My New BFF

Huh. I titled this post, left it for about, oh, 18 hours - and totally forgot what it was supposed to discuss.

That's embarrassing.

But I'm leaving it, anyway.

So - and I've been rereading my posts from this week, and I use "So," at the beginning of approximately every OTHER sentence, sigh - I've been a tad bit crazy this week, and realized that, as prepared and planned out as I imagine myself to be -

I'm so not.

Specifically, I'm finding myself at 5:30 with cranky, super hungry kiddos and still frozen meat. We've made lots of scrounging meals, which have featured raw veggies, cut up fruits, salads and whatever there is to be found - I'm super lucky that we've always got fresh produce here and the kids eat it like crazy. I made a double batch of lemon chicken and my kids ate it for dinner three nights in a row. No one was happy that third night, lol.

One night  I sent my oldest out for fried chicken - even though I had lots of chicken and fish and stuff that I could have made - but it would have taken too long. So I need to remind myself of the best meals that I can make ahead, in the crock pot or over the course of the day - and I need to make up a meal plan and post it and, you know, stick with it. I need to get back into the "make a ton of stuff ahead and freeze it" mindset that I was in several years ago. 

I wonder - what are some of your best meals that fit these parameters? if you had links or pins on pinterest, I'd love you forever and ever.

 

 

 

--- How do you handle those "tough to discuss" moments with your tweens?

Comments

[addy]

Sorry no links or pins. Crockpot bbq chicken breasts are great. Or raspberry chipotle chicken breasts with diced green chilis. These can be served right out of the crock pot or stored and rewarmed or they make a great addition to a salad.

[Amy]

3 lbs frozen boneless chicken breast, 1 c franks hot sauce, 1 pkg hidden valley ranch salad dressing mix. Place chicken in crockpot, mix dressing mix and hot sauce, pour over chicken, cook all day, shred with forks serve on buns

[Headless Mom]

I posted a good one today!

[Cheri]

I love recipes that I can do most of the prep throughout the day (chopping veggies or cooking the meat) and that the kids can assemble themselves...things like fajitas (meat and peppers and onions cooked in the crockpot all day) or spring rolls (rice noodles, carrots, cucumbers, some kind of meat, hoisin or peanut sauce, etc) or this recipe for mu shu pork (http://www.delish.com/recipefinder/quick-mu-shu-pork-recipe-ghk0910). I find that they are more patient for dinner when they are "fixing" their own meal and it frees up some of my time in the evenings. Good luck getting back in the groove!

[Amy]

Chicken + taco seasoning + salsa in crockpot - add beans if you want towards the end. Make tacos, taco salad, rice/quinoa bowls, eat with tortilla chips - topp with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, shredded cheese, lettuce, tomato, avocado, etc.

[SassyMarie]

Tator Tot Casserole...
1lb lean ground meat (beef, turkey or sausage - I switch it up to make it slightly different)
1 can cream of chicken soup (or equivalent substitute)
1 can fiesta cheese soup (or equivalent substitute)
1 bag mini tator tots (called crowns maybe?)

Brown meat, add soups, put in bottom of casserole dish.
Top with tots.

350F for 45 min if thawed, 1.5 hrs if frozen
Quick and easy - even if not frozen ahead of time.

[Rox]

Mmmmmm pulled pork: http://www.roxandroll.com/2011/09/back-to-school-recipes-the-easiest-pulled-pork-ever-and-what-to-do-with-it.html

[carrie]

I cracked up at your self-realization with the word "so." I do the same thing. I am also quite obsessed with the good ol' comma. I look back and it looks like my post has been splattered painted in them.

[JMB]

I know this is a lame answer but when I have 30 minutes to throw together a meal using stuff in my house, we end up with sausage & peppers with pasta and Texas Toast or something like that OR hamburgers/hotdogs.

My problem with long term cooking is that I don't want to eat the stuff that's been in my freezer for ages.

[Nellie]

My favorite crock pot make ahead recipe is pepper steak because it pretty much can be eaten with eveything. Its the most popular crock pot recipe on allrecipes.com (love that site!)

[Megan]

I'm not the best at these questions since I feed one person most nights. And I'm not a huge fan of leftovers.

Scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach, etc., and bacon are one of my last-minute fallbacks. And I don't think there's anything horrible about peanut/soy butter and jelly for dinner once in awhile.

But mostly I'm commenting because I'm amused thinking about your poor new BFF who got cheated out of a blog post!

[Lisa]

Combine cream of mushroom soup, a can of french onion soup and a cup of white wine. Pour of chicken in a crockpot. Simmer all day on low, shred the chicken and serve (with the "gravy") over mashed potatoes. My kids gobble it up and the whole house smells great!

[Amie]

Crockpot veggie chili. Two cans beans, vegetable broth, two cans diced tomatoes, chopped onion, veggie beef crumbles, pkg of chili starter. Has been popular with whole family and is great as leftovers. The second dinner time savior has been veggie tofu scramble, prepare tofu like scrambled eggs, sauté veggie sausage, diced potato, onion, and garlic, combine w 1 cup shredded cheese. We make these recipes vegetarian, but you could easily make them either way.

[kyooty]

Chili is a favorite for me but not the kids. Your kids are better veggie fans from what I remember reading. Some times I just throw bonesless skinless chicken in the crock frozen and let it cook. Roast beef was yesterdays meal, I put onions in the bottom, Montreal steak spice and garlic on top and let it cook all after noon. I made mash potatoes and gravy to go with as a side. I then resorted to grape tomatoes and raw carrots.
I tried scollop potatoes in teh crock with ham once but holy chopping and pealing... that didn't happen again.