Part of a week's meals can consist of minestrone soup.

Making dinner easier is the goal here. We can't fix the economy or cure global warming, but we can help make your weeknights a little less stressful and your eating throughout the week a little more healthful. (Consider it our contribution to health-care reform.)

Call this move toward meal simplification the Sunday Strategy. On Sunday, you make two slower-cooking but decidedly uncomplicated dishes, which you then use as the basis of your meals during the week.

We take you as far as Thursday on the assumption that Friday and Saturday are cook's nights out. You don't have to spend a lot or resort to using highly processed foods. At times, we use frozen vegetables, which can be just as nutritious — sometimes more so — than fresh, but never if it means sacrificing flavor or texture. The same is true for the other "shortcut" products, such as quick-cooking rice or pre-chopped garlic: We use them only after determining there is no loss of nutrients or flavor.

Our Sunday Strategy in a nutshell: Cook a little extra on Sunday to give you five nights of good, wholesome and satisfying meals you can put on the table with minimal fuss.

To see how it works, check out the recipes below and on

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