As much as I love to cook, there are just those evenings when the last thing I want to do is spend time or more time in the kitchen. What happens more often than I would care to admit, is that I have already spent my entire day in the kitchen preparing for an event. So the last thing I want to do is even think about what to do about dinner. Sometimes the answer is obvious. I grab my dear husband and drag him out the door to a local food purveyor. But that never seems quite fair. After all, the poor guy has been smelling food all day. And I’m quite sure expecting that at least some morsel of whatever I have been preparing is going to reach the dining room table. (Not usually going to happen.) So the good wife in me hates to deprive him of a home cooked dinner.

For those evenings, and for times when all I want is a simple meal fit for the most dedicated carnivore (I resemble that remark), I fix this simple recipe, along with a baked sweet or Yukon Gold potato and a steamed green veggie. Mr. C. is happy, I’m happy, the cats are happy. All is right with the world.

So if you too have extenuating circumstances that result in you not jumping for joy at spending another or even 30 minutes preparing dinner, I suggest you use the excuse I often use under this most trying of situations. I DON’T WANT TO! YOU CAN’T MAKE ME! I QUIT! (I don’t actually say those things. But you can bet your favorite Dr. Seuss book my inner child is jumping up and down screaming them in my head!)

Actually what I usually do is negotiate. You know, the art of getting your own way but in a decent, respectful manner. I play to Mr. Cs always agreeable side. I merely tell him, “I’m old, I’m tired, and if I have to make dinner I might accidentally burn down the house”. No, I don’t do that either. I just tell him the truth – “I truly don’t have the desire or strength to cook dinner tonight”. That’s all it takes. Just a simple statement told in an adult and civilized manner. Sometimes it results in us going out. Sometimes Mr. C. cooks, and sometimes the best of all possible worlds happen. We cook dinner together. I can almost always garner enough strength to cook when I have Mr. C. helping me. And of course, a dish as easy as this makes our joint adventure even more enjoyable. That and one of Mr. Cs martinis! (You just have to get a little extra boost of energy wherever you can. A nice glass of wine works too.)

So enjoy how easy this ground beef recipe is to prepare, how economical it is, and how darn delicious it is for containing such a short list of ingredients. You can thank me later by replying at the top left corner of this post.

• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 2 T. minced onion
• 2 tsp. Montreal Seasoning
• 1 T. unsalted butter
• ½ c. beef stock
• 1 T. Cognac

Combine the ground beef, onion, and Montreal Seasoning. Form into 2 or 3 torpedo shaped patties. Heat the butter in a small fry pan. Add the patties and fry the first side until dark brown and about half cooked. Flip the patties and cook an additional couple of minutes or until desired doneness.

Remove pan from heat and transfer the patties to a small plate; cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

Add the beef stock and Cognac to the pan. Return pan to medium high heat and cook until liquid is reduced by about half. Remove from heat and pour over the patties.