Emergency Harvest Grains

Someday, you may suddenly find you’re in need of a side dish. Like, in a hurry.

Maybe you’re headed to someone else’s house for a gathering on short notice, and you don’t have time to cook—or, depending on your situation, to learn how to cook.

Maybe you work in one of those offices that’s keen on midweek potlucks. (Maybe that’s what happened to me, too!)

But as long as you’ve got 15 minutes and a Trader Joe’s, I suggest you make life easy for yourself. Pick up a bag of Harvest Grains (Israeli couscous, orzo, baby chick peas, and red quinoa, although if you are without a Trader Joe’s, or Trader Joe’s is without Harvest Grains, Israeli couscous or orzo alone would be a fine substitute), some dried cranberries, chopped roasted pecans, and a couple of other simple ingredients. You can have them all home and in a pretty bowl before you’ve even found your black boots—not the ones you wear every day, but the special ones, for occasions.

(If they aren’t in the closet, check by the dining table. Mine always seem to end up there.)