Up until I quit my job to stay at home, Jon did all of the cooking in our house. We’re pretty awful at meal planning, so we’d get home from work, play with Adelaide, do bath and bedtime and by the time that was over we’d sit down, exhausted, with no idea what’s for dinner. Jon’s one request regarding cooking, now that I stay home, is that I just figure out what we’re having for dinner.
He still doesn’t mind doing the cooking, he just doesn’t want to think about what he’s going to make. We’d often be like “Let’s have this for dinner!” and then realize we were out of ingredients, didn’t feel like running to the store (even though it’s literally 20 feet away), so we’d scrounge up something else or get delivery.
Now that I’m home I have a bit more time to look at recipes, take trips to the store with Adelaide to grab whatever we need, and prep dinner. I’ve cooked every single one of these meals I’m posting, so you know they’re fool proof. And on days I let Jon do the cooking, I try to get all the spices he’ll need out, defrost the meat, etc.
{click each meal title for recipe}
My notes: I used spicy sausage and just regular diced tomatoes. I’d honestly never heard of Rotel, and loved it just the same without. I served with homemade garlic bread on a french baguette (just cut down the center lengthwise and lather with butter, crushed garlic and some Parmesan), which brought the meal to another level. This soup freezes perfectly, which was so nice to pull out on a day when we got home from a trip and had no groceries. I also sent it to a friend who just had a baby, and he sent me a text that night asking for the recipe. Win.
Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Copycat Recipe
My notes: Okay, yes I like soup and I like sausage. I’m not sure which soup I liked better. Both were delicious. This soup was super easy to make, and we basically stuck to the recipe exactly. We served the Warm Bacon Salad (see next recipe), mostly because they used a lot of the same ingredients, so we had everything on hand.
Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing
My notes: I’m not sure I can convey to you how delicious this salad is. I may have eaten some for breakfast this morning. My only real edit is that I used regular balsamic instead of white, because after googling, decided there wasn’t much difference and it wasn’t worth buying something unnecessary. We cut the onion really well by throwing it in our mini food processor
Biscuit Topped Chicken Pot Pie
My notes: A few weeks ago we were having one of those cold rainy days and I wanted chicken pot pie so badly. I found this recipe on Campbell’s site and it was beyond easy. I’m pretty sure Adelaide could have done this one. I used both frozen and canned veggies, because that’s what I had on hand. I also pulled the biscuits to make them thinner before putting them on top, which I definitely suggest doing.
My notes: Technically this falls under the breakfast category, but who doesn’t love breakfast for dinner? Okay, me. But these help me like breakfast. Maybe even look forward to it. I served these with a breakfast burrito, that was equally delicious. I kept some peppers and onions aside to use in the burritos, sauteed them in some butter for a few minutes, then added some pre-cooked chicken sausage and eggs right to that pan, cooked until the eggs were done, and put on a flour tortilla. I then topped with some freshly grated Parmesan and salsa (I’m a big fan of Newman’s salsa) and rolled it up. Delicious.
So there you have it. Five meals you need to try. Right now.
Not only are these easy, but they make me look like a super chef. My husband is so impressed with his formerly undomestic wife suddenly making delicious meals.
You’re welcome.
