What’s for dinner tonight?
Credit for these quick and easy dinners goes to my good friend Melissa, a busy mom of 5 kids who also owns a photography business. She certainly knows how to serve up a delicious dinner in a matter of minutes. Check out her gorgeous photography at: www.contemporarycaptures.com/blog
Stuffed Pasta Shells with Sauce
- 1 box frozen stuffed large shell pasta
- 1 large jar prepared spaghetti sauce (26 oz)
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Lay the frozen pasta shells in a casserole pan, pour sauce over them, and top with cheese.
Note: if you like spinach, you can add a layer before adding the sauce.
Cover with foil.
Bake at 350o for 45min-1 hour until the shells are warm.
Serve with a salad and bread.
Chicken and Yellow Rice
- boneless chicken breasts
- olive oil
- garlic salt
- Vigo yellow rice packet
- peas
Drizzle chicken with olive oil and sprinkle on some garlic salt.
Bake at 350o for 45min-1 hour until done.
Cut the chicken into bite size pieces.
Cook the yellow rice according to directions. For better flavor, substitute part or all of the liquid required with the the chicken stock from the baked chicken.
Mix the rice, chicken and a can of peas (warmed and drained) for a complete meal.
Pepper Steak
Melissa said this recipe is a family favorite. It was a huge hit at my house, too. Confession: I craved this steak for several days after eating it...it was so good. I may have dreamed about it.
- favorite steak sliced into thin pieces – flank steak works well
- 3-4 green peppers, sliced
- garlic salt
- 1 or 2 gravy packets
- white or brown rice
(Note: I left out the gravy to save calories and it was still wonderful)
Cook the rice according to the instructions.
Mix the gravy packet, according to the instructions, and heat in a small pan until boiling.
In a frying pan, cook the steak in a pan with garlic salt and a pad or two of butter until browned. Let the pieces drain on a paper towel.
Toss the green pepper slices in the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the steak back to the pan and pour in the gravy. Mix well.
Serve over rice with a salad.
Mini Hamburgers with Gravy
- ground sirloin, about 1/4 lb per person
- 1 packet of gravy
- egg noodles or rice
Form the meat into small patties, add in seasoning to taste.
Make the gravy in a small sauce pan according to the directions.
Cook the mini patties in a skillet until done.
Add the gravy and serve over rice or egg noodles.
Spaghetti Casserole
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion
- 1 jar spaghetti sauce
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 can cream of chicken or mushroom soup
- 1 lb. spaghetti noodles, cooked and drained
Brown meat and onion with any seasonings you prefer.
Mix together the spaghetti sauce, 1 1/2 cups of cheese, cooked noodles, and soup and stir well.
Add mixture to a casserole dish and top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese.
Bake 20-30 minutes in a 350o oven until heated.
What is your family’s favorite quick and easy meal?
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About Melinda
Some of my all time favs!!!! I think I am doing the pepper steak with Chicken sans gravy tonight!
I think I will walk down the street and accidentally stop by for dinner.
you should have!! It was good! lol
ah some of my facorite
i feel hungry now
Giochi Super Mario´s last blog ..New Super Mario World 2
That sounds perfect for us! Less time, in two or three weeks we will get our first child. And I have to cook!
It is no problem at all, because I always cook. It is like at work, if you are better, you have to do it always. 
Marko´s last blog ..Tretauto Geschichte – Historie und Entwicklung eines beliebten Kinderspielzeuges
How exciting! Congrats! And welcome to the crazy side of life!
You have a lucky wife to have a husband that cooks! Once kids are around..quick meals is everything. And it gets worse as they get older. For example, my 15 year old 6ft tall son looming over me asking what is for dinner and expecting it to happen in 10 minutes. ha ha
Melinda´s last blog ..Ugg- Where are my keys
These are excellent ideas, and I don’t think I can recommend enough to anyone who’s just starting to cook the importance of learning to boil pasta. The simplest dish to live on is probably some tomato sauce bought from the store and some boiled pasta.
I will definitely be trying the chicken and yellow rice recipe soon, I suspect.
ashok´s last blog ..Emily Dickinson, “It is an honorable Thought” (946)
Spaghetti is always my last minute in the pantry staple when I forget to defrost something or am trying to avoid the grocery store which is often. It doesn’t last long since the kids start to revolt that there is nothing to eat.
Hi Melinda. Found your link at Kikolani.com and thought I’d pay a visit here. Anyway, delicious food is just one of my weaknesses that’s why I chose to comment in this post. I’m not really a good cook coz I never tried to learn how to. Right now, I’m just trying to learn to cook on my own and I guess I’ll try these easy recipes of yours. Thanks for making life easier for your readers.
Thanks. I like to stay out of the kitchen..so cooking fast is always good.
Well we like hungry men chicken dinners when we want something fast.
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These are great quick ideas. I do Chicken and gravy using cream of mushroom or chicken as gravy substitute. I throw chicken parts whether legs, thighs in a pot, 2 cans of the cream soup, 1 can water, a bag of frozen veggies like peas, carrots and on medium heat til it boils then simmer for about an hour. Throw some rice in the cooker and you have a meal. I will try the pepper steak sans gravy.
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It is good even without the gravy.