Cooking Challenge Day 3 recipes: Microwaved eggs and the “vaguely Middle-Eastern dinner”

Remember that granola I made the first day? It’s coming back to play! Today’s a totally Megan-simple breakfast morning — granola cereal, and I’m going to share with you the trick my dad taught me for making scrambled eggs with only ONE dish to wash afterwards.

For lunch, our web mistress Kellbot shared with me her recipe for her “delicious sauce thing.”

For dinner, we’re having what Jessica calls the “vaguely Middle-Eastern dinner.” It may be vaguely Middle-Eastern, but it’s clearly delicious. It’s one of my most requested meals, and it may just become the same for you…

Breakfast: Granola cereal and eggs

Granola cereal:

• Granola
• Raw almonds
• Dried cranberries

1. Pour granola in a bowl
2. Add almonds
3. Add cranberries
4. Pour milk
5. Eat it like it’s cereal

Megan-simple scrambled eggs

• Eggs
• Milk

1. Crack eggs in a microwave-safe bowl
2. Add splash of milk
3. Whisk
4. Pop it in the microwave (generally a minute for every egg)
5. Fluff it up and eat!

Lunch: Kellbot’s “delicious sauce thing”

At the beginning of the week I cook about a cup of quinoa (in my rice cooker because I love that thing) and then put it in the fridge for later. Rice would work too. Then I make this sauce and put it in the fridge for later:

In a small food processor or blender, puree:

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• 1 thumb sized piece of peeled ginger, cut into chunks (about 2″ — Yes, it IS a lot of ginger).
• 2 tsp minced garlic. I use the jarred stuff, you could also just mince 2 cloves of garlic.

Then add:

• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp lemon juice (That’s about half a lemon’s worth of juice so I use the other half to make vodka lemonade with the simple syrup I keep in my fridge at all times for such occasions.)
• 2 tbsp tahini (you can usually find it with the hummus or fancy cheeses at the grocery store)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp water

It makes about 4oz, which is enough for 2-4 lunches depending on how saucy you get.

At lunchtime:
Put about ¼ of the cooked quinoa in a bowl and zap it until warm (30-ish seconds). Grab a steamfresh 10oz bag of frozen veggies, nuke it according to the directions on the package, and add to quinoa. Sometimes I’ll split the cooked veggies into two and save half for later, if I’m not totally starving, since they’re sort of big bags. Spoon two spoonfuls of the sauce into the bowl and mix well. If the sauce has gotten a little thick just add some water to thin it out.

You could also steam your own fresh veggies but that is way too much work for me.

Dinner: The vaguely Middle-Eastern dinner

Yogurt Sauce made in the container

• Greek yogurt (17oz container)
• olive oil
• ½ or 1 whole lemon juice
• a heaping handful of a chiffonade of mint leaves
• 2-3 large cloves of garlic (depending on how garlic-y you like things)
• salt

1. Make sure you remove the paper layer from atop your yogurt, if there is one (trust me on this)
2. Coat the top of the yogurt with a layer of olive oil
3. Finely dice up garlic and throw it in the yogurt container
4. Chiffonade your mint (stack your leaves onto of each other, roll it into a giant taco and finely slice it up) and add it to the container
5. Add the juice of ½-1 lemon (depending on how much lemon you like)
6. Two big pinches of salt (add more if needed)
7. Mix it up, and put it in the fridge while you cook the rest of the meal

Roasted cauliflower recipe:

• 1 small cauliflower, cut into pieces
• olive oil
• turmeric (warning: turmeric can stain wooden utensils)
• cumin
• salt
• red pepper flakes
• cilantro, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Find a roasting pan, or ceramic baking dish, or you could use a baking sheet with a lip
3. Cut your cauliflower into pieces
4. Put your pieces in a bowl and coat the cauliflower in olive oil (you can use your hands)
5. Add a couple dashes of turmeric and cumin to the bowl, and mix (the cauliflower should be bright yellow)
6. Lay out the pieces in your baking dish, make sure every piece of cauliflower touches the surface of the pan, sprinkle red pepper flakes and salt to taste
7. Stick pan in the oven for approximately 30 minutes, or until you see the cauliflower start to caramelize and get yummy brown spots. Stir it up once halfway
8. When it’s done, remove from oven and sprinkle with cilantro (this dish is also great with almonds and raisins added at the end)

Yellow rice recipe:

• Basmati rice
• ½ cup raw almond slivers
• ½ cup raisins
• half a yellow onion
• olive oil
• butter (optional)
• ½ teaspoon turmeric (you can get cheaply at ethnic markets)
• a scant 1/2 tsp cumin
• a dash of cinnamon
• a dash of ground green cardamom or regular cardamom
• salt

1. Prepare rice according to package (typically 1 cup of rice + ½ cups water). After you add the water, add ½ teaspoon of turmeric and a pinch of salt and mix (dash of olive oil optional).
2. Cook rice as stated on package.
3. Once the rice is done cooking, keep the lid on and set aside so that it stays warm
4. Meanwhile, slice your onion into thin slivers and then set aside.
5. Take your almond slivers and toast them in a skillet over medium heat. Constantly tossing so as not to burn, until light golden. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
6. Once rice is done cooking, in a large skillet sauté onions in plenty of olive oil with salt, cumin, cinnamon, and cardamom
7. Once the onions turn clear and glassy, add the raisins (add more olive oil if it gets too dry) and sauté for another minute.
8. Add almonds and the rice to the skillet. Put heat down to low, and mix (rice will stick to the bottom of the pan, it’s okay! don’t freak out.)
9. Add a tablespoon of butter (optional) for a yummy buttery taste.
10. Turn off heat and serve.

* Day 2 recipes

About the Author: Megan Finley Horowitz

@meggyfin @meggyfin

I'm a 40-year-old potty-mouthed writer with late-diagnosed ADHD and a shit-ton of anxiety. I live in my hometown of Los Angeles with a husband, a daughter I never planned on having, and a senior rescue dog. Anything else you need to know can be gleaned from my instagram and my TikTok.