Sharing and Caring Week: Go-To Dinners

Today let's share go-to dinners. By that I mean something that never fails, that you and your kids and anyone else in your house will always eat, and that isn't a major production to make.

You can list things that you cook or buy or take out, or all three.

Please give recipes or somewhat detailed instructions for things you make, and be sure to explain anything that may be a regionalism or local name. (Remember that Ask Moxie readers live all over the world.)

I'll start:

The current go-to in our house is actually made by my children, and is chicken tenders, bistro fries, and a vegetable. Both my kids can make the chicken tenders: boneless skinless chicken (I'll cut it for my little one, but my big one can cut it into strips himself), one egg beaten with a little salt in a bowl, and a plate with Ritz crackers the kids crush into crumbs. Dip a chicken strip in the egg wash, then roll in the crumbs, and bake. The bistro fries are just washed potatoes cut into chunks and rolled in oil and salt and baked. My older son is learning knife skills and likes to make the bistro fries all by himself. I choose the vegetable and make it. (Start to finish: about 30 minutes if the potatoes are cut very chunky.)

Our old go-to take-out was bean burritos from Paquito's, the burrito place in my old neighborhood. I miss those burritos. Our new go-to is the brick oven pizza from the place below my building.

When it gets colder we may go back to one of our standbys, bi bim bap. NOTE: This is not an authentic Korean bi bim bap--it's just the recipe my kids have settled on. Cook white rice. While it's cooking, marinate chicken chunks (my kids like chicken better than beef) in soy sauce and sugar and garlic and toasted sesame oil. Beat together two eggs and fry in some oil into a thin pancake, then take out of the pan and roll on a cutting board and slice into strips. Julienne some carrots. Get some washed baby spinach out of a bag. Get out some mung bean sprouts from a bag. Fry the chicken until cooked. Put it all together: rice in each bowl, then chicken, egg, carrot, bean sprouts, and spinach. Everyone mixes it up together. My kids put more soy sauce on top. I put more sesame oil and plenty of hot Korean red bean paste. (Start to finish: about 22 minutes.)

Now you tell what works in your house, please!

Comments

[Bea]

Steamed sticky rice, with sauteed shitake mushrooms that are marinated for 15 min in a mixture of rice wine, soy sauce, garlic, and green onions, firm tofu sauteed in a little olive oil, with soy sauce as a dip, and crispy seaweed for wrapping up our rice. On your bibimbap, have you ever tried frying an egg until the white is set, but the yolk is runny, then putting that on top of everything? That's how we eat it in our house, and the yolk helps get the thick red bean paste get mixed up well.

[Donna]

I like fall because it's so easy to whip up a good soup. We all love the red lentil soup on the back of Bob's Redmill red lentil package:http://www.bobsredmill.com/red-lentils.html
Also, allrecipes.com has an awesome Italian sausage soup recipe that everyone loves: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Italian-Sausage-Soup/Detail.aspx very easy, very yummy.
Often, I go to allrecipes.com and just search on ingredients that we have "in stock" to see if there is something quick—the user ratings are helpful.

[caramama]

Right now, the only things that are sure to work for my 2.5 year old in a super picky stage are frozen chicken tenders, yogurt and Chef Boyardee cans. I'm not a big fan of those meals, but what can you do.

Hmmm, it's not completely true. She will also always eat pasta with tomato sauce, but it is not quick and easy to make. I don't have a real recipe, but the key is to simmer the tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, onions and italian spices for hours.

I did learn how to make a really quick and delicious fruit pie from my MIL. I'll have to look up the recipe to be sure I remember it correctly and post it later.

[michaela]

Our go-to is bean burritos, made with whole wheat tortillas, beans (either vegetarian refried from a can or whole black beans that I cook in big batches and freeze in small portions), cut up tomatoes, cheddar cheese and (for the adults) hot sauce. Takes 10 min at most.

We also do pizza takeout about once a week.

[flea]

Our dead-easy meals include:
-Barilla tortellini (get the kind with spinach and it's got a vegetable!). Our local grocers don't sell them and I've actually resorted to buying them off Amazon by the case (decent price, too!)
-Black bean quesadillas. Mash black beans in a pan (may add salsa, cumin, chili powder), use flour tortillas sauteed in butter with beans, grated cheese, diced tomato and avocado (but you could throw in whatever vegetable.)
-Homemade pizza - we use the Boboli shells but I would really like to start making batches of dough and freezing it. If you live in an area with a lot of Italian-Americans your grocery may well have excellent pre-made dough in the refrigerator section (I miss CT.)

I recently got a crock-pot and am making split pea soup today - hope it works with nobody there! I would love recs for crockpot recipes that are vegetarian or mostly so and don't involve things from a can (if it's already in a can, who would it need to be in a crock pot all day?)

[Shelley]

Tacos, enchiladas, and the like are always big hits and super-simple to make, especially tacos -- just brown some ground meat with some onions, bell peppers and appropriate seasonings, and slap on the table with taco shells, diced raw tomatoes, shredded lettuce, grated cheese and sour cream. My 5-y-o thinks it's big fun to assemble her own taco, and the whole thing is appealingly messy :)

[Fiona]

Our son won't eat meat. So his go-to meal is frozen ravioli (you boil water, then simmer the ravioli for 3 minutes - very, very quick) with butter and parmesan. I add fruit and cut-up tomatoes for vitamins. We'd love to find spinach ravioli, but no dice so far.

For me and my husband, the quickie meal is Italian sausages and peppers. I brown the sausages whole in a frying pan, then cut them into slices (they're still raw inside), then fry the slices for a couple of minutes. Then I toss in two bell peppers cut into strips and when the peppers are brown at the edges it's done. It takes about 20 minutes. We use 2 large sausages total, for 2 people, but how much really depends on how big the sausages are.

[Julie]

Anything my mom makes for him, he will eat (he's almost 4). Anything I make for him, he will say he doesn't like. I'm only half kidding.

He will always eat M*Nuggets. I hate that but we have a long car ride home from school often in LA traffic and it saves my sanity and gets his body fed at the same time. I try not to do it any more than once a week and try for even less than that if I can get away with it.

Also, the cheese pizza from Rosti is a sure thing. Expensive, but worth it. I have yet to find a frozen brand that is similar in taste and texture. He doesn't like "puffy" pizza.

At home he will always eat noodles, yogurt, any kind of fruit and spaghetti with meat sauce as long as I don't push it too hard or too often. Usually he'll eat eggs, but not always.

I'm counting on my younger son's enthusiasm for food to push the older one's eating habits. But the younger is only 7 months old so we have a ways to go first.

[Sheila]

My "recipe" is so unimpressive I wasn't going to post it, especially after reading about what Moxie called not a major production. But then I thought there were probably other readers like me, so it might make them feel better to know they're not alone in the unimpressive cooking department.

When I want to have a real cooked dinner but have very little in time, energy, or ingredients, I cook some rigatoni and brown some hamburger. To make it feel more like cooking I put in some minced onion (the kind in a spice jar, not actual onion that I take the time to cut up), minced garlic (same deal), oregano and crushed red pepper. Once it's cooked I pour some Prego over it and let that heat up. When the pasta is done I drain it and add it to the meat and sauce. I stir it up, then sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top and cover it until the cheese melts. Done.

I do occasionally cook more complicated things but this one feels like a step up from chicken fingers and fries but is about the same amount of work.

[cb]

"Broccoli Noodles" which is actually Spicy Broccoli and Soba Noodle Stir Fry from one of the Moosewood cookbooks is a hit and is ready in under 1/2 hour.
Tacos.
Rice and beans. We've recently started to use more dried beans. So I'll cook a pound on the weekend and serve them throughout the week.
Pizza is fast and easy if I make the pizza dough in the food processor in the morning and leave it in the refrigerator all day.
I do wish I had more time to cook. That means planning for dinner, shopping, and actually cooking it. But if I did that, we wouldn't eat until 8 or 9 PM.

[mom2boys]

Small shells pasta with store bought spicy marinara sauce is a staple that everyone will eat. Also, romaine lettuce with Marie's caesar salad dressing.
Black beans, yellow rice and grilled chicken. The little one won't eat the chicken and the big one won't eat the black beans but it mostly works and is really easy.

[Rudyinparis]

My kids will eat quiche, which I can pack a fair amount of veggies into. They will also eat quesadillas, I make them with vegetarian refried beans, cheese and whatever vegetables I can sneak in. We ate this last night! They'll also eat blended veggie soups, like cream of brocolli, or potato leek. Pizza, sure. Spaghetti and meatballs, macaroni and cheese, sure. Fast food, sure. That said, I pretty much just cook whatever DH and I want for dinner and if they don't like it, I do always provide them with a semi-healthy bedtime snack.

[Judy B]

I love crock pot meals and make regular and white chicken chili frequently. (yes they involve canned beans and tomatoes)

Also one-pot rice/veg/sausage meals. Either jambalaya with celery/tomato/onion/pepper and andouille sausage (I like Grote&Weigel)...or sausage and rice stew with spinach (I use kielbasa) ...yummy.

No boil noodles are a huge time saver and make lasagna super easy.

Allrecipes.com is a great go-to site also.

[CG]

I rely on Re@l Simple recipes a lot. They are usually fast, don't have lots of expensive ingredients, and if you pick and choose well, they can be very healthy. This is one of the ones we make every couple of weeks in the fall/winter: http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/cannellini-bean-stew-10000001537588/

Their website has lots of good recipes. We also sometimes buy a pre-cut stir fry mix from our grocery store (they package it) and make chicken stir-fry. If you don't have to chop the veggies yourself it's pretty darn fast. Of course now that we mostly eat brown rice that takes forever to cook--any tips on speeding up the cooking of brown rice?

[MamaBirdNYC]

Ooh, I love this one!

1. Quinoa and cheese. Make the quinoa according to package directions, sprinkle shredded cheddar on top. Yum. I usually serve with a salad for grownups and frozen mix (corns/beans/carrots) for the toddler.

2. Taco-ish things. Zap flour tortillas with wet paper towel for 30 seconds. Top with jarred salsa, shredded cheddar, Amy's refried black beans (even my toddler will eat this), yogurt, avocado, and if you're feeling fancy, some sauteed onions, red peppers, and mushrooms.

3. Amy's frozen pizzas. Super yummy, semi-healthy, and hekshered (kosher) for those of us who care.

4. Spinach quiche. Best made the night before, only because it takes 30-40 min to cook, but it's about 5 min of prep time, MAYBE. Basically, pour 6-8 beaten eggs, 1/4 cup milk, and a package of frozen, drained/squeezed spinach, into a frozen pie crust. Sprinkle chopped yummy cheese on top. Bake till set.

5. Veggie chili. Sautee chopped onion and garlic in olive oil. Add a can of black beans, kidney beans, corn, and fake meat if you're so inclined. Pour in half a beer (drink other half while cooking, natch), chili powder, a bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Simmer till the rice or noodles is done.

6. Crock pot chicken. Set it up in the morning: chopped potatoes, carrots, and celery, chicken in pieces. Top with whatever spices look good, and the leftover wine in the fridge. 10 hours on low. Ready when you get home.

I'm sure I have more, I'm sort of obsessed with this question, but I can't wait to look back and see everyone else's!

[birdie]

We really, really love this recipe from Cooking Light: http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=604814

You can make the filling whenever and the chimis themselves take 7 minutes. And there's always enough for our family of 3 to have it two nights.

Another go-to for us is spaghetti: a decent jar of sauce (I like the Paul Newman or Classico brands), some whole wheat linguini, ground beef. Boil water, throw in the pasta. Brown the ground beef and then add the sauce to the pan. Toss it all together, top with parmesan and serve salad on the side. My two year old loves spinach salad with ranch and loves slurping noodles. Not fancy, but quick and hot.

[Charisse]

Turkey chili, adapted from a recipe I found at Relish:

1 lb ground turkey
1 onion
1/2 a red pepper
1 Tbs cumin

-->brown all of the above in mild olive oil or vegetable oil

once it's all brown, add:

2 cans great northern beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1-2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

bring to a simmer and cook for a while

I serve it with (in the exact order, in the exact bowls, per Mouse)

=more chopped cilantro
-scallions
-grated cheddar
-chopped avocado
-lime wedges
(spicy peppers for the grownups)

and some plain red leaf lettuce tossed with lime and olive oil on the side.

Mouse chows, South Beach Mr. C chows, it takes like 1/2 hour to make. Whee. :)

[Jamie]

Spaghetti carbonara is what we always make when we're in a hurry. The eggs give it more protein than spaghetti + sauce from a jar. We throw frozen peas into the pasta cooking water when the noodles are almost done and hey presto! -- it's a vegetable.

If I have leftover chicken in the fridge, I make tortilla soup: saute onion and garlic, and add cumin seeds and oregano when they're tender. When the cumin seeds sizzle, add chicken broth, canned diced tomatoes, a truckload of canned beans (whatever varieties float your boat), whatever chicken is available, and something to add a little kick (canned green chiles, maybe a chipotle in adobo, maybe a dried chile). Let it simmer for as much time as you have, then add a 10-oz. bag of frozen corn and heat through. Serve with tortilla chips, grated cheese, sour cream, and Tabasco chipotle hot sauce.

[paola]

Soup! This is the only way my kids get any veg into them. I have around 4 I rotate and as they have at least 3 vegetables in them, they get a variety of vegetables a week. We are pretty health-conscious in our family so they are low ( if any) fat too. Oh, and to vary a bit, I also add rice/barley/spelt and make a 'risotto' with the soup I made the night before, that way they get some legumes in too.

Do I have to mention my kids just adore pasta and all toppings imaginable. Carbonara is the most recent favourite which is a super duper way to get in both proteins and carbs. Pasta and Broccoli with parmigiano cheese ditto. And with the right shaped/size pasta, the meal is cooked in 10 minutes.

[Cloud]

Our go to meals that we are fairly sure our rather picky daughter will eat are tortellini (with any sauce- Pumpkin will insist it gets washed off anyway) and quesadillas with smoothies. We have a quesadilla maker (a wedding gift that we thought was funny at the time, but has turned out to be incredibly useful), so I just take tortillas, pre-shredded cheese, and some basil from our garden to make the quesadillas. The smoothies are made from whatever frozen fruit I have on had, a little bit of OJ, and a little bit of water. As fruit starts to head past its prime around here, I cut it up and freeze it. I also keep a bag of frozen berries on hand, to ensure that the smoothies don't turn out an odd brown color.

[christina]

We just ate it last night --
Salmon baked in oiled parchment (475 degrees for 10-13 minutes in the oven), steamed broccoli (in the microwave) and parmesan couscous from the box (boil water, add, cover for 5 minutes off heat). I can get it all on the table 15 minutes after the oven warms up and my 3 year loves it.

[kakaty]

our go-to meal in less then 20 minutes is 1-2-3 Taco’s (as written in Woman’s Day magazine, as close as I can remember)

-1 lb ground beef
-1 package Knorr/Lipton “Fiesta Sides” Taco Rice
-1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

Brown the beef in a saucepan and drain the fat. Add the rice & 2 cups water, stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 7 minutes. Add in beans and heat through. Serve as filling in taco shells top with your favorite accrutements.

Now here are my riffs on the theme:
-Use any protein you want – we’ve done beef, turkey, chicken, buffalo and even meatless protein crumbles.
-If you don’t want to add the Knorr stuff – use minute rice and your own blend of taco seasonings – just follow the package directions for amount of water and cooking time.
-Or use precooked rice (leftovers work great) + taco seasoning for an even faster meal.
-Add 2 or more cans of black beans to stretch the recipe for a crowd.
-Add in veggies – we almost always add 1/2 bag of frozen corn and diced tomatoes. When they are in season we add 2-3 diced red or yellow bell peppers, too. Maybe some cilantro if we have it around.
-Make sure to add extra spice if adding a bunch of extras or it will be bland
-Serve in shells or tortillas, over greens for a taco salad or just scoop some into a bowl and top with some crushed tortilla chips.

We are NEVER with out the ingredients for this dish. It takes about 15-20 minutes and all three of us like it. It can be pretty healthy if you use ground turkey or chicken breast, add in veggies and are careful with your toppings. This easily feeds all of us for 2 dinners and gives Mark and I 3-4 lunches – more if we add in extra beans and veggies. It’s cheap, too… under $10 for 8-10 servings.

[SarcastiCarrie]

Faster Brown Rice: Success Rice Boil-in-Bag brown rice and Minute Rice brown rice. They're just pre-cooked, so every bit as healthy just faster and more expensive (still cheaper than take-out). They also come in store brands too to save $$.

And faster chopping for stir fry - Buy a bag of frozen stir fry vegetables. Microwave for 5 minutes and then add to the stir fry to get mixed in and coated in sauce for the last little bit.

[ACJ]

SO hoping for some inspiration today... feeding my family is currently providing less job satisfaction than normal. Daughter is eating little and at 2 and a half, I am blaming control issues rather than failed parental feeding effort. Nine month old son will eat anything and like reader above, I am hoping over time his enthusiasm will prove catching.

Current winners:
Pre-cooked, pre-marinated ribs (10 - 15 minutes on the grill). T will eat as many as we give her. This has been her sole source of protein for most of the summer. An expensive habit, so her protein is coming in big batches about every 2 weeks.

Corn on the cob.

Chicken drumettes (split chicken wings) were working for a while there, then plummetted in popularity. They will be re-introduced again tonight as Chicken Ribs. Marinate as long as you can in mix of fruit juice, hoisin sauce, ginger, garlic & maybe some honey (sweet, sour, salt and spice). Place on foiled baking sheet, sprinkle with kosher salt, bake @ 425 for ~20 minutes. Tonight's version will be with BBQ sauce in case that is the magic bullet.

Perogies & Kielbasa sausage.

Mac N Cheese (w/homemade cheese sauce - roux of flour & butter, add milk, stir until thick, add cheese).

Daddy's Egg Quesadilla: Scrambled eggs, ham & cheese in a tortilla heated through on a pan til "crunchy". On good days, served with superduper sauce (plain yogurt + ketchup). On most days, just ketchup although salsa is becoming a desired treat.

Hoping for LOTS of posts...

[Jessie]

I only have to feed my (breastfeeding) self and my husband at the moment, but I suspect this one will last us decades: "chili mac". My mom used to make it with
--1 lb ground beef
--1 can diced tomatoes
--1 can corn
--1 box macaroni noodles
and I hated it. I add to those
--chopped onion
--chopped green bell pepper
--minced garlic
--Italian seasoning
--cheddar cheese on top
and we eat it all up! The thing that takes the longest is cooking the macaroni!

[Jamie]

In the left hand sidebar of my blog there is a link labeled "Jamie's Favorite Recipes". Lots of quick and easy recipes there -- and many of them are Weight Watchers friendly as well.

www.stickyfeet2.net

[Jac]

Our go to meals are:

1. Rotisserie chicken picked up from supermarket on the way home, served with microwave baked potato and melted cheese, and microwaved steamed veggies - we can be sitting down at the table within 10 minutes with this one.

2. Fried Rice - Whenever I cook rice for anything I make a double batch. The next day I make fried rice (with a seasoning package from sunbird). Any leftovers I have on hand can go in (chicken, pork, ham, onions, peas, carrots, peppers, broccoli) and everyone in my house loves this. Provided the rice is already made, this is only about 15 mins start to finish.

3. Breakfast for dinner (scrambled eggs and sausages and fruit, yum yum yum)

4. Sometimes when I am really tired and my husband isn't home, I just make us a cold appetizer plate to eat: crackers, cheese, cherry tomatos, cold garbanzo beans straight out of the can, any cold cuts I happen have. DS LOVES doing this.

Also, we just bought a pressure cooker which is FANTASTIC. We can make chicken and parmesan risotto in less than 15 minuts (from scratch) with this thing.

[electriclady]

With the caveat that I have a freakish child who loves spinach and broccoli, so your mileage may vary...

Fastest: Turkey burgers, with sauteed greens (spinach or whatever looked good at the greenmarket that week) or a salad on the side. My husband fancies it up with sauteed mushrooms, bacon, and/or avocado, but if I'm cooking I take the lazy way out and just slap some cheese on the burgers and call it a day. Takes about 15 minutes.

A little more work: Pasta with garlic, turkey sausage, and either broccoli or spinach. Steam the broccoli over the boiling pasta, or throw spinach in the colander just before you drain the pasta. Cook the sausage and garlic in olive oil while the pasta is cooking, then mix it all together with salt & pepper and more oil (or pasta cooking water) and top with grated Parmesan.

More time but very little actual work: Chicken, broccoli, and brown rice. I have a programmable rice cooker so if I plan ahead I can start the rice soaking in the morning and it will be done whenever I want. Marinate boneless skinless chicken thighs in soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, honey, tiny sprinkle of red pepper flakes, and fresh ground black pepper. A little fresh grated ginger if I have any on hand. Bake the chicken in 350F oven for around 20 mins or until done. When chicken is almost done, steam or boil broccoli.
Alternative recipe for above: Call for Chinese food delivery. :)

[MG]

I think my definition of "quick" is a LOT quicker than for many here. 99% of all veggies during the week are frozen or salad.

1. Re-purpose leftovers from Sunday (I try to make "real food" on the weekends). Good example is heat up leftover roasted ckicken or pot roast and eat it with tortillas, chopped tomato and canned beans. Maybe some cheese or yogurt.

2. Every week without fail- frozen pizza (whatever is on sale...thin crusts cook faster) and frozen mixed veggies with salad dressing.

3. "Broccoloni and cheese"...um..NOT the homemade kind. Either Kraft or that organic kind with the bunnies on the box (Annie's ?). I do make the sauce with yogurt and then add a bag of frozen and nuked broccoli at the end. It tastes best if you season the broccoli before you throw it in.

4. "Do it yourself" dinners. My 5 year old will eat almost anything if I put it on the table in separate bowls and she gets to assemble it herself.

5. Frozen veggie (green beans or broccoli, usually) with cubed tofu. Mix with soy sauce and sesame oil. Serve over frozen rice.

6. Pasta and sauce- sometimes with frozen shrimp in the sauce (our Target has shrimp that are pretty cheap).

7. Eggs.

[mamanic]

I feel SO much better about my (lack of) quick cooking skills after reading and have gotten some great ideas!

My 21 month old doesn't know yet about patience and how it could get her a yummy home-cooked dinner....Last night she ate pretzel sticks with a side of peanut butter for dippin, with some cut up grapes and a few bites of my salad. She LOVES the BeechNut cup/meals and will repeat SOUP!SOUP!SOUP!SOUP!SOUP! if she sees one in the cupboard until she gets one.

When I do get to cook, my new favorite is to saute minced onions with 3 strips of bacon cut into 1cm strips, then drain the grease and add a few cups of marinara sauce, then heat. Meanwhile, scramble enough eggs for the hungry eaters, plate, douse in sauce and sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top (I prefer to shave a block into curls). Makes a great breakfast or breakfast-as-dinner.

Ditto on the tacos & bean tostadas.

[Kate]

The go-to dinner at my house is bean soup.
- Rinse one bag of dried navy beans then soak in clean water overnight
- Put beans in a stock pot with a meaty ham bone and fill the pot 3/4 up with chicken stock, water, or a mix of the two
- Cook on the stove for a couple of hours - till beans are tender - adding water as necessary to maintain the desired level of liquid
- Cut up two carrots (slice thin so they cook fast) and add to broth
- My family likes ham or kielbasa in the soup, so I dice up whichever I have on hand at the time and put it in the broth with the carrots to add to the flavor of the soup
- Boil till carrots are tender, then remove ham bone and serve

[sarah]

My 2.5 year old loves chicken, so I do it three easy ways for three nights of the week:

(1) BBQ or pick up rotisseri from grocery store;
(2) cut into cutlets, moisten with egg, dip in breadcrumbs, cook stove-top for home-made chicken fingers;
(3) curry: marinade cutlets in 2tbsp olive oil; 2tbs soy sauce; 1 tbsp brown sugar; 2tsp cumin; 2 tsp curry; 1 tsp tumeric. Once marinaded for 30 minutes or more, place on skewers and BBQ or cook in oven (very mild curry; we all love it and the marinade takes about a minute to put together).

Serve above with any fruit / starch / veges your kids like.

Once a week we order chinese. DS' favourites are lo mein and orange chicken and stir fry veges.

Twice a week I put out a plate of: cold cuts (e.g. sliced roast beef or turkey from organic buther / no nitrates); diced tomatoes & cucumber; cheese & crackers.

That's six easy meals! The seventh night of the week I might make a frittata (easier than quich); mac'n'cheese (Amys Organic: 4 minutes in the microwave); BBQ steak or go out to the local restaurant.

My toddler son strangely eats an amazing variety of meats, fruits & vegetables but very little dairy and carbs (little bread, no rice, no pasta). I wish he would eat pasta! What an easy meal that would be...

[Carla Hinkle]

I use a scaloppine marsala recipe, but use boneless, skinless, frozen chicken breasts instead of veal. It sounds fancy but it really waaaay easy, everyone likes it (me, husband, 5 year old, 2.5 year old), and it is a total freezer/pantry meal (just making sure to keep a bottle of Marsala wine on hand).

Defrost froz. chicken breasts. If forget to do this, put in bowl of cold water and will defrost in 15-20 min.
Coat chicken breasts with flour, then pan fry in 2 Tb. olive oil, 1 Tb. butter. Take out of pan and stick in oven to keep warm.

Pour 1/2 cup of Marsala wine in pan, turn up heat and let the alcohol burn off and scrape up the yummy brown bits. Turn off heat, add 1 Tb butter and melt it in. Pour over chicken, voila, dinner.

Have it with any starch you like (instant couscous is always a favorite and takes about 1 min of cooking time, 5 minutes of waiting).

For veggies I stock up on the Trader Joe's frozen french green beans. They are delicious and come already washed and snapped. I boil them a few minutes, then toss with a little olive oil and lemon juice.

This whole dinner takes at MOST 20 minutes and is totally home cooked and everyone eats it.

[Carla Hinkle]

Oh, and @caramama, my 2.5 year old also loves pasta and tomato sauce, so I have taken to freezing it in ice cube trays and sticking it in a ziploc bag so I always have some to give her. Especially because the 5 year old HATES tomato sauce on her pasta, so if I am doing a "kids dinner" I make pasta and defrost a cube or two of sauce for the little one, plain cheese or Trade Joe's pesto-sauce-in-a-jar for the big one.

[Erika]

Ooh, good post! Can't wait to read all the responses for new ideas! My go-to is a Red Beans & Rice dish. I have a 13-mo daughter but she won't eat it (yet).

Everything is approximate, even the cooking times. And I add or delete veggies based on what's in the pantry. But it generally takes me about 30-35 min total and makes plenty for at least one, sometimes two nights of leftovers!

-In a large saute pan, heat some olive oil
-Add 1 medium onion, chopped and cook for about 5 min
-Add 1 green pepper, chopped and cook another 5-8 min until desired "crunchiness"
-Press 2-3 garlic cloves into pan and stir around
-Add about 2 tbsp chili powder, 1 teaspoon paprika, a dash of tobasco or other hot sauce, and a dash of cayanne pepper
-Add 2 16-oz cans of rinsed red beans
-Add 1 14-oz can of diced tomatoes
-Add 1 6-oz can of tomato paste
-Mix it all up, cover and simmer for at least 5 min or longer if you need to, stirring every once in a while

I sometimes serve with rice in a bowl, sprinkled with shredded cheese

I also sometimes put it in tortilla wraps with salsa, chopped lettuce, cheese, etc.

Right now, tomatoes are in season so I replace the canned diced tomatoes with fresh diced. And sometimes I make a big batch of kidney beans and freeze them. WAY cheaper than canned, but requires some forethought.

-

[Julie M]

Our 3 month old has a cow's milk protein allergy, which means that all of our meals for the time being are dairy free.

To Michaela: The Healthy Slow Cooker by Judith Finlayson has FANTASTIC vegetarian and vegan recipes for the crock pot. We do at least one crock pot meal a week, which I prep on Sunday and then cook all day Monday while I am at work. Usually these meals provide tons of leftovers, which I then take to work with me for the rest of the week.

Our go-to easy meal is Rotisserie Chicken Salad: Buy a rotisserie chicken and shred it. Add sliced red onions (none on the 3-year-old's plate) sliced pears, almonds, and crumbled blue cheese (none for me, unfortunately). Serve over greens (sometimes I add extra veggies like a diced red pepper or shredded carrots) with a vineagrette and a loaf of (store-bought) whole grain bread. Tons of variations based on what's in season. Barely takes any time, and although many of the ingredients are store-bought, there are no processed foods in it (no trans fats, HFCS, etc.)

[KateW]

My 2.5 year old (go figure) will not eat any "combo" foods - that is, with more than 1 ingredient , including spices. That said, she does eat lots of different single foods. My main dishes that she'll eat are:

Baked chicken: SUPER easy, as long as I remember to put it in at 4ish. great leftovers.
Grilled Tri-tip: 25 min on the grill, turn twice.

Otherwise, she just eats sides like rice, corn, cheese, tortillas, fruit, carrots, bread, hard-boiled egg (white only), pasta, etc. All plain.

I can't wait until she'll share our 'saucy' food, but I'm not pushing too hard.

[Susan]

I am a WOHM with a nice husband and a particular but not exactly picky 22-month old, which is to say that he eats a lot of different things but there are things that he just totally disdains no matter how many times I serve them (all beans are included in this category, except for the garbanzos ground up into hummus). So here are some of our go-to-meals:

1. fritatta with salad and toast or some other side veggie, so easy and quick.
2. whole wheat pasta with homemade pesto -- I grind up the pesto in the food processor while the pasta water boils, and throw some broccoli or kale into the pasta pot at the end and blanch it with the pasta for a couple of minutes, and also throw in a can of cannelini beans, and then I've got a complete meal in one pot: carbs, protein, and veg. The toddler doesn't eat the beans, but he eats all the other stuff.

3. homemade veggie burgers, frozen sweet potato fries, and some sort of vegetable side -- either a salad or some hard veg tossed with oil, salt, and pepper and roasted in the oven at the same time as the sweet potato fries. I get the sweet potato fries in bags in the freezer section and figure they're packing more nutritional punch than regular fries. The homemade veggie burgers are so, so, so easy to make and are so, so, so much better than store bought. When I'm cooking them on the weekends I double the batch and freeze half for later use. They are: one onion, one cup nuts (I usually use walnuts or cashews), one cup raw oats, 1-2 TBSP tahini, salt and pepper to taste, some other spice mixture to taste (such as chili powder or curry powder, one egg. Grind it all up in the food processor, shape into patties, fry in a frying pan over medium heat. I often grate a zuchinni into the mix as well and melt cheese on top. This yields 4-6 patties depending on how big or small you make them. They make good leftovers for lunch the next day too. The recipe is from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, which I love.

4. Grill: hamburgers (for the toddler and husband, I'm vegetarian), seitan sausages, veggies, corn, etc. Easy peasy, quick, few dishes to clean up.

5. Pizza: make dough in the morning and let is rise while you're gone. Roll out and put on toppings when you get home, pop in oven. Make a salad while it's in the oven. Make a double batch of dough and freeze the other half.

6. Quesadillas. I grate cheddar cheese and zuchinni together in equal portions in a big bowl, toss with a little chili powder and melt between whole wheat tortillas. Serve with a side of black beans.

7. Split pea or lentil soup. I make it the night before. I just chop up some onions, garlic, carrots, and celery and saute these with salt and pepper and a couple of bay leaves for a good 15 minutes or so, then just throw in a couple of cups of peas/lentils and a bunch of water and some veggie buillion cubes and let it simmer away, stirring occasionally and checking to see if more water is needed. Serve with salad and bread. Oh yeah, sometimes I throw in a cup of barley or other grain to make it a more complete dish.

8. Some version of a bi-bim-bap type thing. It's highly variable -- the basic idea is I cook up some grain (often quinoa because it cooks fast), some protein (at our house, this is tofu or tempeh, pan fried in oil until crispy), and some veggies, could be steamed broccoli or cauliflower, could be grated beets and carrots, julienned turnips, whatever. Put it all out separately on the table along with nuts to garnish and some sort of sauce to go on it all, and let everyone make up their own bowl.

[VandyB]

I cook 3 times/week, we eat leftovers 3 nights/week, and get take-out on the remaining night.

I almost exclusively cook from "The Six O'Clock Scramble": http://www.amazon.com/Six-OClock-Scramble-Delicious-Families/dp/031233642X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1253722265&sr=8-1 (The cookbook, not the weekly email subscription service).

It is the best cookbook I've owned - well worth the $12 I spent on it. Every recipe is simple and quick to prepare. Very few ingredients in each recipe. The ingredients are fresh (not pre-cooked, processed foods), inexpensive, and easy to find in the grocery store. Everything is delicious for BOTH kids and adults (my very picky husband has loved *almost* every recipe). Lots of vegetarian/meatless recipes. Healthy recipes. I cannot say enough good things about it!

[nej]

@Flea - http://www.amazon.com/Delicious-Dependable-Slow-Cooker-Recipes/dp/0778800539 This is out favorite Crock Pot cookbook. The white bean and cauliflower soup is soooo good. If you email me I'll scan a copy of the recipe and send it to you.

@Fiona - Do you want your son to eat meat? If so, have you tried crispy bacon? It was the gateway meat for our son, who then moved to crock pot meat and now eats all different kinds of meat, including pepperoni.

[enu]

It used to be "Tofu Block" an inventive dish my younger daughter brought back from her immersion Japanese program; A cold block of tofu, cut into 6 pieces, drizzled with a bit of soy sauce.

Now.... spouse will eat anything as long as he's not allergic to it, it's not egregiously treyf, and it's not eggplant. So I cook whatever the hell I want to, but if it's shrimp (or eggplant) I don't share...

[Kathy]

I love this meal sharing idea! Can't wait to try that chicken marsala recipe, especially.

Our favorite meal is Moroccan Chicken that I got from Parents magazine. Sprinkle both sides of chicken tenderloins with cumin, kosher salt, and cinnamon (use as much or as little as you want--I used to measure it out according to the recipe, but now just put on a whole bunch). Cook in skillet with oil until done. Serve with rice. We like coconut milk rice --rice cooked with half water and half coconut milk (from a can). Side of green beans from the freezer, usually.

Another easy favorite is ham steak cooked in the broiler with sweet potatoes cooked in microwave or Annie's mac and cheese. Side of frozen peas. Quick and really easy!

[Wendy]

Alfredo chicken in the slow cooker:
Put a chicken breast (boneless/skinnless...can be frozen) and
1 jar alfredo sauce (I like newman's) in slow cooker and
cook on low for 6 hours.
Boil up some Barilla Protien Plus Pasta and add a handful of frozen peas in the cooking water for 3 minutes.
Right in the slow cooker, shred the chicken with 2 forks, add a handful of grated parm cheese and a splash of milk and stir in your pasta and peas. Absolutley yummy!

Slow cooker chicken burritos:
Skinless boneless chicken breast
1 jar salsa
1 can black beans
1/2 a bag of frozen corn

drain the beans and the salsa or the burritos are too watery. Put it all in the slow cooker on low for 6 hours, throw a brick of cream cheese on top for the last 15 minutes. Shred the chicken and stir in the melted cream cheese before serving in tortillas with sliced avacado. It is also really good over brown rice.

I also buy frozen spinach, cook it and puree and freeze in 1/2 cup containers. I add a spinach cube to everything. My kids are on a veggie strike right now so at least they are getting a little something green! (I think they really believe that tomato sauce is brown and not red!)

[ML]

We tend to cook up a lot of food on the weekend and freeze family-sized portions for nights we can't be bothered to think about dinner (eg: bolognese sauce or veg lasagne).

I own "The Six O'Clock Scramble" but the husband is picky and regards those recipes as shortcuts that produce results not worth eating. (Sigh. He grew up in a house where processed food was verboten.) Luckily, he likes to cook, but unluckily, he is much slower (he likes to sip a glass of wine or have a beer and read The New Yorker (!) while cooking PLUS he doesn't wash as he cooks, leaving mounds of dirty pots and dishes in the sink afterwards. If my husband cooks, we don't have a meal until 7:30pm-8pm, which is way too late, especially for the 2.5yo. Because I am faster at prep, I usually have dinner on the table by 6:30pm/7pm and these are our go-to meals:

-Broccoli and pasta. (Parcook Broc. Cook pasta. Saute garlic, chili flakes, and anchovy in some olive oil. Toss broc in with garlic mixture til heated. Toss w/ pasta, serve w/ cheese.) The 2.5yo loves it with Rotelli, which we call wagon wheels. We find and easy way to get him to eat veg is to serve with pasta. (Other variations on theme: zucchini in matchstick form, sauteed w/ chili flakes, garlic, olive oil with spaghetti; tomato sauce with minced carrots and celery plus pasta, etc.)

-Chicken curry and rice. Also a good way to get kid to eat veg. The quickest way is Thai for me--I use the jarred spice pastes and add a couple of extra lime leaves (I have a plant), fish sauce and basil, if I have any on hand. Recipe: Cook rice. Heat the thick portion of can of coconut milk until the oil separates. Fry 1/4 c. spice paste til fragrant. Toss in chopped chicken thighs and stir for a minute. Pour in the rest of the can of coconut milk plus another (I use a reduced fat coco milk for the 2nd). Toss vegs in (eg: green beans, eggplant, froz peas, sweet/reg potato, all in bite-sized pieces). Simmer til chicken is done, about 15-20 min. Eat.

-Scrambled eggs and toast.

Other resources: The Serious Eats website, especially their "Dinner Tonight" series (http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/dinner_tonight/). We love the Curried Pork Noodles.

I wish my husband would eat tofu and my son would eat beans (I also wish he was not allergic to peanuts and tree nuts), but my son is a really good eater in general, so I shouldn't complain.

[rebecca]

This is an awesome thread. I feel like I am not the only mom in the world taking shortcuts! We do mac and cheese and beans alot...can be Kraft but I usually make scratch macaroni by boiling the elbow noodles, adding a little butter, milk and American cheese slices (or smoked cheddar slices) from the deli. Stir till it melts. Open a can of boston baked beans and voila- more protein with your dairy and starch. My picky 3 yo loves this.
Lately the hubby and I like "baked ravioli"- boil your frozen ravioli/tortellini, put in a casserole dish, top with leftover pasta sauce (mixing alfredo and tomato is good), add leftover mozarella balls (I use some in salad and then forget to finish the package), sprinkle w/parmesan and bake at 350 till bubbly.
In a pinch? Heart-healthy bisquick pancakes. The bonus is that the 3yo will eat leftover pancakes for lunch the next day.
I am not proud of the amount of frozen chicken nuggets my son consumes. I MUST try these baked chicken nugget recipes I see *everywhere*.

[meggiemoo]

I rarely eat gluten now, so I serve us all mainly gluten-free meals (so long lasagna and spaghetti, so sad!), with some modifications for DH and DS.

- rotisserie chicken (we always have one on hand). Great for quesadillas, over spinach salad, etc. DS takes it chopped up with dip for preschool.

- baked salmon (put in glass baking dish over foil, add spices and lemon juice, bake at 375 F for about 25 min or until flaky) with microwaved fresh veggies (potato, broccoli, green beans, snap peas) or baked french fries (Trader Joe's has excellent frozen, healthy fries).

- baked or pan-fried tilapia (if it's crispy, my DS will eat it). Dip Tilapia pieces into egg wash and breadcrumbs, or Zataran's mix, then pan fry or bake. Serve with veggies and fruit of choice.

- turkey keilbasa, cut up and stir-fried with cut-up bell peppers and onions, served over sticky rice. Big hit around here.

- cashew chicken. (Stir-fry each ingredient for a few minutes before adding the next) Stir-fry diced chicken with garlic and ginger if you have them, add cashews, and whatever veggies you like. We usually put in diced carrots, bell peppers, onions. Sauce: 1/4 c. water, 1/4 c. soy sauce, 1/4 c. sherry, 2 T. dark corn syrup, 1 T. white vinegar, 4t. cornstarch. Add sauce at end and let bubble and thicken. Serve over sticky rice.

- breakfast for dinner. pancakes, french toast for DH and DS, eggs, turkey bacon for all of us. yum.

- Friday night is take-out pizza night!

[Kate]

We mostly use Relish Relish for recipes (I highly highly recommend it - quick, healthy, tasty and gives you a shopping list) but for the weeks when even that is too complicated:

Cook: rice and beans, with either spicy Italian sausage (if my husband is making it) or chicken (if I'm making it). Easy in either case and everyone likes it. I just heat up a can of beans, cook some white rice, and then season and cook chicken breasts that I've cut into bite sized pieces in a little olive oil. I couldn't tell you how my husband cooks the sausage, but probably just throws it on a skillet. Either way, mix it all together in a big bowl and serve. It's super easy and not terrible for you, especially if you find some vegetables to serve with it, which I generally don't.

Buy: rotisserie chicken with some steamed veggies (either the frozen steam bags or fresh) and maybe a starch (either frozen or from the deli counter).

Take out: Pizza from the very good, very fast pizza place a couple blocks away.

[regiemino]

These are the meals that will feed everyone. Kids aged 7, 5, 2. The super-fast ones are only when Daddy's on night shift.

1. Orzo - Chicken - Broccoli

Boil 1 or 1.5 cups orzo in a large pot, steam broccoli overtop. Combine cooked orzo, steamed broccoli and leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken. Sprinkle with lots of parmesan.

2. Chicken with BBQ Sauce (from Canadian Looneyspoons series, it has another name)

3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup salsa
1/4 cup honey
1 tbsp dijon
chili powder
cumin
1 tsp. cornstarch

Mix all sauce ingredients together, pour over 1-2 lbs boneless chicken breast pieces or thighs. bake 30 min for breasts, 45 for thighs. Serve with baked potatoes or mashed or noodles or bread. Good with corn from the can or a green veg. We had it with corn on the cob last week.

3. Oven Eggs

6 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
salt, pepper
grated cheese
other add-ins: green onions, roasted peppers, cooked mushrooms.

Beat eggs, add other ingredients, pour into a glass pie plate coated with cooking spray . Bake 30 min or until puffy.

4. Fast Macaroni and cheese that's not Kraft Dinner.

equal parts whole wheat macaroni, milk and water. (I use 1.5 cups). Put all in a pot together. Cook until the macaroni is done, adding more water if necessary. When it is done, you should have milkiness left over. Grate in a big handful of cheese and a squirt of mustard. Done!

[tooquiet]

We love breakfast for dinner! DH is the egg expert -- omlettes with mushrooms, peppers, onions, tomatoes, cheese, and leftover steak or ham are his specialty. We also like to cook whole wheat pancakes or waffles and top them with fruit, fresh or defrosted.

The easiest crock pot recipe I know is this: Take some chicken or pork, dump in a bottle of barbecue sauce, simmer for 6+ hours. The fancy version: add apples and/or onions for a little more flavor.

Some family favorites that take a little more work/planning: tacos; tortellini with sausage or chicken and pesto sauce; and chicken tikka masala (chicken marinated in yogurt and curry paste, simmered in diced tomatoes with juice, served with rice -- yummy).

Thanks to everyone for some great ideas!

[MrsHaley]

My husband is very picky so my cooking repertoire is kind of limited ... I make a "Monthly Dinner Menu" at the end of each month for the next month so our dinners are planned well beforehand. He likes to "Get his mouth ready." Whaaaaatever. We rotate about 14 dishes throughout the month and they are all pretty simple.

My favorite night is Baked Ravioli night since it's definitely the easiest and similar to @rebecca's:

1 box/bag frozen cheese ravioli
1 box/bag frozen Italian meatballs
1 jar red sauce (we use Prego)
1 2-cup bag of shredded mozzarella

Dump the ravioli & meatballs into a 9x12 baking dish. Cover with sauce. Sprinkle cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for an hour or so - -take off the foil for 10-15 min. at the end if you want the cheese to brown