Cooking may be an art form, but doing the post-meal dishes remains a chore we’d all like to get through quickly and efficiently. Here are some dish-duty tips for our University Square community members in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Multi-Task While Cooking

Although focusing on the cooking can be a joy in and of itself, there should be enough wiggle room during the food creation time to give a quick wash to certain items. If you beat a few eggs, that bowl can benefit from a quick splash hot water and soap without slowing you down. If you use breadcrumbs to coat chicken for parmesan, consider washing the plate once everything is in the pan. Taking care of minor items as you go will make the final task less onerous.

Reduce Your Dishware Count

For those that truly abhor doing dishes, the washing and drying can be a significant source of procrastination. That means the pile in the sink may keep growing until you simply run out of plates, bowls and cups. Be your own best friend and calculate how many dishware items you really need and limit your inventory. If you have only 4 plates, you will be tasked with washing them when they’re all dirty or ordering take-out indefinitely.

One Meal, One Pot

The single-pot method of cooking can be actualized by planning meals. There are numerous one-pot recipes that are but a Google search away. Many are nutritious, delicious and easy to prepare. Hey, who can’t wash just one pot!

Avoid Overnight Mistakes

One of the biggest errors dishwashing haters make is soaking things in soap and water. On the surface, it sounds like such a good solution to loosen up clinging food. In reality, you can’t stand the idea of scrubbing and that pot, plate or bowl may sit there for days and get seriously tainted in the process. Scrub fast, scrub hard and don’t use “soaking” as a procrastination tool.

We hope these dishwashing suggestions help our University Square community members push through that unwelcome task. If you or a friend would like more information about our Flagstaff apartments, call us today.

The post 5 Ways To Avoid Dirty Dish Pile-Ups appeared first on University Square Apartments Blog.

The holidays are just around the corner, and something's always cooking at the University Square Apartments in Flagstaff. 'Tis the season, as a matter of fact, to rock the Brussels sprouts! 

These adorable green orbs really can be people pleasers. Here are some simple ideas designed to come through for you. Each is a side dish for 4 to 6 people and takes a half-hour to make, max. They'll please vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free folks alike.   

Lemony Braised Brussels Sprouts

When preparing large Brussels sprouts, chop off the stem end. There's no need to do this with smaller, tender heads.

Ingredients

• About 18 Brussels sprouts
• 5 Tbsp. olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• A lemon
• Salt and pepper

Preparation

Rinse Brussels sprouts and pat dry before halving all of them length-wise. Pare an “X” into the cut surface of each head. Stir garlic until golden in oil over medium heat. Place the Brussels sprouts, cut surfaces down, in the pan, then add in a half-cup of water and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain and place on a warmed platter and drizzle the lemon generously, and season with salt and pepper.

Baked Balsamic Brussels Sprouts

This easy recipe comes out with a gourmet elegance; just use Kosher or sea salt and fresh-ground pepper.

Ingredients

• 3 cups Brussels sprouts
• 6 Tbsp. of salad dressing (mix equal parts balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil with a pinch of salt and pepper). It's that easy!

Preparation

Pre-heat oven to 375F. Rinse Brussels sprouts and pat dry before halving all of them length-wise and coating them with your dressing. Arrange them on a cookie sheet in a single layer. Bake 25 minutes and remove when gently browned.

Share the Bounty

These are great for entertaining at your place, or sharing at a potluck festivities. Feel free to share the news about University Square, too. Invite your friends to call (844) 795-6793 and meet us!

The post Good and Easy Brussels Sprouts Recipes appeared first on University Square Apartments Blog.

1. Pick Your Meals: Pick out all your weekly recipes in advance. Look carefully at the recipes you choose and plan your buying accordingly: don’t buy a whole bag of potatoes when one potato is all you need for three different meals!

2. Use Themes: Maybe one week will be salad week, and the next week pasta week. Or, instead of weeks, use days: you can plan to have a different theme night for each dinner and still cut back on your shopping when you buy easily stored supplies that can last more than one week.

3. Plan for Leftovers: If you live alone and always cook meals meant for two, don’t waste the second serving … find ways to “recycle” it! Either save the leftovers for lunch the next day or plan to repurpose them for another meal later in the week. Or, start the week with one big casserole dish and plan to eat from it all week with a variety of sides.

4. Early Prep for Faster Meals: Once you get home from the grocery store, start prepping your ingredients before you put them away! Slice, square, or shred your cheese for the various meals you’ll make during the week. Grill, brown, or bake your meats for an easy warm up come meal time. Prepare and store as many ingredients as you can early in the week so that by the time you’re pulling them out to cook, more than half the work is done!

5. Your Freezer is Your Friend: One of our favorite meal tricks is prepping dishes that freeze well. Why buy those frozen microwave dinners when you can enjoy a tasty reheated homemade meal? Make double batches of sauces, soups, stews, pastas, etc. and freeze them to satisfy the stomach of future you!

Happy Cooking!

The post Five Fast Tips for Weekly Meal Planning appeared first on University Square Apartments Blog.

There’s nothing like a nice, home-cooked meal … but who has the time to actually cook it? The answer is simple … YOU do! Finding fantastic dinner recipes has never been easier, with a wealth of recipes available with just a few clicks online. But especially if you’re new to the culinary game, you want to make sure you can find some nice and easy meals to try out. Here are some of our favorite websites to find quick and easy dinner recipes!

The post Five Sites for Quick and Easy Dinner Recipes! appeared first on University Square Apartments Blog.

But let’s be honest … we don’t always have time for cooking at home. First there’s planning meals. Then there’s actually making it to the grocery store to get all your ingredients. Add to that the time you’ll spend hunting ingredients, preparing to cook, and actually figuring out your recipes, and cooking t home may begin to feel like a nightmare. Fortunately, we’ve come across some awesome sites that will help you with that! Nowadays you can subscribe to just about anything—from monthly shoe deliveries to makeup, and more—and our favorite subscription service for the summer has to be meal delivery boxes! Here are three of our favorites!

Blue Apron

Blue Apron is probably the cheapest meal delivery box option out there. The meal box comes with ingredients for three meals for two people, making it the perfect choice for a few homemade meals for yourself and a friend, or almost a week’s worth of meals if you live alone and don’t mind repeats! Boxes are delivered on Thursday or Friday of each week in packaging meant to keep your food fresh for up to 24 hours after delivery in case you’re not home to get your box right away. And for just under $60 for what amounts to almost a week’s worth of food, you’re already saving on what you’d pay if you actually ate out all week (we’re guilty as charged) or went grocery shopping every week! Learn more and subscribe at www.blueapron.com!

HelloFresh

HelloFresh is probably second in popularity to Blue Apron, and comparable in price at just under $70 per week. This subscription offers a “Classic” or “Veggie” box with options for all tastes, and meal prep runs at just around 30 minutes making it a time saver in more ways than one. HelloFresh meals promise recipes that are seasonal, fresh, and of the highest quality. One added benefit of HelloFresh is the ability to choose three out of five recipes each week, giving you a little more control over your menu. The only downside is that some recipes can be a little harder to follow, but with a little patience you’ll get the hang of your new culinary prowess in no time! Check them out at www.hellofresh.com!

Plated

Plated is the most expensive of the meal subscription plans, but many people seem to prefer their recipes and suggest the fun and fresh flavors are worth a little extra bank. Just like the other weekly boxes, Plated provides pre-portioned ingredients to create delicious recipes for great meals with half the effort it’d take if you planned the meal start to finish on your own. Plated also offers a little bit more personalization, in that you share upfront what you like to eat to help the Plated chefs pick recipes just for you! Learn more and give them a try at www.plated.com!

Happy Cooking!

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