Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dinner last night at my house:
Grilled cheese sandwiches
Ramen noodle soup (right from package directions) with shredded carrots added
Sliced apples

On table in 15 minutes after walking in door

Now, see, this idea and the cheese plate idea above you would be fine if it was just me and the kids. But there is no way my husband would call those meals "dinner" so I find myself having to make something more substantial for him.

cheese plate PP here. In that case, I would tell DH that HE gets to make dinner
If Dh is a meat+veg+starch kinda guy, I would only make 1-2 items per night, and get creative with leftovers (assuming he's okay with leftovers - my DH isn't).
Ie...
1. roast a chicken, some potatoes, and carrots (easy complete meal)
2. chicken sandwiches and salad
3. spaghetti and salad (make extra plain noodles for #4)
4. cold noodles, chicken breasts, broccoli (microwave if necessary)

etc. I try to make a full, complete meal in one night, as rarely as possible.

Rice and beans. Buy the cans of Goya beans with the sauce, the ones with the red can. Heat up and serve with white rice, a grilled chicken breast adoboed with onions and fry some overripe bananas in a little olive oil and butter until golden. All this takes 20 -25 minutes max. It's our go to dinner every week. Yummy!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dinner last night at my house:
Grilled cheese sandwiches
Ramen noodle soup (right from package directions) with shredded carrots added
Sliced apples

On table in 15 minutes after walking in door

Now, see, this idea and the cheese plate idea above you would be fine if it was just me and the kids. But there is no way my husband would call those meals "dinner" so I find myself having to make something more substantial for him.

And in my house DH would be thrilled with this meal. I have the problem that DH eats like a toddler and I just can't have noodles 5 times a week. I put chili in the crock pot this morning for myself a half the kids. DH and one kid will have cheesesteaks. That leave the last kid who will probably get a yogurt.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Now, see, this idea and the cheese plate idea above you would be fine if it was just me and the kids. But there is no way my husband would call those meals "dinner" so I find myself having to make something more substantial for him.

why do YOU have to make something more for just one person? Let him eat the family dinner or make something for himself. He's an adult.

Ha! This is true but his solution would be to go spend $35 picking up a steak and baked potato from Longhorn.

Anonymous wrote:

Now, see, this idea and the cheese plate idea above you would be fine if it was just me and the kids. But there is no way my husband would call those meals "dinner" so I find myself having to make something more substantial for him.

why do YOU have to make something more for just one person? Let him eat the family dinner or make something for himself. He's an adult.

Pearled cous cous and quinoa cook quickly and can take on any number of regional cuisines. My favorites:

Pearled cous cous with rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, chili sauce, shredded carrot and broccoli, and cilantro.

Quinoa with red wine vinegar, garbanzo beans (canned beans are your friend!), red onion, dill and feta cheese.

Salad tossed with plain pearled cous cous, balsamic dressing, chicken (chicken strips are awesome for this), red onion, peas and parmesan cheese.

I cook ditalini in chicken stock and add parmesan and peas or broccoli all the time for a quick meal.

A panini press is great for making a sandwich into a meal. You can add a ton more to the sandwich and smoosh it down, so it's heartier but not unwieldy.

I almost always have a cooked petite filet in the fridge because it is so tasty sliced thin for sandwiches or tossed into a salad. If it is rare enough, the slices can be re-browned and incorporated into a stew and poured over rice. I usually do tomato sauce, green peppers, onions, celery and a ton of tarragon and then I pour it over cheesy rice or grits.

I am italian so I can eat pasta every day without feeling guilty. mediterranean cooking is the best, healthy and easy.
Mondays spaghetti bolognese, caprese salad or stead broccoli on the side.
Tuesday Farfalle w/pesto. grilled chicken, spinach salad with feta and raisins +olive oil and little vinegar
Wednesday: Rice usually with meat either a steak or pork sirloin string beans.
Thursday: lentil soup, salad and maybe some meat.
Friday: linguini with seafood. Vegetables
weekend: restaurant/ pizza/more pasta
and do not forget the wine!
children eat the same without the wine.

I have found the "secret" to quick is to plan the weeks meals out - so you are ready, and so the quickest nights are the ones I have less time (you may not be there with a toddler, but as they get older, more things come up - like t-ball practice).

I like salad, so I now buy bagged lettuce and just go really simple with a few other ingredients. We also keep fresh fruit and veggies on hand and add to every meal.

We do
- black bean tacos
- Any type of pasta, sauce and meatballs (I buy frozen and microwave).
- crockpot - prepped the night before (mine has a timer so it doesn't overcook) - soups and stews mainly
- Chicken breast (in a pan or baked).
- Pizza or stromboli with Pillsbury dough (my son hates both, but he will eat plain breadsticks, plain pepporoni, and plain cheese).
- Stir fries. When my son was younger and needed to eat really early, I would set up a rice cooker with a timer in the morning. Also, when chicken is on sale, I buy it, and slice it up and freeze in sizes I need. Great for stirfry, just pull out a packet of pre-cut up chicken to thaw the night before. I did have to "overly cook" the veggies when my son was young.

I'd love to add fish to my meal rotation, but I can't look at raw fish without feeling sick, so we can only do fish if my husband is home (and he normally comes home late).