Aaron and I are teaching the high school youth group on Wednesday nights this Spring and our good friends, Brad and Janelle are teaching the middle schoolers. It's a lot of fun and we're studying the book of John. Last night, we had Brad and Janelle over for dinner because Brad works at Pepperdine with me and so him and Janelle have to figure out dinner every week since they can't go home. So, every so often, we try to not be our selfish selves sitting in the comfort of our home before youth group and have dinner with them:) As I was putting the finishing touches on our pasta and salad meal, I got to thinking about some quick dinner options that have become staple go-to meals in the Echols' house. Here are a few...I'm always open to new ideas so please leave a comment if you have a good recipe for me to try!
1. Pasta
1 bag of organic whole wheat pasta from Trader Joe's (any variety)
1 jar of tomato sauce (We like to use Classico Spicy marinara, Tomato Basil, or Roasted Garlic)
1 lb. Extra Lean ground turkey OR ready-to-serve turkey meatballs from Trader Joe's OR Jennie-O Lean Hot Italian Turkey Sausage
1 bag of organic baby spinach
2. Fajitas
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 packet of McCormick fajita seasoning
2% milk shredded Mexican style cheese
1 can of black beans (for me)
1 can of refried beans (for Aaron)
Shredded lettuce
Diced tomatoes
Guacamole (2 avocados and a packet of McCormick guacamole mix)
Whole Wheat tortillas
3. "Meat and Potatoes"
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled and seasoned with garlic salt and seasoning salt(thanks to my grillmaster husband)
1 large sweet potato cut into fries and seasoned with olive oil and sea salt
asparagus or broc/caulifolower mix, roasted with olive oil and minced garlic
4. Stir Fry
1 package of Trader Joe's orange chicken
1 package of Trader Joe's frozen stir-fry vegetables
1 cup of brown rice
*We have done this without the prepackaged protein but it's easy, fast, cheap, and tastes good so every so often, we just keep it simple!
5. Aaron's new favorite: 5 ingredient green chile chicken enchiladas
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
green enchilada sauce
1 package of cream cheese, softened
3 cups of shredded jack cheese
whole wheat tortillas
*This is not the healthiest recipe but it's a great cook-ahead item for the nights that I teach class. Very fast and very tasty!
I am always trying to move us towards more healthy quick dinners with less processed food items but sometimes, time really is an issue. Aah, one day I hope to have tons of time to prepare meals made mostly from scratch...but until then, these 5 meals, with variations of course, keep it interesting, tasty, healthy, inexpensive and most importantly, leave time for us to spend together when dinner (and dishes) are done!
What is your favorite quick dinner?
"But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander."
1 Peter 3:15-16
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Quick Dinners.
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3 comments:
I LOVE your blog!!!
Leftover pasta night is my favorite: I throw together a bunch of vegetables (usually spinach, broccoli, onions, peppers, carrots, squash/zucchini), saute them in a pan for a few minutes with a little olive oil, add leftover cooked chicken breast (cut into chunks or strips or whatever), add any variety of pasta I have on hand, and then add a creamy-ish sauce (better flavor and texture than pure red sauce, but I mix them to keep it healthier than cream-only). Throw it all in a big bowl and sprinkle some parmesan on top. Serve and eat.
Oh, and if I wanna get real crazy, I add pine nuts.
I'm super late with this but I couldn't resist giving you my quick meal: i LOVE a good salmoon pasta salad. it takes maybe 15 min. maybe.
whole grain/whole wheat pasta (preferably the curly ones, or shells)
a can of salmon (the good one with omega3...wait is any canned food good??)
basil pesto
any frozen veggies/fresh veggies
i just bowl the pasta and while it's cooking, warm the salmon on the stove to get rid of the fishy taste/smell. toss the pasta, salmon and pesto together. sooo good. if you want, you can add frozen veggies (i.e. green beans, peas, spinach) to the pasta while it's cooking. if you want to kick up the flavor, put in red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and some salt/pepper. this is my fave. and it's great as a leftover lunch because it's good cold too.
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