Childhood lessons, pre-made is ok!

I have had a bad case of nostalgia lately! The 90's and early 2000's seem to constantly be calling me back to a simpler time where choreographed dances and platform shoes reigned supreme!  Butterfly clips, glitter, boy bands, girl bands, and overall awesomeness!  During my most recent trip down memory lane I was pleasantly reminded of the band O Town.  Pre-packaged boy band created on the show "Making of the Band."  O Town was your average boy band with a versatile collection of guys, sweet angelic voices, choreographed dances, and harmony to rival the ages! They were even a little risque when they say, "how many triple X dreams that's been starring you." WHOA boys!

So what did they precious boys from O Town teach me?  That its ok to like pre-made things! As we ushered in the new millennium time seemed to speed up and pre-made, pre-packaged, quick and easy was taking over!  

Learn how to use pre-made things to your advantage!  We are all busy and finding the time to sit down and cook a somewhat healthy and delicious meal is unrealistic.  Recently I arrived home at 10 pm and knew we needed something for lunch the next day.  Luckily I had bought a few things that could quickly and easily be turned in the most delicious lunch ever! 

(ok so i was looking for a picture of a brain exploding, because this food blew my mind, and I came across this and frankly I had to share.  So it really doesnt fit, but like for real. WHAT IS THIS?)

Moving on.  So I was recently at the store and knew the week would be super crazy.  I had also already been toying with several ideas for meals, and here is what I came up with.

I had bought some pre-cooked frozen shrimp.  They're quick and easy to thaw, you can throw them in salad, or make a meal.  Plus its nice because you can thaw out the amount you want, so you dont have to worry about a ton of extra food laying around tempting you. And the very best part, no peeling the shrimp. There is just something weird about ripping something's carcass off causing me to look like this....

So another reason why pre-made is better.  Nobody wants to see that face.

So I have shrimp, what comes next?  Luckily my local grocery store was running a special on pre-made simmer sauces.  I picked up a jar of lemon garlic butter sauce.  You can always find pre-made sauces, look for what you want.  Also I didnt worry too much about the healthy factor because I knew the rest of the meal would be pretty healthy.  Also I hate reading boring things, it makes me feel like this....

Luckily my skrimps (thats what Grant calls them and its cute) were precooked, so I quickly thawed them under some running water, then threw them in a pan with the simmer sauce. I had to refrain from eating them immediately....

So I have the shrimp, I have the sauce, and now what to go with it?  My go to thought was pasta, but seeing as I am attempting to be on a low carb diet i decided to get real crazy and make mashed cauliflower! Again pre-made is a lifesaver! It was 10:30 pm, I was not about to try to figure out how to boil and make fresh cauli.  Luckily for me I had the frozen steamer bag of cauli, SCORE! Popped that bad boy in the microwave for 5 min, then poured it in a bowl with a little butter and a little milk (make it like you make mashed taters) and mashed it all up! Then to get a little green I steamed some asparagus and BAM, this was the result...

The best most delicious lunch ever!  It took me all of 15 minutes to make this meal thanks to my love for pre-made things!  My love for O Town and pre-made food allowed me to enjoy this meal and make all of my co-workers jealous!

So what have we learned, dont feel bad if everything you make isn't from scratch, Aint NOBODY got time for that!