Friday recipe roundup: Easy-Peasy

This week threw us some curve balls in the dinner department. I was prepped for dinner on Monday, knowing full well that our little one was scheduled to get her shots that night. I needed to have something easy and ready to go so I could focus on keeping her comfortable and happy. (She’s the type of baby that doesn’t react well to shots. She normally spikes a fever and just wants to be held. I happily will hold her as long as she wants). We had pretty simple meals this week, and because of that… guess what? I didn’t screw up anything!

So here goes…

Monday: French Onion soup and Grilled Cheese

FRENCH ONION SOUP RECIPE 

I prepped the soup on Sunday night and all I had to do Monday morning was click the Crock Pot on. When we got home from the doctor’s the house smelled awesome and all I had to do was whip a couple sandwiches. I did nothing fancy – just your old school bread and cheese. I love a grilled cheese.

 

Tuesday: Oven tacos. I told you about these guys in my first Friday Recipe Roundup. And if I wasn’t clear then, let me  repeat. They’re awesome. Change up Taco Tuesday with this twist on the traditional. We usually prefer soft tacos over hard taco shells, but when you make them this way…the shells become a little soft (not a bad kind of soggy though) and have just enough crunch. Perfection.

OVEN TACO RECIPE

Wednesday: Spaghetti and meatballs. Told you we kept it easy this week… except we didn’t eat this meal Wednesday. The husband worked really late and I wasn’t about to prep a whole meal just for myself. So I heated up the leftovers from Taco Tuesday and called it dinner.

Thursday: When we really ate spaghetti and meatballs. I used angel hair pasta (my favorite) and made homemade meatballs. I loosely followed this recipe, but did not make my own sauce. Channeling my inner Sweet Brown cue the words: Ain’t nobody got time for that.

MEATBALL RECIPE

Friday: We’ll be having spinach and sausage pasta tonight. Use this recipe if interested. I can’t say much about it since I haven’t cooked it yet…. But looks great to me!

SPINACH & SAUSAGE PASTA RECIPE

Weekend meal: We are attending some parties on Saturday so I’m skipping cooking that day. Sunday we’re going to have crock pot turkey.  This one should be interesting. Stay tuned.

CROCK POT TURKEY

Have a great weekend!

Friday Recipe Roundup

There is nothing more annoying than receiving a text from my husband during the work day with the words: “What’s for dinner?”

So in order to rid this annoyance from my life, I recently started meal planning. I post the menu in our kitchen so he has no questions about that night’s dinner.

(I just got this awesome chalkboard for $20 at a craft show. I had intentions of making my own, but couldn’t resist just buying it. Here’s a tutorial on how to make your own chalkboard)

My goal is always to cook 4 meals during the week (Monday-Thursday) and one meal on the weekend, usually on Sundays.

I hope to do a weekly roundup of what I’ve made each week: the good, the bad and the ugly. I am in NO WAY a cook. In fact, I’m pretty bad at it. But thanks to Pinterest (follow me here) I’ve been able to make a few decent meals… when I don’t screw up and forget an ingredient or fail to read the instructions all the way through.

My hope is to make this a regular Friday post and since this is the first one (and I skewed off the menu a bit this week) This is a general recap of some of the meals I’ve made over the past few weeks. Happy cooking.

Chicken parm casserole: This one was simple and quick. I didn’t screw it up, but would add more croutons next time.

http://ourpinterestingsummer.com/2012/06/16/chicken-parmesan-casserole-holy-crap/

Crock pot corn chowder: I’ll be using this recipe for years and year to come. I prepped it the night before and let it cook all day while at work. I (of course) didn’t follow the directions properly and added the half/half in at the beginning. While the cream didn’t break, it did thin out. So I added a handful of flour and a bunch of shredded cheddar cheese. The portion size is large, so if you’re not interested in making a lot I would cut the ingredients in half. I just froze the leftovers and used it for another meal a week later. I paired the soup up with turkey meatloaf the first time and baked chicken the second time.

http://www.diypinterest.com/crockpot-corn-chowder/

 

Crock pot cheese tortellini: We both were not fans of this one. Since the recipe calls for tomatoes and we both hate tomatoes, I omitted them. Big mistake. The tomatoes (that are required for this specific recipe) add seasoning. So without them I was left with a tasteless tortellini in a thin sauce. Not to mention the cook time is only 4 hours on low. I thought it would be OK on low for 8+ hours while at work. I was wrong.

http://littlefellows.blogspot.com/2011/11/best-crockpot-meal-ive-tried-yet.html

Oven tacos: LOVE. Simply LOVE. This recipe is the perfect change-up for your taco night.

http://mommyimhungry.blogspot.com/2012/11/oven-tacos.html

Monte Crisco sammys: These are little more time consuming than I prefer for a weeknight meal, so I made them on Sunday, paired with French onion soup (below). While delicious, they were very filling. Do not make too many. I was able to feed the husband, my brother, husband’s best friend, sis-in-law and myself with 4 sandwiches sliced in half – throwing away 1 of the halves.

http://www.simply-gourmet.com/2011/07/28-monte-cristo-sandwiches.html

French Onion soup: This soup is another one I’ll be making a lot in the future. It takes a little more prep than the corn chowder, but it’s well worth it.

http://diethood.com/2012/11/02/slow-cooker-french-onion-soup/

Cheesy chicken rollups: These are my go to meal when I can’t think of anything else to make. I sometimes even crave them. My 15-year-old niece made this meal when she came to visit me this past summer. It’s very easy and tasty.

http://www.plainchicken.com/2009/08/chicken-rollups-2.html

Crock pot pork chops: No link for this one, but it’s easy. Throw a couple pork chops in the crock pot on low for 8 or so hours with this Campbell’s sauce (this is a new item, so look for coupons). They turned out delicious and I paired the chops up with baked potato and a pasta side.

Chipotle chicken and rice: Another simple recipe using this Campbell’s skillet sauce. It’s filling, it’s delicious, it’s different. The recipe is right on the package.

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