Wow, when I put out a call for super-quick recipes, you responded with loads of help! I decided to compile the ideas and share them (with permission from those listed):
Enjoy -- and keep those ideas coming!
From Janet: French Dip Roast Beef: Put a layer of sliced onion in the bottom of a crockpot, add roast beef (she uses eye round) on top of the onions, cover with a packet of au jus sauce mix (find wherever the McCormick's and Knorr sauce mix packets are) mixed with 1 cup red wine or water and poured over the top; cook on low 8-9 hours. Slice and serve on whole wheat rolls and dip in the sauce. Janet suggests serving this with marinated asparagus salad.
From Devin: Chicken Casserole: Fry 2 cubed chicken breasts, combine in a casserole dish with 1 cup of cooked whole wheat macaroni noodles, 1 heaping cup of frozen mixed veggies, 1 can of mushroom soup, and grate up some cheddar cheese to your liking. Salt and Pepper to taste. Mix it up, put in the oven for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. You can also substitute ham for the chicken.
From Michelle: 1) Home-made Egg McMuffins: scrambled eggs (w or w/o cheese) and slice (or two) of Canadian bacon on the sandwich size English muffins. Side of fruit. 2) Breakfast Burritos: scrambled eggs, shredded cheese, black beans rolled up in a heated tortilla. Side of fruit. 3) Tacos: brown some lean meat (sirloin or turkey) and throw in pre-made taco shells with any combo of cheese, tomato, lettuce. On the side, some avocado slices. 4) Quesadillas: either cheese alone or cheese with leftover grilled chicken. 5) BBQ chicken pizza: top a pre-made pizza crust (like Boboli) with BBQ sauce, sliced grilled chicken, thinly-sliced red onion, shredded cheddar and/or jack, and a little bit of cilantro. Pop in the oven for about 10 minutes.
From Shawn: "Investment cooking," which means making a week's worth of meals in one day.
From Theresa: "The crock pot is your friend." Also, she suggests soup and salad.
From Alex: "My mom made a big batch of mac and cheese once a month and froze it in smaller 2 serving size casserole dishes that could be pulled out in the morning and heated up for dinner." She also suggested tomato soup and cheese quesadillas or toasted cheese as really quick options as well as deli meat sandwiches. Also, Alex suggests cooking/grilling easy extras like chicken breasts to have on hand for quick meals, or picking up a Whole Foods rotisserie chicken. And last idea from Alex, aside from feeding the kids dinner earlier (a great idea, but not workable for us) involved Amy's Burritos, an idea that I loved so much I had one for lunch. (Sadly, my kids won't eat them, but the gluten-free ones are a staple of mine.)
From Mrs. Eng: Our favorites in a crock pot are beef or vegetable stew or chili. Another idea, use chicken stock and throw in some bok choy, tofu and udon noodles and/or dumplings. Grilled chicken salads or wraps are another idea with a side of fruit. Lastly, what about making meals ahead of time, then just reheating them?
From Amy: "How about doing breakfast for dinner on those nights? Serve omlettes or something with veggies in the morning and then peanut butter toast or oatmeal (or whatever) at night. Our girls love upside-down days at our house!"
Thanks to everyone who shared recipes! I recently tried a crock pot mac-n-cheese that my family didn't love (too cheesy); as I discover ones that work, I'll share them too. Bon appetit!
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