Dinner in 20 minutes or less.

This week has been crazy with the new Solo movie coming out. I am grateful for the extra hours but it does make getting dinner on the table a little harder. When Hubby and I were first married and we only had OD I thought I had to cook every night a full meal. That is what my Mom did. There had to be a meat, veggie and starch. I'm Irish so we ate a lot of potatoes.


Then I had my son who was very active at a very young age. You had to watch him 24/7 or he would climb everything and jump. We ended up at the ER once from it. Some how he survived. When he was one I started watching a friend's newborn daughter and right after that I found out I was pregnant again with YD. I had 2 kids under 2, pregnant and a 7 year old. I learned then that dinner needed to be food, not gourmet food. Sometimes a PB&J sandwich counts as dinner. So here is my list of quick easy dinners so that you can get food on the table and not have to grab takeout.


*Cheese quesadillas, these take 5 minutes to make. If I have leftover chicken I throw that in. My son likes jalapenos in his and I always have them in the freezer prechopped. I like mine with sour cream and my son likes salsa on top. We usually have beans and rice in the house so you could add that as a side.

* Baked potatoes take 20 minutes. I throw them in the microwave to make it fast. Cheese, bacon, onion, sour cream, and broccoli are all great toppings.

*Omelettes, again they take 5 minutes if you have everything precut in your freezer. When I make a ham I always chop some for omelettes and put them in the freezer. When I get peppers I do the same thing. Cheese gets bought in big blocks and shredded when I get home. I then freeze it in smaller bags.  Other kinds of eggs work too.


*Mac and cheese takes about 12 minutes because you have to cook the pasta. Again, I shred my cheese right after I go food shopping so it is ready.

*Hot dogs take 10 minutes. I am not a fan of hot dogs but Hubby and my son like them. You can boil them or grill them. Grilling takes longer because the BBQ has to get hot. I also chop them up and put them into baked beans (canned) and both kids love them.


*Soups take 5 minutes. Most people have canned soup in their house. It is quick and easy. Also a lot cheaper then stopping by Mc Donalds. When I make soup I always freeze half. It is great for busy nights.


*Green salads take 5-15 minutes depending on what you want in your salad. I usually throw whatever is leftover or going to go bad soon in. That is what is great about salads. You could eat a different kind everyday.


 *Bento boxes take about 10 minutes and are wonderful if you are on the go. Chop up whatever cheese and veggies you have. Throw in some nuts and you are done.

*Egg salad takes 5 minutes. I always have hard boiled eggs in the house. They are great for grab and go. We always have bread in the house. Add some lettuce, tomato and onion and you are ready.

*BLTs take 15 minutes. We love BLTS when my tomatoes are ready. They are wonderful.


*Pasta with red sauce takes about 15 minutes. I can my homemade sauce when the tomatoes are plentiful. To grab a box of pasta and a jar of sauce is easy. We usually have bread on hand so we can make garlic bread with it. When Hubby makes meatballs he makes a ton. I freeze them so I can grab a few and throw them in. If I have leftover onions, mushrooms, or zucchini I throw that in. Add a salad and I would call that a complete meal.


*Meatball heroes take 10 minutes. We freeze meatballs when we make them so I can defrost them while I am at work and heat them up with some sauce when I get home. I throw cheese on top sometimes.

*Canned Tuna fish takes 5 minutes. Make your self a nice sandwich and add a salad or chips.

*Fried rice takes 15 minutes. I use leftover rice but there is always instant rice. Throw in some chopped onions and peppers, soy sauce, oyster sauce, scrambled egg and add sriracha. This is one of OD favorites.

*PB&J takes 2 minutes. Put it with a cup of milk and you are good.

*Pizza bagels take 12 minutes. My son brings home lots of bagels from work. I keep all of the plain ones for pizza bagels. Throw some cheese , pepperoni, or veggies and they are done. Much cheaper and easier then running to the pizza parlor. If you don't have bagels it works well on pitas and Italian bread too.


*Pancakes or waffles take 20 minutes. We love breakfast for dinner. Slice some fruit up for on top or throw blueberries in the batter and you are done.


*French toast takes 20 minutes. Hubby loves french toast so he is happy to eat it day or night. Put some fruit on the side and you are good.

*Grilled cheese takes 5 minutes. Put some carrots with it and you have a meal.


*Cold cut sandwiches take 5 minutes. They aren't cheap but neither is take out. Throw some raw veggies on the side and you are good. I also like to do hot open sandwiches. I put a piece of bread with turkey or roastbeef on top, then some gravy. I add leftover sides and you are good to go.

*Crock pot dinners take 5 minutes. I love my crock pot. I use it all the time. I set it up the night before or in the morning and it is done when I get home, Dinners ready!

*Leftovers take 5 minutes. Don't let them go to waste. Eat them!

What is your go to quick meal when you are running late? What do you make when you have a half hour until you have to have the kids at practice? I do not feed this to my family every night. But I Do Not feel bad about myself if I have to do this once or twice a week. Gotta go make quesadillas for dinner, YD has to get back to the high school for a science presentation.



Comments

  1. Anything is better and cheaper for fast food. When I was pregnant with four-year-old daughter and six-year-old son, I took them roller skating every Thursday night. I was too exhausted to cook and did not have enough time to cook and feed them before bath and bedtime. Back then, I had no microwave, just stove oven. During the day or as I picked them up from school, I dropped by KFC and bought slaw. I made baked beans, too. When we got back from skating, I heated the beans and boiled the hotdogs.

    On Thursday after skating, I could have their dinner on the table in ten minutes. I could have made slaw, but everything every other night was cooked from scratch, so being pregnant, buying slaw was okay with me.

    BLTs were fast then, too, and still are now. Oh, I do have other things now since I will cook 7 or more chicken breasts at one time.

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  2. I also cook lots of chicken at one time and stretch it throughout the week. I always here people saying how they don't have time to cook. They are in a rush. It takes time to run to get fast food that they could use to make something easier. I would rather have a PB&J sandwich then a burger from McD's

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