On the fridge: To make a happy jumble of a meal, start with orzo
Orzo, the rice-shaped pasta, checks all the #DinnerInMinutes boxes for me. It's quick-cooking, inexpensive, versatile and deliciously slip-sliding on the tongue. This way to deploy it is my new favorite. Inspired by Turkish flavors and such ingredients as cinnamon, fruity dried red pepper and cheery, chewy dried apricots, the dish tastes just as good hot as it does for a next-day lunch of cold leftovers.
This is one of the few times I recommend reaching for a bunch of curly parsley rather than the flat-leaf kind; you'll get more of a textural benefit.
Not to worry about the cinnamon — the spice adds a background note and does not skew sweet. And although unsulphured dried apricots may pack more oomph than the orange kind used here, which are treated with sulfur dioxide to preserve their color and extend their shelf life, they make the dish look as good as it tastes.