You may feel that that there just isn't enough spare time to cook three full meals each day. Don't worry; many people all over the world can sympathize with you! If you have about half an hour free on the weekend, you can easily make a number of cold dishes that you can store in the fridge to use as a meal or to munch on throughout the weekdays. Below we have a few recipes for cold pastas and salads that will send your taste buds into a frenzy without a great deal of time spent on preparation.

If you're a big fan of tuna, try whipping up a tuna and bean salad. For this, you'll need: 3 cups water, 2 cans cannellini beans, 1/3 cup olive oil, 3 teaspoons red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon salt, fresh pepper to taste, 1 medium red onion, 12 ounces tuna (drained). To prepare, simply mix together the oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Pour this mixture over the beans and onion in a shallow bowl. Cover and refrigerate this for at least 1 hour. When you're ready to eat, transfer the bean mixture to a serving platter with a slotted spoon, then break the tuna into chunks and arrange it on the bean mixture. You can either leave it in the fridge to chill for a bit, or you can eat it straight away.

Greek salad is wonderful at any time of the year, but especially so in the summertime. To make your own Greek salad, you will need the following ingredients: 2 chopped green bell pepper, 1 peeled and chopped cucumber, 3 chopped tomatoes, 2 stalks of chopped celery, 1/4 pound of feta cheese chopped into half inch cubes, 1/2 red onion (sliced), 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, pepper to taste (freshly ground is best), 3 teaspoons of vinegar, 1/4 cup of oil, 1/2 teaspoon of oregano, 1 teaspoon of fresh minced basil. To prepare this, simply mix the peppers, cucumber, tomatoes, celery, feta cheese, Season the mixture with salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, basil, and oregano. Serve immediately.

Many people have a special place in their heart (or should I say stomach?) for chicken. Poultry is timeless, and you don't necessarily have to have hours of time on your hands to enjoy a nice chicken meal. Cold chicken salad is a cinch to make and can be slathered between two pieces of bread for a chicken salad sandwich, chucked on top of a bed of lettuce and drizzled with ranch, or simply spread on Ritz crackers. To serve one person as part of a meal, or two for a snack, you'll need: 1 can of chicken chunks (found near the canned tuna), 1/2 cup of chopped celery, 1/3 cup chopped sweet pickle or relish, 1 chopped boiled egg, 1/4 cup of ranch dressing, and 1/4 cup of mayonnaise. To prepare, simply break up the chicken chunks in a bowl using a fork until the chicken is shredded. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Best if served chilled.

If you want something with a little Oriental flare, here's a great recipe for a Chinese pasta salad. The ingredients consist of: 1 and 1/2 cups of snow peas, 250 grams of vermicelli rice, 1 thin-sliced red pepper, 1/2 thin-sliced cucumber, 6 ounces of cooked shrimp, 130 grams of crabmeat (chopped imitation crab sticks work well, too), 1 tablespoon fine-chopped ginger, 1 chopped garlic clove, 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper, 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of salt, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, 3 teaspoons of vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon of red wine vinegar. First you need to wash and trim the snow peas. Put them into a bowl and add just enough boiling water to completely submerge them. Let that stand for about 10 minutes, then drain and set aside. Boil water in a pot and cook the vermicelli for about 3 or 4 minutes. When the vermicelli is cooked, drain them and rinse with cool water, then set aside. In a large bowl, combine the vermicelli, snow peas, red pepper, cucumber, shrimp, and crabmeat. In a small bowl, mix the ginger, garlic, sesame oil, salt, pepper, vegetable oil, lemon juice, and vinegar. Once this has been mixed thoroughly, pour it over the ingredients in the large bowl, mix thoroughly, and allow it to chill before serving.

As you can see, it doesn't take hours in the kitchen to make a tasty dish. Most of these dishes will last in a sealed container for a few days if kept refrigerated, which means that you have a great snack on hand for when you're feeling a little peckish. These recipes are very flexible, so don't be afraid to mess around a little with the ingredients to better suit your taste.