It’s only 2 days before payday and your cupboard is looking pretty slim. The last time you shopped for groceries, each single item on your list had gone up substantially and you had to trim your list accordingly. So what’s for dinner? As the old proverb goes, when times get tough, the difficult get going. Here’s an idea for dinner that meets all your objectives. Tasty, filling, nutritious and fast to mend. A single massive potato, bits of this and that and your microwave will provide a satisfying meal in just minutes.

The microwave baked potato supplies the base for your dinner. Instead of wait 45 mins to an hour for an oven-baked potato, try the microwave baked potato. Some purists claim a microwave baked potato doesn’t stand up to the oven baked potato because the texture of the finished potato is a little different. Do not believe it! A giant potato takes just eight to ten minutes in the microwave. Be sure it’s absolutely cooked – that is the trick to simulating the stove baked potato texture.

The microwave baked potato must be punctured with a fork all around, top, bottom and sides. This allows the potato to steam and cook just as its oven-baked counterpart.

While your potato is cooking, assemble your dressings. Very similar to a salad, you can pile remains and gourmet goodies to make this meal both a totally juicy and healthy dinner.

A piece of bacon or ham contributes protein. Butter is a necessity. A bit of grated cheese provides calcium. Do you have some parsley, chives or onions? Throw them into the mix. What about some chopped olives? Your microwave baked potato is coming into its own now. Look thru your left-overs, too often going to waste. What about that tiny bit of corn, begging to be used? Pile that on your burgeoning microwave baked potato meal. One mushroom, sliced and sauteed adds a gourmet touch. Hmm. What else? Aha! There’s a spoonful of sour cream. More calcium, with the bonus of a delicious tasting topping.

Your frig possibly holds heaps of bits of food that may complement your microwave baked potato meal. Herbs and spices can make this meal more than gratifying. The neutral flavor of the potato makes it an ideal partner for almost anything you would like to add.

So when you think there’s nothing to eat, get that potato out and build yourself a mouth watering meal. Your microwave makes it fast and your seemingly bare cupboard will fill in the blanks. Eat hearty!.

If you find this article useful, you should also check out cooking101.org to learn more about some easy techniques of cooking all sorts of quality meals, including homemade baked potato soup.