No one is immune from mealtime drudgery. You know, that old familiar dilemma as you're headed down the freeway after a long day at the office. What are you going to prepare for dinner tonight? That question is usually followed by a laugh, as you remember that you don't cook; a sigh, as you ponder how to unload the chore on your spouse; a trip to the drive-through; or a self-serving yet generous proposal to the family to go out to dinner. If you want to save the expense of going out yet again, or you're in a rut and need some culinary inspiration or instruction, your computer is a virtual cookbook. Whether you're Julia Child's competition or Cooking for Dummies is more your speed, the Web has something in store for you. Within minutes, you can enter your specified criteria for a recipe (for example, "Easy," "20 Minutes or Less," "One-Pot Meals," or "Healthy"), see a list of choices and photographs, select what appeals to you and print it out. This saves money when you don't buy cookbooks that ultimately collect dust on your bookshelves and clutter your home. You're given access to an infinite amount of recipes with the click of a mouse, and best of all, you decide what works for you and are presented with recipes that fit into those categories.

Most household-name food companies have interactive Web sites that not only promote their products but also allow consumers to try their hand at recipes that incorporate their foods. Using these sites as a reference guarantees you access to recipes that have been tested in professional kitchens using a variety of different microwaves and conventional ovens, and at high altitudes. In other words, it's as close to fail-safe as you can get.

Pillsbury is one of the best cooking sites on the Web. This fantastic resource includes numerous categories -- whether you're looking for something easy to throw together after work, or you're willing to invest a little more time in preparation for a gathering at home. And the site allows the user to select from such dishes as appetizers, main courses, sides, soups, salads and desserts. These recipes, of course, utilize Pillsbury foods or those which are associated with the company (listed below). But that's an advantage, considering that all of these foods are designed to open, heat and serve, and save you substantial preparation time.

If you have only a vague idea of what you want to prepare, or you're devoid of all culinary inspiration, peruse or search Pillsbury's recipe archive, or head to the "Mealtime Ideas" link, which includes periodically rotating featured recipes. Pillsbury is associated with Progresso Soups, Haagen-Dazs and Green Giant, as well, so links to all three are available on Pillsbury's home page.

And if you're somewhat challenged in the culinary arts, you'll want to check out Pillsbury's Kitchen Guide, which passes along tried-and-true advice -- everything from food safety quick clean-ups to timesaving tips -- from the Pillsbury kitchens in easy-to-follow terms. Without leaving this site, you can tackle dinner for the family after work or plan an entire meal for guests -- from appetizers through dessert -- with minimal hassle.

Southern Living Online is another excellent resource for your kitchen. Southern Living presents the recipes featured in its current issue, as well as its full recipe archives from past issues. In addition, the site contains such links as "Baking Basics," "Handy Substitutions" (invaluable advice that will cover you in last-minute kitchen crises), "Shortcut Strategies" (who doesn't appreciate those?), storage tips and advice on preparing and hosting a buffet. Imagine the time you'd waste flipping through books in your local library or bookstore trying to find the information that's all here in one place, as near as your home computer.

Southern Living Online actually has specific theme menus available on its site, such as "Reunion Menus" and "Breakfast Menus." The site also has plenty of time-saving recipes available for downloading ("30-Minute Meals" and "Easy Dinners"). One of the best features of Southern Living's recipe archives is its mix-and-match casseroles section, which lets cooks choose one sauce from a list of five choices, one vegetable, one variety of pasta or rice, one meat/fish/poultry, one or more "extras" and one or more "toppings," and combine them in a casserole dish -- all at once, with no hassle. All casserole varieties stay in the oven for the same amount of time. It doesn't get any easier than this.

Other recommended online resources: Betty Crocker Online (remember her?), Cooking Light magazine online, Campbell's Creative Kitchen, which uses Campbell's Soups as bases for various easy-to-prepare dishes, Home Arts' Recipe Finder, and Epicurious Food File. For the rebel in all of us, head to Eat Dangerously, a Web site that unabashedly promotes cream, butter and eggs with a vengeance. Warning: This site is not for the faint-hearted. The site promotes a cookbook available for sale either through the home page or the popular online bookstore amazon.com. Just listen to these chapter names: "Elation," "Exhilaration," "Pleasure," "Delight," "Exaltation" and "Rapture." Recipes are just as amusing: "Turkey from Hell," "Spaghetti That Will Make You Cry," "The Most Expensive Burger on the Planet" and "Steak Au Poivre (Sort Of)." Intriguing, to be sure. Unfortunately, you've got to order the cookbook to participate in this indulgence-fest.

The Web is one of the best things to enter the kitchen. It's a fast, easy resource that takes the guess-work and the hassle out of meal preparation. There's only so many TV dinners you can inflict upon yourself and your fellow family members. Once you've resigned yourself to unwrapping your pots and pans, make it as easy on yourself as possible and head to your computer. If you don't want to shop, head to Peapod, an online grocery store that delivers your groceries straight to your front door. For more recipe files (although the above-mentioned ones will keep you busy for a good, long time), type in "recipes" on your favorite search engine. Bon appetit!

Published: June 3, 1999

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