Effortless Dinners

We do a lot of stir fry because it's so easy. I throw rice in the rice cooker and then I toss in meat, veggies and bottled sauce.

Another thing I do to save time is I marinate meat in the fridge all day. Then I just grill it up quickly and serve with easy rice and a frozen veggie cooked in the microwave. My favorite is to marinate chicken breasts in Italian dressing. I serve the grilled chicken breast over tri-colored rotini and sprinkled with extra Italian dressing and parmesian cheese.

Tater Tot casserole is simple, takes 5 minutes to throw together and 60 minutes to cook. Take 1 to 1.5 lbs of raw ground beef and mix with 1 can of condensed cream of chicken soup, one small chopped onion, 1/2 cup of uncooked minute rice and if you like, frozen corn. Mix in a casserole dish and smooth over the top. Cover the top with one layer of frozen tater tots and put in the oven at 350 for 60 minutes (more if you do more meat than 1 pound).

If I think of any more I'll message you!

I buy a big rotisserie chicken,
steam a bag of veggies, and add a carb like corn or pasta.

That same chicken can be used to make chicken alfredo - just boil noodles, reheat a jar of sauce and add the precooked, cut up chicken. Add cooked brocoli for more nutrition.

You can buy a couple bags of frozen veggies that are stir fry ready - some even have the noodles already in them. Throw that in a skillet with cut up chicken or raw shrimp or steak strips, add soy, garlic and ginger or a premade hoisin or stirfry sauce.

Chicken Fried rice is an easy instant meal - leftover fried rice, scrambled eggs, chicken and veggies in a skillet with soy sauce.

chicken legs and thighs that can just thrown in the oven with lemon pepper cajun, italian, or bbq seasoning

raw shrimp is fast and easy to sautte up with some noodles, salt pepper and butter and reduced white wine.

Here are my "go to" recipes when i only have 5 min. to prep:

Cranberry Chicken-
1 can of cranberry sauce
1 package of dried onion soup
1/2 jar of french dressing
1 pound of chicken
In a baking dish, mix all ingredients, put the chicken in last and cover with the sauce to cook. Bake at 350 for about 45 min. I ususally make butter noodles to top with the chicken and sauce. Soooo easy and soooo yummy!

Chili-
1 pound of ground meat- browned
1 can of tomato soup
1 can of diced tomatos (w/chili seasoning)
1 can of kidney beans
chili seasonings
Dump it all in together....Simmer for as long as you want! Done!

Sloppy Joes ('nuff said!)

Italian Chicken breasts-
1 pound of chicken breasts
1 jar of italian dressing
Lay chicken breasts in a baking dish and pour italian dressing over them. Bake at 350 about 45 min.

Tacos

My new fav- Italian Vegetable Beef Soup- In a large pot, dump in:
1 can of beef broth
1 can of tomato soup
1 bag of frozen veggies (it's a mix made for vegetable soup)
1 pound of cubed beef for stew (if I have time, I cut them into smaller pieces)
Lots of garlic, black pepper, basil, a little salt, and italian seasoning.
Slow boil until the beef is cooked through and then just simmer. YUM!

I pretty much keep all of these ingrediants stocked in my pantry at all times. It's my normal shopping list :)

I don't think I'd do a crockpot for that long.
I have to do some quick & easy things w/my schedule so I:

buy a rotisserie chicken (serve w/potato salad (purchased) & green salad)
next day shred chicken for tacos
frozen Stouffers lasagna served w/corn & garlic bread
tacos: brown grd beef, serve w/chopped onions/tomatoes, shred cheese
spaghetti w/meat sauce
tortellini pasta (bought to boil) serve w/bread & side veggie dish
taco salad
grilled steack served w/can of corn (20-30 mins)
froz pizza

Potato soup!

1 pkg cream cheese
Velveeta cheese
Cream of celery soup
Cream of mushroom soup
Potatoes

Peel and boil your potatoes until they are tender but don't drain the water. Then add in your cream cheese and let it dissolve. Then add your soups and cheese.

Cook up some bacon and cut up some green onions for a topping and YUMMO, dinner is done! Great for leftovers and you could even just make a big batch one Sunday night!

My only advice is for you to pre-plan on your days off.

Whatever I make, I make in bulk to freeze for later meals. I find the only thing that doesn't freeze well are pre-cooked potatoes.

I also grill an economy pack of chicken and pop in bags and throw in freezer. They're great for anything and could be ready by simply microwaving. I also make loads of turkey burgers that are great for an on-the-go snack or meal. I just grill onions and red bell peppers, let it cool then add to ground turkey along with diced garlic and Baby Ray's BBQ sauce and poultry seasoning.

Roast chicken or roast split breast, can be done a head, pulled out and put in oven when you get home. You can put onions carrots and potatoes under it, or garlic or lemon juice and seasonings.
Cook 2 chickens, and shred the other. Make dumplings ( broth and canned biscuits)
Enchilladas-
chicken wraps- tortillias, lettuce, tomatoes, ranch
chicken salad- with mayo or fresh with lettuce.
soup- leftover chicken, veggies, pasta last or rice, stir in a little sour cream to thicken if you like
Breakfast- sausage style egg casserole, fruit, cinnamon rolls or biscuits
pork roast, pour cherry preserves over it, or peach preserves ( really yummy)
Lasagna is easy.
Most of these can be done the night before or take no time to prepare. You als can buy precut foods to make it easier, but it is not cheaper, which I am sure you know. PM me if you have anymore questions
Oh, and one more thing, we sometimes will make a large batch of potato salad, coleslaw and beans, and grill hotdogs, hamburgers and bbg chicken. We will eat leftovers for a couple of days. It will take some time, but maybe on your day off, then you can reheat the next 2.

CA has some great ideas for you. Pre-plan. Perhaps you can brown your beef, dice your vegies, etc. in bulk, then they are ready to go. And, you can pull things out of the freezer the night before (when you are preparing that night's dinner, perhaps), and when you get home they are ready to go. Some ideas:
Stir fry (chicken or beef that you marinade the night before) with peppers, onions, sugar snap peas, etc; taco salad (you can add any toppings you like: lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, black beans, taco meat, cheese, sour cream, quacamole, salsa, whatever you like); Fried rice with corn, carrots, peas and browned hamburger meat; grilled fish with rice and a vegie; soups (chicken w/rice or noodles with carrots, celery, onions -cut up in advance, taco soup); beef stew w carrots and potatoes; spaghetti and meat sauce. You could also buy the ready-made meatballs and use those, even faster. Those are all fast meals and easy to prepare. How old are your children? My 11 year old can cook most of these meals, so if yours are at least 7-8, they can help tremendously and help you get it done quicker. Oh, I just thought of a couple more: quessadillas with cheese or, if you have any BBQ chicken left over from a meal (or any chicken, really-you can just add BBQ sauce to it)-you can put the chicken, BBQ sauce and cheese between the tortillas for a good and quick meal; green salad with tomatoes, cukes, red onion, grilled chicken, and penne pasta in it-toss with Italian dressing; raviolli-I buy the frozen kind from Costco, you can use a red sauce (spaghetti sauce) or a white sauce that you make. Easy. Hope this helps get some ideas going for you!

This is isn't a meal per se, but it has been a huge take saver for me: I have found that I can cut my cooking time down by precooking the meat in large quantities. I buy the 5# tube of ground chuck or round and simmer it in a large pot filled with water (this also removes a lot of the fat, too, making it a bit healthier). Then, freeze in meal-size quantities. So, I can use it in Cheesy Hamburger Pie, Tacos, Spaghetti, Sloppy Joes, Shepherd's Pie (I use instant mashed potatoes). Hubby loaves meatloaf, so I often make a huge pan of it, and have it for 2 days worth of dinners and freeze the rest in meal size ("bricks") portions. I use my crock pot to cook up a big bag of frozen chicken breasts, then dice or shred the meat and freeze in meal-sized portions (if I don't have time for this, I buy the precooked grilled chicken strips (unbreaded) from the freezer section. I use it in Chicken Pot Pie (Bisquick has a recipe we use a lot), soup, Chicken Alfredo, on top of a salad, etc.

I would also strongly suggest that you take a look at the frozen veggies section of your grocery store--this can be a huge help in cutting down on prep time, since the items are already precut/sliced/diced. Also, check the fresh produce section--they often have precut/sliced veggies (squash, broccoli, etc.).

Also, when I'm organized & plan ahead, I try to get a casserole made & in the fridge the night before. I haven't come across any good cookbooks for these, though, so I've love to hear others suggestions on that.

I agree with the marinated then baked chicken, with salad/veg & rice or pasta or potatoes on the side. We do chicken breasts marinated in Italian dressing and sprinkled (after cooking) with a little parmesan cheese; another good one is garlic/lime, or balsamic vinagrette w/ feta cheese & olives on top.

Well depending upon what it is, 12 hours may be okay for a crock pot recipe. If was like chili or stew it would be fine as long as it was on low. I'd definitely give it a try! If it was chicken or something, it would probably just fall off the bone and get all mixed up with everything in there, which isn't necessarily bad, so maybe you could do like a pot pie type recipe.

Can you could put together a casserole or two on the weekend and save for the week. One casserole could probably feed your family (not sure how many people) for two days, so that would save on time for sure!

Other than that, I'd say here are other fast ideas

Tacos are pretty effortless... preparing tacos takes about 10 minutes total.
Baked Chicken....in the morning take thawed chicken, poke some holes in it with a fork and pour over some salad dressing or mariande or just some dry spices. When you get home, put it in a pan and bake for 45 minutes. Done. You can make an easy salad or put some veggies in the microwave to steam.
Pork Tenderloin...you can get some already marinated or just do your own. My FIL uses dry onion soup mix on his, I've done mustards or jams or combos of both. YOu can marinade it during the day or just put it over the top as you throw it in the oven. It usually takes about 40-60 minutes depending upon the size of the meat.
Soup and Sandwiches
eggs and bacon

We do roasted pork chops with veggies on a pretty regular basis & that's very easy & forgiving. I use 4-6 bone-in chops with red bell peppers, potatoes, baby bella mushrooms, several whole cloves of garlic, a sweet onion & some carrots (but you can use whatever veggies you like). Give all the veggies a rough chop so they're all still pretty big. In a small bowl mix together salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder & thyme. Pour a few Tbsp of vegetable oil in a roasting pan, sprinkle the spices on both sides of the meat & put the chops in the pan. Toss the veggies in a huge bowl with another 2-3 Tbsp oil & the rest of the spices. Dump them on the chops, cover with foil & bake at 400 for about 45 minutes. Take the foil off, stir it all up, toss in some cherry tomatoes or sliced tomatoes (or skip that altogether if you want) & bake it another 10-15 minutes. Yumm-ola!

*ETA* This will take about 15 minutes to put together, I forgot to mention that part.

Try the "I Hate to Cook Book" by Peg Bracken. Quick meals with little effort. Also, if you want to use a crockpot still there are those which come with timers so they automactically shut off and then, of course, remain covered due to the lid. GL.

Wow! how does everyone get their kids to eat food with the veggies mixed in! One thing my son will eat is Vodka Sauce Penne. I add a can of tomato sauce to reduce the calories a bit.

Turkey Sausage (hot) $3.50-$4
Vodka Sause $2.50-$3
15 oz. can tomato sauce $1
Penne - $1
Petitie Peas - $2.50 (cook seperately if your kids won't eat them mixed in)

I also make really easy Ziti ahead of time. 3.5 cups mozzerella (sometimes I add swiss or provolone), 1 can Hunt's tomato sauce, 1 box ziti (sometimes I add 2 eggs and about 1/2 cup milk to increase protein. 6-8 servings, it is fattening, so serve smaller portions with a salad. We have this for two nights.

Also, really good, healthy and fast: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/FAST-WHITE-B...
(note: my son won't eat this, so I give him hotdogs. and I use turkey sausage to reduce fat, frozen spinach and garlic from a jar for time).

You should invest in a crock pot that has timed settings and switches to warm when it's done cooking. I love mine!

I made soup tonight. Sauteed one frozen sausage (found in the freezer, left over, it was duck, I am sure any Italian sausage would work), added a chopped carrot, a bunch of chopped kale and a garlic clove, Added 6 cups of chicken stock, one can beans. Cooked a bit, added 1/4 cup pastina, cooked 6 minutes - Done. Active time - under 10 minutes. Total time about 30 minutes. Serve with bread and grate parmesan cheese over.

Ok, first off, you can crock pot cook. You have to buy the cheap type of crock pot, with no bells or whistles and then a lamp timer. (the newer digital timer or set up ones need to be reset when the electricity goes out...).

Any recipe will work with a lamp timer and as long as the meat is not out for for too long at room temp it is just fine. (I usually take meat directly from the freezer to the crock pot so it never has a chance to grow nasties).

Now for the recipes, did you know that allrecipe.com has a search that allows you to input prep time. The lowest time is 15 minutes but it is a place to start.

http://allrecipes.com/Search/Recipes-Advanced.aspx