If you know me at all, you have some idea of how busy I am these days. Between writing books, the day job as a film and TV critic, and grad school, life is never short of insane. I seem to like it this way. The truth is I get bored easily, and I like a good challenge. But even I have my limits.

On top of everything I’m a wife and mom, and my one job in the house these days is to make sure there’s at least one good meal a day on the table. I used to hate to cook, but now I don’t mind so much. It’s time that is the problem. I’m working a lot of 19 hour days right now, and taking time to cook is tough. So I’ve developed some recipes that are so easy and make it look like I’ve been cooking forever. I thought I’d share some of them with you. Now mind you, I’m not into the whole lowfat, healthy thing, but here are some of my tricks.

Sunday Grilling: For two hours every Sunday I stand outside and grill enough to feed an army. I grill chicken breasts, hamburgers, hotdogs, pork chops and anything else we have in the freezer. I put these in baggies and we eat them throughout the week. I’ll add a sauce or gravy, boil some pasta (or brown rice) and throw in some veggies/salad and it’s a fast fix for those days when I’ve run out of time.

Chicken and Dumplings: This one impresses folks because it tastes like old-fashioned chicken and dumplings, but it’s the easiest meal you’ll ever make. Throw four chicken breasts in a big pot, add two cartons (6 cans) of chicken broth, and 1 tsp each of sage, cumin, minced garlic and then salt and pepper (those depend on you, but keep in mind the broth is salty already). When the chicken is cooked through (usually about 45 mins) shred it in the pot and let it cook a little more. Then put a can of Pillsbury Grand Biscuits on top of the soup and let them cook for about 10 minutes. Break the biscuits up as they boil and you’ll have bite sized dumplings. Good stuff.

Crockpot Saver: The crockpot is a busy woman’s friend. I use it at least twice a week. One of the easiest recipes I’ve made up is BBQ Chicken. Spray the crockpot with Pam to help with cleanup, then add four or five chicken breasts (depends on the size of your crowd), slice up an onion and throw that in. I like those banana peppers, but you can leave them out. Then I cover it all with about a third of a bottle of really good BBQ sauce. The good sauce is key. Then you can cook it on high for four hours, or low for six. shred it for sandwiches or leave it whole and you have some great BBQ chicken.

I make all kinds of chicken dishes this way. Add some kind soup/sauce to the chicken breasts and you have a wonderful meal in a few hours.

Well, those are just a few of my secrets. I promise to share more later. Maybe you guys could share some of your fast recipes. Oh, I forgot my favorite. Open one of those salad bags and throw in some of my grilled chicken. That one is healthy and easy.