COOKING WITH A WALKER

The only kitchen companion less desirable than a hyperactive dog is a rolling walker. Imagine trying to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, one hand clinging to a flimsy, four-legged metal frame with no turning radius. This was my new reality four weeks ago following hip replacement surgery. How was I going to I feed myself in the style to which I’m accustomed? Ordering in was not the solution.

What I longed for was the kitchen in my very first apartment. In a previous lifetime it had been a closet. After remodeling, it held a refrigerator, a sink and a cooktop/oven, one on each wall. There was just enough room for one person to stand in this space. Everything one could possibly need was within arm’s reach.

Where does one go today for advice on how to get a meal on the table with no prep time? Ask one’s adult child who is living the dream in a one bedroom apartment. My daughter, Celia, advised me to check out the frozen food section at Trader Joe’s. There I found a treasure trove of frozen entrees from mac and cheese to eggplant curry; a few of them contained a tolerable level of sodium. I also tossed bags of frozen peas and corn into my cart anticipating the need to add color, nutrition and texture to my plate.

Back home, I cooked, cooled and refrigerated a pound of penne pasta. The rice cooker produced several days worth of bedding for stews and a binder for fried rice with no effort on my part. Note: I refrigerated the rice immediately after it had cooled.

Fresh produce was the only essential part of my diet that was difficult to purchase pre-op. Three days after surgery, I had the local big-box grocery store deliver fresh produce. What I received must have been selected by someone with their eyes closed. Just my luck. At this point I went off-script and drove a half-mile to the closest market, parked my car next to a rack of empty carts and grabbed the closest one. It made a great shopping-walker.

The first two weeks after my surgery just happened to coincide with a heatwave that worked in my favor. Who needs a recipe when there is a supply of fresh produce, tinned meat and fish, cheese and dressing ingredients at hand? Salads make themselves. The French have an expression - au pif - for improvisational cooking. Chefs distain the idea of this random style, which only heightens its appeal.

When I felt confident enough to step away from the walker, I began to cook quick egg dishes. With minimum effort the same salad ingredients, quickly sautéed, served as a colorful base that morphed into a frittata with the addition of eggs.

An 8 inch, nonstick skillet is the ideal size for a single serving. It takes less than five minutes to chop and sauté small portions of onion, bell pepper and cherry tomato, strew on a few green leaves of spinach or kale, and scatter on a handful of cooked pasta or rice. Beat together two or three large eggs with a tablespoon or two of water, season with salt, pepper and chopped herbs or a little chili powder. Pour this egg mixture over the softened contents in the pan. As the eggs solidify around the veggies, sprinkle on a layer of your favorite grated cheese. Just before the surface sets, place the skillet four inches from the broiler flame in the oven and watch it turn golden brown. Voila!

Have you had any ‘cooking with a walker’ experiences you’d like to share? Please send them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I will be happy to pass them on.