Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Easy Dinners for Hard Days ;)

I’m positive you know what I’m talking about here. Some days… well, dinner just isn’t going to happen. At least not dinner in any sort of healthy form.

Unexpected things happen, crisis occur, you’re sick, your child’s sick, etc., etc., etc.

I think we all have “go to” meals that are simple and quick and that we almost always have on hand. I’ve been thinking about ours lately and thought it might be fun to share them in a post.

Just so you know, these are quick meals that are not necessarily something you want to feed your family every day; the main thing about these meals is they are simple, simple, simple. And tasty too! I also try to keep a bag of prepared salad in our fridge so we can get in something green along with our quick meal. I’ve been using at least one of these every week lately.

1. We always have a couple of frozen pizzas in the freezer, this is staple in our house.

2. Chicken and rice wraps: Make a box of Uncle Ben’s Whole Grain and Wild Rice. When it’s done, mix it up in a bowl with canned chicken breast (yes, canned, it won’t kill you), ranch dressing and some chopped walnuts. Roll it up in flour tortillas, yum yum yum.

3. Maid Rights – My mother-in-law calls these sloppy joes, but to me a sloppy joe is tomato based. Brown a pound of hamburger meat with a splash of Worcestershire sauce. When it’s done, add in a can of Campbell’s Chicken Gumbo soup (no water added), a blob of ketchup and a blob of mustard (gross, right?). Mix it all up and serve it on buns or regular bread. Also very yummy.

4. Sloppy Joes, there are a lot of fast recipes out there for these. The one I have uses tomato soup as the base.

5. Pancakes, Bacon, and eggs. If you want really simple, use a package of pancake mix. We always have the ingredients for this on hand (maybe not the bacon), and scrambled eggs are super easy!

6. Chicken or Turkey A La King. Use leftover chicken or turkey (or canned, or poach a couple of breasts in water beforehand, then shred). Mix your shredded chicken or turkey with a can of mushroom soup, a little milk, some black pepper, and a dash of seasoned salt. Toast a bunch of bread. Serve the chicken / turkey mixture on top of the toast and eat with a fork.

7. This one we jokingly call a heart attack waiting to happen… velveeta cheese, canned chili, a can of Rotel (chopped tomatoes and chili peppers), a can of water, browned hamburger meat (if you have time), a little chopped onion, cayenne pepper… eat with corn chips and sour cream. This one is good for a really hard day. ;)

8. Premade pesto, egg noodles, and leftover chicken all mixed together.

9. Frozen fish sticks and french fries. :)

I would LOVE to add some more quick and easy meal ideas to our list. If you have any, please leave them in the comments below, or blog about them and leave the link!

Have a beautiful day! :)

13 comments:

  1. our heart attack waiting to happen is Spaghetti Carbonara, it uses bacon grease.
    Once I remember our go to meals, I'll post about them.....

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  2. Totally know what you're talking about. We spent most of Feb. with at least one of us sick, so I didn't do much "real" cooking. One easy go to food for us is a quesidilla or cheesy roll up. My daughter loves the cheesy roll up the best. All you do is take a tortilla (I try to keep these on hand) put a little shredded cheese inside and roll it up. You can heat this in the oven or in a frying pan. I've done it both ways. Also, chicken nuggets are good in a pinch!

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  3. Spicy Pasta
    Noodles
    Jar of Paul Newmans Tomato Basil
    Small carton of heavy whipping cream
    Can rotel

    Cook noodles, heat rest of ing. in sauce pan. Mix all together.

    This dish isn't really for the kids. Put aside some noodles and sauce for them before mixing with other ingredients.

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  4. Here is one of are favorite fall back ideas. http://monkeyinaroundtimestwo.blogspot.com/2010/03/quick-lunch-dinner-idea.html

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  5. Great post. Our standby dinners usually involve pasta with canned sauce or pizza. Anna's always game for Costco chicken nuggets - she is very upset if I dare to offer her self-made variety :)

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  6. Spaghetti and meatballs. Waffles. quesidillas. Something from the freezer...I tend to freeze some leftovers. Soup (from freezer or can) and grilled cheese.

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  7. Wow... I grew up on Chicken A La King!!! I must make it for the boys!! Thanks for the reminder, I must have erased it from my memory :) We love having Brinner (breakfast for dinner) and try to have one at least twice a month... yesterday we had Green Eggs and Ham in honor of Dr. Seuss Day. But mostly we stick to cheese Ravioli with oil, broccoli (chopped in processor) and garlic, or Pasta with a jar of Alfredo Sauce and Red Sauce mixed together. We always have canned biscuits and a bag of salad in the fridge so I can make myself believe we are being healthy. Thanks for the ideas!!!

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  8. Breakfast for dinner is a favorite around here on days like that, too, as well as soup and sandwiches, and pasta/sauce. In this vein, I highly recommend Desperation Dinners by Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross. This book has been a lifesaver for me on many occasions!

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  9. First it is so nice to hear someone call it hamburger. Out here it is chop meat or ground beef. Anyway brown some, add a can of Campbells chedder cheese soup, a can of Rotel, some cooked rice and roll in a tortilla. Yum. Top with sour cream.

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  10. grilled cheese and tomato soup. spaghetti and buttered bread. hot dogs and mac and cheese. my FAVORITE-

    southwest casserole

    1 can corn
    1 can hominy
    1 can black beans
    1 can diced tomatoes

    mix together. bake for 30 minutes. top w/ shredded cheddar cheese. broil until cheese is melted. eat with Doritos or tortilla chips.

    Y.u.m.m.o!

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  11. Oh yum! Some of these are making my mouth water. :) Thanks for leaving your ideas... keep 'em coming!

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  12. I remembered one more. Mac and cheese- mix in ground beef, minced onion, and bar-b-q sauce. heat through.

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  13. We also keep frozen pizzas on standby for hard days - and canned chicken! Here's one of our favorite quick meals:

    http://mamasmiles.com/?p=8

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