Quick Weeknight Dinners

Another quick crockpot idea...
I put in country style ribs with onions and bbq sauce. So easy and delicious :)

An easy quick dinner is tortellini (any kind)in chicken broth. You can add whatever you would like and serve with crusty bread.

Hi M.;
I think steak is a quick dinner. You can just throw that on the grill. I've seen on TV they have that bag of rice that you can throw in the microwave & some microwave frozen veggies and you have a complete meal. Hope that helps.
T.

Perhaps try some wraps or Mexican style meals . . . I always think tacos are a quick, nutritious meal if you chop the lettuce and grate the cheese ahead of time. When you get home you just cook the meat, chop teh tomatoes and yum. Fajitas are another quick one if the meat and veggies are already chopped . . . As for wraps, I think they're a fun switch from sandwiches. You can use your usual sandwich fixins or try something new - cold cuts, chicken salad, even chicken fingers with some honey mustard or barbecue sauce . . . I don't know why it's easier to think of ideas for you right now than when I'm standing in front of my 'fridge, scratching my head :)

I have started making cassaroles on Sundays for the week. That way all I have to do during the week is heat them up. No creating anything right then and there. It has really saved me time and I can enjoy being with my daughter without having to be standing in the kitchen cooking. I make a few casseroles for the week.

Were you planning on prepping your meals over the weekend? You could chop up chicken, peppers and onions and freeze in a freezer bag....take out of the freezer and right to the frying pan for a quick fajita..add fajita seasoning while cooking and simply offer cheese as a topping (lett and tom would take too long). Perhaps freeze a few bags at once so you can have once/week.

I buy those frozen bagged meals for nights when I am working so my hubby can quickly heat up. Stouffer's has a good bagged pot roast w/ potatoes, carrots, etc. He's picky and he loves it!

Why not use a crock pot? There are tons of delicious, healthy, 5-ingredient-type meals that are quick to fix in the morning, and ready when you walk in the door.

ha ha. i just read all of your crock pot posts. do you have time in the morning to prepare your crock pot meal? sometimes when i was working, i would get up earlier to leave myself an extra 20 minutes or so to prepare and chop whatever ingredients I was placing in my crockpot. it was worth it to me at that time to lose a few minutes of sleep in the morning to have it help me out later in the day.

otherwise i would make some stuff ahead of time when i did have the time. sort of like that robin miller lady on food network. so i would always plan extra for leftovers and then re-purpose the leftover. so if i made chicken breasts one night, i made extra. and then kept one in a baggy to easily shred up over a salad and throw some ceasar dressing on. or have a hard boiled egg ready to go and other veggies whatever you prefer.

you probably want him eating the most nutritious meals with lots of protein since he will be very active. my husband plays soccer and prefers that at least before he goes. he enjoys pasta. sometimes just with a little olive oil or butter and a dash of salt or parmasean cheese when he is in a hurry and needs the carbs for energy. then he eats again later when he comes home. also, salmon has a lot of protein too, if you cooked that ahead of time and put over a salad (sorry im a salad girl!) or even reheated it and had the sides ready.

i remember my mom cooking the night before for the following day. seems like we ALWAYS had leftovers. but she worked nights and wasnt home a lot, so it was ready to go for us kids when we got home.

i would try to stay away from any boxed type sides. they have tons of hydrogenated oils and preservatives in them. you can easily make potatoes on the days you have time and save them. or frozen bagged veggies dethaw and cook shortly in the microwave if you have your meat ready in the crock pot or something.

carnation breakfast packets are loaded with nutrients or a protein bar too if he is ever short on time and cannot eat at all for some reason, that would be better than nothing i would think. i just wouldnt want him eating and then going right to running 5 miles or something. when my brother was into foot ball he got "sick" alot at practice for doing exactly that.

good luck to you and please let us know what you come up with that works for you! we can all use a little help in this area. like me with my salads! he he. ps... the salmon with the salad.... baby oranges, pineapples, and a fresh salsa rather than dressing. its so yummy. and i top it with crushed tortilla strips or tostitos or whatever you have on hand, rather than croutons. its fast if you have the salmon cooked, but not sure if kids would be into it! take care!

Have u thought about Crock pot meals? They would be nice, U put everything in the moring and then by the time that u are done and home everything is ready

Try some stuff in the crockpot, another thing you could do is tacos with some ground turkey meat. cook the meat the night before. when you come home heat the meat and heat up the shells in the oven.

On the weekends you could make up meals for the week and freeze them (like your own TV dinner). Or make extra dinner so you have enough for leftovers. Casseroles are great if you cook them and then split them up into individual meals. Just put them in the fridge in the morning to defrost. Individual portions take no time to reheat.
For salads ideas, you could try pasta salad... use rotini, various veggies (tomatoes, cauliflower, brocolli, zucchini, cucumber, carrots), italian dressing and pasta salad seasonings (McCormick makes it.. it's key for pasta salad taste), put it all together for taste. It's a great way to get veggies as a quick side and goes with all sandwiches (better than chips). For sandwich variations, I use Tyson chicken and make chicken sandwiches. I add cheese and lettuce. Good luck.

The crockpot will be your best friend! Get a cookbook and then just experiment.

Don't forget your crock pot! You can set it up in the morning with chicken, meatloaf, meatballs, stew, etc. and have it ready when you get home. Then all you need is to maybe toss together a salad or side, eat and be out the door in time for practice. Best of luck!

If I were you, I would get two things (if you don't have them already!) 1. A crock pot and 2. A Crock pot specific Cookbook. A little extra time for preparation spent in the morning or the night before will pay off BIG time in more fast, nutritious meals for the evening.

I would make some of the foods that you already have in your menu, and just freeze them! then, on the nights he has practice, you can just pull them out, and heat them up. I do this all the time, especially with casseroles, and soups.
I hope this helps!!!!!!!

Hi M., Dig out your crock pot and work some magic! One quick and easy no-brainer is a bag of frozen chicken (skin-less breasts, tenders which ever you have handy) a packet of zesty Italian dressing & 1/2 cup of water. In the morning; Spray the inside of your crock pot (for easier clean-up) with cooking spray, put the chicken in, sprinkle the entire packet of dressing (you can use other flavors like herb & garlic)on the chicken, pour in 1/2 cup of water, put the lid on set the crock pot on low and walk away for the day. The ckicken comes out full of flavor, moist, and full of flavor. Pair it up with a nice salad for a great meal that's healthy. Pot roasts and london broils are great in a crock pot as well. Just add the meat, some of your favorite seasonings like garlic pepper, onions and a can of broth or cup of water with a bouilon cube (these both usually have plenty of salt so don't salt your meat) again cook on low for at least 8 hours. You can cook just about anything in a crock pot that leaves you free for the day. Check out the cookbook Fix-it-and-forget-it it's a life saver!! Best wishes.

I am getting ready to start the same schedule with the football! It is so hard! How about making ahead meatballs and freezing them? Then use a jar of sauce, add your meatballs and just boil some noodles and you have a meal. Also, I have been buying the ready made dough for pizza and the kids add sauce,veggies and pepperoni, or whatever they like. Cooks quickly and is healthy if you add good toppings. On occasion you can cook a casserole the night before and reheat individual servings the next day. Or maybe leftovers from weekend meals? Hope you get some good suggestions! I know its hard!

One of my favorite dinners from growing up is ground meat, noodles, and peas. That's it. You take frozen ground meat (I use ground turkey) cook it w/ whatever spices you have. While the meat is cooking, cook some noodles and peas. Mix together and voila, dinner. My husband looked at me like I was crazy when I made this the first time and now it's the main meal he cooks. Oh, by the way? It takes about 20 mins from freezer to table. My 4 yr old eats all the parts separately, while my husband puts bread crumbs and parmesan cheese on top. We've also had it w/ spaghetti sauce on top.

Hope this helps,
T.

We like to put things in the crock pot. You can put a roast with some water and boulion base, onions, potatoes,& carrots. let it cook on low for the day it is done when you get home just serve it up, you can start with the roast thawled or unthawed. Also we take frozen boneless chicken breasts put on out favorite Italian, greek, or ceasar dressing put it in the crock pot on low done when you get home just need a quick side. It also works for pork chops, we start w/ them frozen too. The crock pot can become your best friend when you have a busy life. You can also check out other recipes on-line or in fix it and forget it cookbooks. Good luck.