than a couple of times a year anyway (except for an occasional pizza.)

I kept all my spices out so that I could still season even the simplest meals. No room for extra condiments in the fridge....

Here's what I'm using, it's working out so well I wonder if I need a new kitchen! Well, on most days at least...

Luckiest find: Cadco convection oven bought for $100 off craigslist. AMAZING. It holds a ton and does a great job. Roasts veggies WAY better than my GE gas range did. Also making homemade dough and making mini pizzas in it, since it goes to 550! This is the key appliance!

Ancient huge Hitachi rice cooker discarded by friend. Use it to make oatmeal, boil pasta, steam veggies, even mashed potatoes, and I guess I could always use it for rice!

1970's style electric skillet given to me in '91 as an engagement present (HUH?) never used it till now and it's getting quite a workout. I'm ignoring that it has a nonstick surface, something I wouldn't normally allow...

1987 microwave that will not die. Pyrex cookware purchased recently to use it more during reno. Cooked small batches of pasta sauce this way, but not a fan... But have finally microwaved some Trader Joe's frozen veggies in it.

regular toaster oven, so I can use both at the same time.

grill
crockpot
minifridge
minifreezer

I'm starting to buy some Trader Joe's frozen items as backups for when I feel stressed. There are 5 of us so it's going to be a long year living without a full fridge. That's sort of the biggest issue so far, but I'm pretending I live in Paris and shop daily, often right before dinner so that it comes straight home and never makes it into the fridge.

When the cabinets get yanked and I have no kitchen sink and the dw is in the basement, and the temp kitchen is upstairs, maybe I won't be so cheerful about it anymore.

Thanks for all of the wonderful tips! I've almost made it through the first week, and this is gonna be harder than I thought!

I almost forgot about my slow cooker, so I am DEFINITELY going to try the stuffed peppers in that.

I saw an ad on craig's list for an "excellent condition" free standing range for $50. I really wish I'd scooped that up and put it on the deck or something.

But hubby went today to refill the propane tanks. I have 2 burners out there and a griddle aside from the grill. Now let's just hope we don't get more rain -- which is just what Nashville DOES NOT need.

We're on day 16 without sink or stove, and DH has used our stove-less status to purchase a new grill already. He was so mad that it rained for two days after it was delivered!

We eat frozen waffles, frozen bagels, and cereal in paper bowls for breakfast....

sandwiches or microwave leftovers with a side of fresh fruit or carrots and ranch dressing for lunch...

takeout and/or something microwaveable and grilled meat for dinner. The best grilled items so far have been a t-bone, juicy boneless pork chops, and shrimp on skewers.

We were spoiled before the demo, because DH is a great cook. We have already discovered that takeout once a week is OK, we have been doing every other night, which is not that fun. Also, we don't have a good enough set of takeout menus, so we have done Chinese, pizza, Indian, Chinese, pizza every other night and we are already "takeout"ed-out.

We have rapidly learned to love frozen vegetables in their own sauce that steam up in their own bag in the microwave. It takes waaaaay too long to boil water on the side burner of the grill, so no more steaming fresh vegetables from the farmer's market for us for a while. Still trying to figure out a way to make spaghetti and meatballs in the microwave or the slow cooker.

There was a sale on wine at the Safeway and my husband bought six bottles! That would normally last us two or three years, but we are definitely using it as a kitchen stress buster.

Here's hoping we're back to an indoor sink and range before day 42!

Thanks for sharing all the good ideas on this thread.

Mainly stirfrys on the elecric wok over rice from the rice cooker I splurged on.

Also we have grilled over charcoal about once a week supplemented by fruit and green salads.

We have rarely needed to eat out. (Yeah!!)

We have used our fair share of paper plates and bowls and plastic cups, but kept out our stainless cutlery. (I am having to keep my land fill anxiety at bay daily!)

I have a slow cooker, but haven't used it as much as I would have thought. It justs seems to cook food into a mediocre mish mash for me. (Maybe I just need slow cooker enlightment?)

And I have my coffee pot out along with my crystal wine glasses. So, it hasn't been nearly as bad as I had thought!

LOL @ pharoah!!! I love it.

I just had my entire kitchen appliances installed in the basement for the duration! I used to have a mother in law apartment in the basement. We took out the kitchen so we can turn that into kids playarea and media room. We had the plumber reconnect the plumbing for us and rehooked up the gas. We moved the entire 90 inch island to the basement. So I have a kitchen bigger than most apartment kitchen in the basement which includes my Viking range, DW, refrigerator and 30 inch sink! Not pretty but very doable.

I was willing to buy an induction cooktop for the duration and use the laundry room sink. However, my DH insisted that we have a regular kitchen since we do not have many summers left in our lives... (he is 50 this year and I am rapidly approaching that!)

Rotisserie chicken ad nauseum.

One more thing:
We have a boat about 3 miles from the house. I have a small but very functional kitchen/galley in the sailboat with power and water! There is also a very nice grounds for picnics with BBQs and tables. We will probably go there quite a bit during the summer....

scoutcat, how could I forget! The rotisserie chicken fall back! LOL

Ok I'm adding another one myself! I made shrimp scampi on the grill and it was great, and I've NEVER made it before.

Angel hair boils pretty easily on the grill and only takes about 4 minutes.

I got one of those disposable roasting pans to do the shrimp itself, and it worked out reallllly well. Plus, those come with a plastic lid to store leftovers in the fridge.

Hubby is a chef and even he was impressed. I got a loaf of italian bread when I was at the grocery and just let it heat on the grill as well, and it was great for sopping up that sauce.

Its basically butter, olive oil and white wine (savignon blanc or pinot grigio instead of a heavier chardonay is best). Fresh oregano and parsley from the garden.

Toss the peeled and deveigned shrimp in some paprika, salt and pepper and let sit while you bring the butter and olive up to a bubble. Add in the white wine (be generous) and let that bubble up realllllly well. Then put in the Shrimp.

When they're just pink, toss in some parmesan cheese.

Like I said, hubby said it was perfect.

umm... did i not mention TONS OF garlic in that butter and olive oil just before adding the wine. To get really easier, use the jarred minced stuff packed in olive oil. Kroger also sells a product in its fish department called "scampi butter".

(PS. I did not tell him I cheated and used a tub of this as well. I tossed it into the olive oil and butter. Heh, might be why he thought it tasted so good --- or simply he was just reaaaaaaaallly sick of burgers - as am I)

Ok, Cindy (or Mocha, whichever one of you did the cooking ;-), how did you boil the pasta on the grill? Just put a big, covered pot of water on the grill? How do you prevent black marks all over your pot?

Sounds yummy!

Hi Scootermom, I used the side burner. I didn't really worry about blackening the bottom, since most of mine are not "pretty pots" anyway. However, it didn't blacken it anymore than it already was.

I was using a stainless pot, and I think the trick was to use a smaller (maybe 2 or 3 quart) pot - not a big one. I got the water just to boiling, and then added the angel hair.

Its not the traditional amount of water I'd normally use - but it's only angel hair. That only needs 4 minutes at most to cook.

I had worked out in my head that I think it could have been done directly on the grill, or even in an electric skillet with enough water.

Since you are using so much less water, make sure to add in some olive oil to the water to prevent sticking. Make sure to give it a good stir too, you won't have a ton of water to drain off afterwards, but it was just fine.

While doing dishes outside today, I was washing the pot I cooked the pasta in, and thought about your question Scootermom. I looked at the bottom of the pot and noticed it was a 2.5 quart (smaller than I thought - I had used a whole box of angelhair in that).

The SECOND thing I noticed, and most amazing --- the bottom was shiney!

Apparently the high heat and direct flame had actually cleaned off the bottom of that pot! Bear in mind these are very thick bottom clad stainless pots, but still! I was suprised.

Somewhere I seen about hooking up the dishwasher in the basement. Since I have hot water in the garage sinks, I will ask hubby to hook up old one there so he wont have to be lugging it up and down stairs more times than he needs to. Does anyone know what parts I will need to buy to do this?

One thing no one has mentioned in this thread. I did a good bit of baking before the demo started. Biscuits, muffins, ham and cheese rolls. I also cooked extra for a few weeks and froze leftovers like roasted pork tenderloin, chicken spaghetti, grilled chicken. If you will still have access to a freezer and a microwave, you can do some things ahead.

Tonight I put the pizza stone in the grill and baked Salmon with doctored up Costco Pesto sauce on top in an old deep dish pizza pan. Husband said it was the best I have ever made. It was served with Costco prepared couscous with an extra squeeze of half a lemon. Lunch was Costco prepared brushetta over Costco sliced demi baguettes, a little Costco crab dip and array of fresh fruit. Tomorrow will be leftovers from all the above.
I think I will be shopping at Costco a lot during remodel and will cook up the large quantities of chicken breast packs on the grill, putting in zip locks and freezing. I will have lots of fresh veggies on hand as well as instant rice. Now that I know I can use my outside grill as an oven with the pizza stone in there I dont feel IÂll really be that limited and will even give casseroles a try using the already cooked chicken. I never had much counter space anyway so maybe this wonÂt be so bad.

We are about 4 weeks now without a true kitchen. We have about 2 or 3 more weeks to go. If I NEVER eat another steak or burger again, it just might be too soon.

We've been doing everything on the grill. Thank goodness there are 2 burners out there as well as a griddle. However, controlling heat on the griddle for eggs and bacon is a true science in and of itself.

Luckily there were a few tricks I picked up on this thread. Also I came up with a great grilled portabella mushroom. And the garden just produced some nice zuchinnis and squashes for grilling.

Those frozen costco packages are great. They can be done in the electric skillet or microwave.

The grocery store rotisserie chicken is getting a little boring too. Lost my enthusiasm for camper trailer crockpot soup prep during the monsoon and humidity. Best thing is relatives who feel sorry for us and bring around something different for supper (with hopes of a glimpse of the disaster zone).

lol.......... I just ate my last burger for a looooooong long long time. If I never see one again, it just might be too soon!

Ugh I dont look forward to this part... Im trying to convince my husband to rent an apartment for a month. He's got a friend with some nice rentals - and likely a vacancy or two.. he'd probably give us a nice deal. It would have to beat all the extra $$ for convenience foods!

Lucky for us, my husband eats anything. Left on his own, peanut butter and crackers = a meal. HAHAHA - no. We've had plenty of 'casseroles' (in the microwave). Really, I call them 'one dish dinners' since I'm washing the dishes in the shower since the tub is gone. Canned cream soup mixes with just about any protein and veg you can think of. I have learned how to make a 'soup' out of just about anything. I've been having nightmares that once I am able to cook in the kitchen, I've forgotten how! This is a recurring dream for 4 months at this point. DH doesn't care as long as I can find my grandmother's cookie recipes by the holidays!

I laughed outloud when I saw this post. We tried to cook at home a few times and then I just gave up. Costco has cases of Marie Calendar chicken potpies, Trader Joes has microwavable foods - pair with broasted chicken and a salad from a bag. The kids lived on ham and cheese sandwiches and cereal during the day. And thank God, a wonderful and very inexpensive Lebanese restaurant opened near us and we got fresh veggies and salads inbetween the microwave and take out meals. My DH said we should have had a budget line for the restaurant bills during the 3 weeks we were out of commission.
But I'm tagging this thread because I saw a lot of great meal ideas for regular life!

True story. A friend of mine was renovating her kitchen in a New York City coop(erative) apartment. She, her husband, and their small child were living in a 1 bedroom with dining room/nursery. The renovation was taking longer than expected--of course--but they were managing OK. One evening, after yet another night of eating Chinese takeout, she said out of nowhere she burst into tears at the dining table.

Her husband calmed her down, and the venting/crying seemed to have released a lot of pent-up anxiety about the renovation. In the end, the kitchen renovation turned out beautifully, and they were quite happy with the work. She tells this story with a laugh and as advice to others about to embark on a renovation. The process is no fun, but the result is well worth it.