[Jeters]

Does anyone else have this problem? I have the hardest time figuring out what to make for dinner...still trying to figure out the whole "get home at seven, have dinner on the table in decent time" thing.

any tips? pointers? recipes?

...and no, "learn how to dial pizza hut" isn't the answer I'm looking for here...trying to save money/ eat better.

[AsheMan]

I have this problem every night.

I'll go to the store and buy hundreds of dollars worth of food and then just sit there staring blankly at my fridge wondering what to make. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one.

[Isobel]

Two things that generally work for me:
Sausage Onions and Peppers

At least one package of Mild Italian Sausage. (More if you like sausage)
One Large Onion
One Green Pepper
One Red Pepper
One Yellow Pepper
Potatoes
Worchestshire Sauce
Pepper
Rosemary
Garlic

Slice or dice all the peppers and the onion, add the spices and the Worchestershire sauce to taste and set it aside.
I boil the sausage first, just to make sure it's cooked well.
Chop the potatoes and boil them in the same water you used for the sausage so the potatoes pick up the flavor. Boild them unilt they are slightly soft.
While the potates are cooking fry the veggies and the sausage together until they are cooked but still crisp.
Once everything is cooked mix it well and you have a meal that will feed at least 6.


Italian Chicken

This is the easiest meal i make.
Chicken breast
Italian Dressing
Rice
Whole Bay Leaves or Slices of some veggie.

Marinade the chicken in the dressing for at an hour, the longer the better.
Bake slowly in the dressing.
Cook the rice.
Ring a platter with the bay leaves or whatever.
Make a bed of rice and put the chicken and dressing over the bed of rice.

The sausage dish generally costs about 20-25 dollars and feeds 6 or 4 with some leftovers. The chicken costs maybe 10 dollars to feed 4.

[Labyrrinth]

Hmmm some tricks I use, especially to make fast and nutritous meals during the week

On the weekend I bake up a bunch of boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Slice them up and freeze them in indivdual size serving packages. During the week, defrost 1 or 2, chop up some salad fixings, throw the chicken on there and tada! Done

You can also thaw the cooked chicken out and use it to make quesadilla’s, fajitias, stir fry, etc

I also buy individually packaged fish (tilapia for example) and even if it’s not thawed out, it’s generally thin enough you can season it and throw it under the broiler to defrost/cook at the same time. While that’s cooking grab your veggies (fresh or frozen) and microwave.

Make a casserole / stew over the weekend, separate it into individual containers and freeze. You can defrost these in the fridge and/or at the last minute for an easy and fast meal with very little clean-up

Another option if one is near you is Trader Joes - they have a bunch of healthy and easy to fix meals and if you go while they're giving away free samples, you can get all kinds of wonderful ideas

[Jeters]

Originally Posted by AsheMan

I have this problem every night.

I'll go to the store and buy hundreds of dollars worth of food and then just sit there staring blankly at my fridge wondering what to make. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one.

god its so true...I spent like 80 bucks at trader joes last week and my fridge is FULL of food. I think part of the problem is that I'm only cooking for two, so I can't make anything big or it'll go bad *mutters about the 3 month old chili and chicken pie in her fridge right now*

Now that the BF is coming home earlier I'm trying to cook dinner every night, a big change for me. (I'm usually happy eating peanut butter toast or something for dinner)

Plus we want to play VG when we come home, and anything that takes more than two minutes to cook starts looking pretty intimidating.
I have soo much food in my fridge and freezer though =(

[AsheMan]

Originally Posted by Labyrrinth

Another option if one is near you is Trader Joes - they have a bunch of healthy and easy to fix meals and if you go while they're giving away free samples, you can get all kinds of wonderful ideas

Absolutely love Trader Joe's! They have the best stuff. I love to buy their premixed herb foccacia dough, high quality cheese and meat, some nice sun-dried tomato sauce or pieces and make my own gourmet pizza.

[Atoyota]

Originally Posted by Jeters

god its so true...I spent like 80 bucks at trader joes last week and my fridge is FULL of food. I think part of the problem is that I'm only cooking for two, so I can't make anything big or it'll go bad *mutters about the 3 month old chili and chicken pie in her fridge right now*

Now that the BF is coming home earlier I'm trying to cook dinner every night, a big change for me. (I'm usually happy eating peanut butter toast or something for dinner)

Plus we want to play VG when we come home, and anything that takes more than two minutes to cook starts looking pretty intimidating.
I have soo much food in my fridge and freezer though =(

Sit with you BF and figure out a menu for the week, then do all the prep work one night and set it aside in the fridge.

OR

Just do meals that taste better the more they are cooked.
A cajun 3 bean stew used to do that for me with sourdough and good steamed veggie, also lasagna is great for leftover meals.

Seriously, stuffing the Fridge without a "plan" can be a wasteful proposition.
(luckily I work in a food store so dinner for me is whatever mood I'm in that day )

[Nyzmo]

Ramen noodles!

[Jacosta]

I like to serve biscuits with just about everything and they're easy to make in less then a half hour.

2 cups of all purpose flour
4 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
3 tablespoons of butter
3/4 to 1 cup of milk

Preheat over to 450. Sift flour, baking powder, salt; cut in butter (I use my hands since I can get the butter to the right size) until coarse crumbs. Add milk and mix to make a soft dough. Knead on a lightly floured surface and roll to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut dough with a 3-4 inch diameter cup (makes bigger biscuits then the standard biscuit cutter) and place on a dry cookie sheet with sides touching. Bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Makes 6 biscuits.

A good meal to go with the biscuits is northern beans, fried potatoes, and cottage cheese.

[sleipnira]

brown some Ground turkey(or hamburger if you prefer)
Then depending on your preference that night mix it with pasta & sauce, or Mix into mac & cheese, or make tacos(soft or hard)

Ribs or chicken wings in a pan with Bar-B-Q sauce then rice & veg. on side is quick/easy also

[Jacosta]

Originally Posted by sleipnira

brown some Ground turkey(or hamburger if you prefer)
Then depending on your preference that night mix it with pasta & sauce, or Mix into mac & cheese, or make tacos(soft or hard)

Ribs or chicken wings in a pan with Bar-B-Q sauce then rice & veg. on side is quick/easy also

Mac and cheese is gross.

[sleipnira]

Originally Posted by Jacosta

Mac and cheese is gross.

It is not if you buy/make the good kind
It is a necessary staple when you have teenagers

[Jacosta]

Originally Posted by sleipnira

It is not if you buy/make the good kind
It is a necessary staple when you have teenagers

Mac and cheese is still gross. /gags

[Atoyota]

Originally Posted by sleipnira

It is not if you buy/make the good kind
It is a necessary staple when you have teenagers

hey another one that's quick and easy is...

Thinly sliced bonless chicken breasts, with tomato sauce and mozzarella on top, and if you like some italion seasoned breadcrumbs to cover and or some parmeson.

Pop them in the oven and have with a veggie side...

Also have a forman grill so I can do burgers or brats, only takes 15 minutes, and if you want to dress the brats with some kraut you can.
Not a "real dinner" but works in a pinch.

[Jacosta]

Another quick and easy recipe.

Italian Potatoes

3-4 large potatoes
1 cup of dried tomatoes
1 can of chopped black olives
1 can of green olives
1/2 cup of mushrooms
2 tablespoons of salt, pepper, oregano, sage, thyme, rosemary leaves, and basil
3-4 tablespoons of olive oil

Soak the dried tomatoes for about 20 minutes in cold water. Peel the potatoes and cube them. Heat the olive oil in the skillet over medium heat. Chop up the green olives. Add the potatoes, tomatoes, olives, and mushrooms. Add some of the seasoning mixture to the top of the potatoes. As you cook them add more of the seasoning. Cook until the potatoes are golden brown.

[Jeters]

I made pizza from scratch last night, with TJ's pizza dough, marinara sauce, shredded mozzerella/parm and fresh tomatoes....sooo good and only took like 20+ minutes to make.

Biscuits intimidate me...but I'll have to try that recipe one of these days.

BTW, I make an AWESOME mac and cheese from scratch that is way way betta than the box. That is one of those dishes though that I can't really make when cooking for two or we end up eating it for a week.

[perfect]

Originally Posted by Jeters

I made pizza from scratch last night, with TJ's pizza dough, marinara sauce, shredded mozzerella/parm and fresh tomatoes....sooo good and only took like 20+ minutes to make.

Biscuits intimidate me...but I'll have to try that recipe one of these days.

BTW, I make an AWESOME mac and cheese from scratch that is way way betta than the box. That is one of those dishes though that I can't really make when cooking for two or we end up eating it for a week.

Speaking of, Jeters...

Albertson's (a grocery chain) sells fresh French Bread everyday for like $1.29. You can ask them for the frozen dough and they will sell it to you for the same price. Let that sit out while you are at work and you can make a pizza or even some calzones out of it with your favorite ingrediants.

[Riggin]

I'm throwing my Chicken Lo Mein recipe in the mix:

1 lb boneless mongoose...er chicken breast
12 oz lo mein noodles(or any pasta works fine)
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp crushed ginger root(not the powder)
3 tbsp cooking oil(I use sesame oil)
1 tbsp Cooking sherry
Various Veggies(I use oriental sprouts, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and pea pods, but use whatever makes you happy)

Stir fry the chicken with the ginger, garlic, oil, and sherry until cooked all the way through. Take the chicken out, put the veggies in and stir fry them.

Once that's done, mix the chicken, the veggies, and the pasta together with the sauce:

1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp sugar

You may need to increase the amounts for the sauce to make enough, but that's the ratio.

Takes about 20 minutes all told, and it's really good.

-Riggin

[Tharzidun]

Originally Posted by Jeters

Does anyone else have this problem? I have the hardest time figuring out what to make for dinner...still trying to figure out the whole "get home at seven, have dinner on the table in decent time" thing.

any tips? pointers? recipes?

...and no, "learn how to dial pizza hut" isn't the answer I'm looking for here...trying to save money/ eat better.

Slow Cooker FTW.

[perfect]

Originally Posted by Tharzidun

Slow Cooker FTW.

I am way too paranoid to leave a mongoose cooking all day while I'm at work. I lost an apartment to a fire once, not going to temp faite (get it?).