Dinner Recipes? I'm in a Block!

Updated on August 18, 2007
J.G. asks from Ontario, CA
16 answers

Hi, I am having a block with recipes for dinner. I would love some suggestions, but the problem is I really only like chicken and veggies where my husband loves all meat. Sometimes I will eat other meats depending on the recipe. I eat tacos and burritos sometimes with beef, I eat stuffed peppers with beef, and so forth. If anyone has any good ideas (no peas though, we don't like those :) ) that would be great to hear from you!

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B.S.

answers from San Diego on

I have a fabulous chicken lasagna recipe, and also a creamy chicken with Bow Tie pasta (we don't eat it with the peas it calls for) I would be happy to send both to you over e-mail. I'll just scan them. Here's the creamy chicken one.
6 oz dried bow tie pasta (cook according to directions)
12 0z skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut into strips
1 tbsp olive oil
1 can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatos with italian herbs
1/4 cup whipping cream (I use fat free evaporated milk)
1 can sweet peas drained (We don't add the peas)

1.Cook chicken in oil in large skillet over medium high heat 2-3 minutes, or until no longer pink.
2. Stir in tomato sauce, undrained tomatos, and peas. Bring to boil; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered, 5 to 10 minutes or until thickened. Slowly stir in cream. Serve over hot pasta. Sprinkle with shredded parmesan if desired.

Let me know if you want the other one, and I'd be happy to send it.

1 mom found this helpful
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A.K.

answers from Los Angeles on

I send this link to everyone, i love it, i sent it to a few other moms here and they loved it too.
cooks.com
easy recipes,
Bon appeteite!
A.

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C.L.

answers from Los Angeles on

I have MANY recipes as I love to cook, here are some of my faves and they are all easy.

Chicken Piccata

6 boneless, skinless, chicken breast halves
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons bottled capers, drained
3 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves
Mushrooms
1. With a kitchen mallet, flatten chicken slightly between sheets of plastic wrap. Season with salt and pepper.
2. In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons of butter and oil over medium-high heat until foam subsides; cook chicken on each side until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer chicken to a serving platter and keep warm.
3. Pour off drippings in skillet and add remaining 1/4 cup butter, wine and lemon juice. Bring mixture to a boil and reduce slightly; stir in capers, parsley and season with salt and pepper. Spoon sauce over chicken breasts.
Serve with angel hair pasta
Serves 6.

Chicken Marsala

4 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
All-purpose flour, for dredging
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 ounces crimini or porcini mushrooms, stemmed and halved
1/2 cup sweet Marsala wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Put the chicken breasts side by side on a cutting board and lay a piece of plastic wrap over them; pound with a flat meat mallet, until they are about 1/4-inch thick. Put some flour in a shallow platter and season with a fair amount of salt and pepper; mix with a fork to distribute evenly.
Heat the oil over medium-high flame in a large skillet. When the oil is nice and hot, dredge both sides of the chicken cutlets in the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess. Slip the cutlets into the pan and fry for 5 minutes on each side until golden, turning once – do this in batches if the pieces don't fit comfortably in the pan. Remove the chicken to a large platter in a single layer to keep warm.
Lower the heat to medium. Now, add the mushrooms and saute until they are nicely browned and their moisture has evaporated, about 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Pour the Marsala in the pan and boil down for a few seconds to cook out the alcohol. Add the chicken stock and simmer for a minute to reduce the sauce slightly. Stir in the butter and return the chicken to the pan; simmer gently for 1 minute to heat the chicken through. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with chopped parsley before serving.

Chisken Oscar

• 4 boneless chicken breast halves
• 1/2 cup flour
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 4 tablespoons butter (1/4 cup)
• 1 cup crabmeat
• 12 cooked asparagus spears
• Hollandaise sauce
Place chicken between 2 pieces of wax paper on a cutting board and pound very thin. combine the flour, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl.
Heat the butter in a heavy skillet. Dip the chicken pieces lightly in the seasoned flour and shake off excess. When the butter stops foaming, add the chicken and cook 3 to 4 minutes per side, until golden. Remove to a heated serving platter as the remaining pieces are cooked.
Cover each slice of chicken with crabmeat and top with 3 asparagus spears. Drizzle hollandaise sauce over asparagus and serve.
Recipe originally from "Maine Ingredients"
Serves 4

EASY TACO CASSEROLE

1 lb. ground beef ½ c. milk
garlic powder 1 pkg. 2% cheddar cheese, grated
1 can tomato soup ½ can Green Giant niblets corn, regular
1 jar medium salsa or Mexican
8-10 small corn tortillas 2/3 can large pitted black olives
½ c. Minute rice

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine tomato soup, salsa, milk, corn, rice, half of the grated cheese, ½ of the olives, chopped, and the tortillas, cut into 1-inch squares. Let stand while browning ground beef. Season ground beef with garlic powder, brown completely, and drain well. Stir ground beef into mixture of other ingredients, mixing thoroughly.

Pour mixture into casserole greased with cooking spray such as Pam, and garnish with remaining cheese and sliced olives. You can save some of the tortilla squares for garnish around the edges of the casserole, inserted as a diamond shape so that a triangle remains above the rest of the casserole. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes, or until the center of the casserole is bubbling. Let stand for a few minutes before serving.

Baked Ziti w/ Pesto
Serves 4

• ½ pound ziti
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes in thick puree
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 ½ cups grated, packaged mozzarella cheese
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup store-bought pesto

1. Heat the oven to 350. Oil 8 x 8 in baking dish
2. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the pasta for 7 min. It will be partially cooked. Drain. Rince with cold water and drain again.
3. In a medium saucepan, heat 1 ½ tablespoons of the oil over low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 min. Add the garlic and cook, stirring for 30 sec. Add the tomatoes, salt and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer over moderate heat and cook until very thick, about 10 min. Stir in ¼ teaspoon pepper. Remove the bay leaf.
4. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella, about half the parmesan, the pesto, and the remaining ¼ teaspoon pepper.
5. Put half the cooked pasta in the prepared baking dish and top with about a third of the tomato sauce. Spread the ricotta mixture on the sauce in an even layer. Cover with the remaining pasta and then remaining sauce. Top with the remaining ½ cup mozzarella and remaining parmesan. Drizzle with the remaining ½ tablespoon oil. Bake until bubbling, about 30 min. Let stand 10 min

If you need more, just ask :)

1 mom found this helpful
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E.M.

answers from Los Angeles on

J.,

I wasn't going to reply because I don't really have many ideas either. But when I saw that you received only chicken recipes I thought that I would share the few staples that I have.

First I love to make soft tacos and I keep all the veggies on hand if possible. You can use strips of chicken, thinly sliced sirloin or ground beef. After cooking the meat I add a taco seasoning packet and water. Then I grill corn tortillas in a pan and melt grated cheese at the same time. I add the meat, tomatoes (or salsa) and avocado. I fill up a 8x8 inch baking dish as I am preparing the tacos, keeping them in a warm oven until time for dinner. Right before serving I sprinkle lettuce into each taco that has been finely chopped. If there is someone that does not want everything on their taco, I make some with just the meat and cheese and let them put what they want into it at the table.

Next, We love lasagna. I use the Creamette brand Lasagna noodles (green box) with the "No Boil Recipe" on back. I have tried other brands, because sometimes I have trouble finding this one, but none of them have compared in ease, consistency and taste. This recipe can also be changed between using only cheese, Italian sausage or ground beef. If you can't find this Lasagna please e-mail me and I can give you the recipe and ideas of where to find it. This recipe is also a great one that can be frozen (single servings)

Next, I have my mother's meat loaf recipe that I tweaked a bit. This recipe can have veggies added to it if they are finely chopped or put into a food processor (actually you can do that with the Lasagna also). My sister does it always but I do not. You can test different veggies with your family and decide.
Meatloaf---1 lb. ground beef (The leaner the better)
3/4 cup Italian (or seasoned) bread crumbs
1 large egg
1/2 onion FINELY chopped
1-8 oz can of tomato sauce OR 1/2 cup of ketchup
approx. 1/2 cup of your favorite Italian salad dressing
Mix everything with your hands (recommend taking off your rings) thoroughly. Place in a bread pan or mound it into a bread shape on a baking dish. Bake for one hour at 350 degrees. This recipe can be changed, sometimes it seems too moist to me and I add a little bit more bread crumbs or if it seems too dry I add a bit more dressing +/or tomato sauce/ketchup. This recipe is also a good one for freezing single servings. Reheats in a microwave great.

My easy chicken recipe uses Italian bread crumbs. Bread chicken breasts and cook in a pan or bake. When I don't have time for this I cut the breasts into strips and cut them in half(about 5 per breast) I then bread them and slowly pan fry them over a small amount of butter. They make the best little chicken strips you have ever tasted. I usually serve these with mashed potatoes veggies and salad.

Hope I have helped.

Evelyn

1 mom found this helpful
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B.S.

answers from San Diego on

I make a really good chicken pot pie that is super easy!
1 can of precooked chicken (or 2 small cans)
1 cup cheese
1 pie crust
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cans mixed veges

First, put the bottom crust into a pie pan (deep dish if you have that). Then drain water out of veges and pour the veges into the pie pan. Drain water out of the chicken and pour chicken onto veges. Then spread cheese around on top of the chicken. Pour cream of chicken on top. Then put the other crust over and crinkle the edges together. Stab top with a fork 4-6 times for venting. Put in preheated 350 oven for about 50-60 minutes.
Wa-la!

Good luck!

B.

1 mom found this helpful
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S.H.

answers from Honolulu on

Try www.marthastewart.com her "everyday food' recipes are quick and easy and good. Great resource, a favorite of my family.
Good luck!
~Susan
www.cafepress.com/littlegoogoo

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R.S.

answers from Los Angeles on

I have very few recipes for dinners but one that is my favorite is as follows:

Ingredients:
Boneless/skinless chicken breasts or breast filets
Ragu parmesean and mozzerella white sauce (in a jar by spagetti sauces)
Unseasoned Bread Crumbs
1-2 egg whites
Grated cheddar cheese
Premade bacon bits

You dip the chicken in the egg whites and then roll it in the bread crumbs. Then bake it uncovered in the oven at 400 for about 20 mins or so... Pour the sauce on it (enough to cover it) and top with a little bacon bits/grated cheese and put back in the oven for about 20 more mins or until the temp. is 175-180. This is very simple and totally yummy - I usually do one of those those microwaveable bags of veggies and some "cheater" scalloped potatoes with it and it is sooo easy and not time consuming. :)

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N.H.

answers from Honolulu on

How about browning the chicken with your favorite spices, then put some cream of mushroom (or your favorite cream of something) and simmer for a little while. You can either add rice in while cooking or after or as a side. For veggies, I love steamed spinache!!

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A.F.

answers from Los Angeles on

Hi J.,

I get TONS of great recipes from foodnetwork.com - It has made my Kitchen like a private upscale restaurant!!

Good Luck -

A.

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L.D.

answers from Salt Lake City on

I also LOVE the Food Network. I make Rachel Ray's receipts all the time. Of course it always takes me more than 30 min, but they usually come out really yummy!

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S.P.

answers from Los Angeles on

my fav. site is recipezaar.com. I have tried the most amazing dishes there

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K.F.

answers from Los Angeles on

Try this,it's my recipe, and everyone I've ever made it for raves about it! Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas (you can subsitute the chicken for shrimp or beef, etc...
CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

2 BONELESS SKINLESS CHICKEN BREAST
1 PACKAGE OF CREAM CHEESE
2 TABLESPOONS OLIVE OIL (or butter)
1 BELL PEPPER COARSELY CHOPPED
½ WHITE ONION COARSELY CHOPPED
1 CLOVE GARLIC MINCED
1 SMALL CAN ENCHILADA SAUCE (GREEN OR RED)
1 SMALL PKG WHITE OR YELLOW CORN TORTILLAS (TACO SIZE)
1 CUP SHREDDED CHEDDAR CHEESE

Grill (or bake) chicken breasts, season to taste with Salt and Pepper. Cut into bite size chunks.
Saute chopped green pepper, garlic and onion in olive oil for about 3 to 5 minutes. Add block of cream cheese, stir until combined. (I sometimes add some chopped chili’s for spice).
Add bite size chunks of grilled chicken to cheese mixture. Add about ¼ cup of the Enchilada Sauce to chicken filling.

Spray casserole dish with PAM.
Fill each tortilla with one large spoonful of chicken mixture, roll and place seam side down in casserole dish.
Poor remaining Enchilada Sauce over enchiladas.
Top with one cup shredded cheddar cheese.

Cook in oven for about 20 to 25 minutes on 350 degrees, or until heated through.
Serve with chopped tomatoes, green chilies and black olives (optional).

Yields 6 to 8 enchiladas.

Here's another delicious chicken recipe.
CHICKEN BRUSHETTA

4 SKINLESS BONELESS CHICKEN BREASTS
1 PACKAGE STORE BOUGHT BRUSCHETTA (OR HOMEADE)
FONTINA CHEESE
ITALIAN SEASONED BREAD CRUMBS
2 EGGS
¼ MILK

Place chicken breasts (2 at a time) in large Zip-Loc bag. Pound out to thin breasts.
Repeat with all chicken breasts.

Place 1 tablespoon of Bruschetta mixture on to each chicken breast.
Add one slice of Fontina cheese on top of Bruschetta.
Roll Chicken carefully to encase filling. Secure with toothpick

Roll prepared chicken into egg/milk mixture. Roll in seasoned breadcrumbs. (I like to add some grated Parmesan cheese to the breadcrumbs)

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Serve with Rice or Fresh Veggies.

Enjoy!!
K.
Kellyis.stayinhomeandlovinit.com

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D.J.

answers from Los Angeles on

I have lots of fabulous recipes in my cookbooks. It would take up too much room to tell you all of them. I also have some cookbooks available for sale if your interested. I can email you the recipes if youd like. Please let me know.

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J.A.

answers from Los Angeles on

A few "Quikie" recipes- Mashed Potatoes w/ Hamberger Gray, Rice-A-Roni Casserole, and Tuna Casserole.

Mashed Potatoes and Hmberger Gray: Make MP according to family recipe or use boxed MP and follow box instructions.
In seperate pan-
1 1/2 lb. ground meat
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
2 c. water
2 tbsp. cornstarch in a cup

Add salt and pepper to meat and cook in a skillet over medium heat until meat is light brown. Add water and bring to a boil. Add some water to the cornstarch, stir, and then add it to the meat and water. Cook until this is slightly thick (not real thick). Serve over potatoes. (makes upto about 10 servings when heavy on the potato, at least 4-6 when less)

Rice-A-Roni Casserole-
1 lb ground beef, turkey, pork, or chicken.
1-2 boxes of Rice-A-Roni in an appropiate Flavor (Depends on how much rice you like and how many people you're feeding.)
Ingredients to follow "Box Recipe" for rice.
Fozen veggie of choice

Brown meat and rice together until meat is done. Drain off most of fat. Add "rice" ingredients and veggies. follow "Rice" recipe to finish. Add salt/pepper as needed. (serves about 2-3 people per box)

Tuna Casserole:
1 10oz can of favorite tuna
2 boxes "Butter and Herd" Angel hair pasta.
Ingredients to follow "Box Recipe" for pasta.
Fozen veggie of choice

Follow "box recipe" adding veggies in the begining, tuna when it "rests" for 3-5 minutes. (serves about 4-5 people)

Of course- you could check http://www.cooks.com/ and http://www.recipezaar.com/ for just about anything you could THINK of cooking. If you like mushrooms- try http://www.recipezaar.com/86808 (we used provalone and a little more oil so we could throw them on the outdoor grill. YUM!)

I also have a cook book by Betty Crocker called "The Four ingredient Cookbook" that has alot of very simple recipes. (Hopefully MOST moms can handle 4 ingredients <:O) )

Hope it helps~ J.

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L.S.

answers from Los Angeles on

I get most my recipes from kraftfoods.com They have an excellent search engine and let you store your own recipes as well as theirs in a box and will even print out grocery lists for you.

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K.T.

answers from Los Angeles on

A happy medium for you both might be ground turkey (you can usually get it for $1/lb in the frozen meat section). I use it instead of ground beef. Less fat, but works just as well, especially in meatloaf or casseroles. Doesn't work quite as well for burgers because of the high water content, but is fantastic for sloppy joes! One of the easiest things to make (ready in less than 15 minutes), and a big hit with my family. You can make different flavors too. Our favorite is Teriyaki sloppies... just substitute teriyaki sauce for tomato sauce. You can also sneak in some veggies like carrots, corn, even eggplant. Or use spaghetti sauce and parmesan cheese for Italian sloppies.

A great site for quick recipes is Allrecipes.com... You can save whatever you find to your 'recipe box' or print out in most recipe card sizes.

Hope that helps!

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