Please help me decide what to cook this week!

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I think I have posted similar threads on this in the Parenting Forums, but can’t seem to find it … 🤷 so I will post again:

I am having trouble with menu planning! So what should I cook this week that’s delicious, healthy, and requires relatively minimal preparation? 😃

ETA: Bama, from your previous posts I am sure you can share some of your creative lunch/dinner ideas! 👍
 
A nice dish we like to make is what I call mock lasagna. We make up a package of mac and cheese, cook up hamburger (crumbled), put our favorite spaghetti sauce in the hamburger. Put the mac and cheese in shallow bowls and pour the hamburger and spaghetti sauce over it and serve. Or we make it into a lasagna-like dish by putting layers of cooked mac and cheese and the hamburger/spaghetti sauce in a casserole dish with some grated cheeses in between the layers and bake for 30 minutes. You can serve a veggie or salad on the side, and viola! dinner.
 
Well since ya asked. Debbie cooks well and we eat good, it is a hobby for her, and she always has something sweet baked up for me. But lets say she’s goin outta town for 7 days.

Typical menu when D is outta town on business.

Mon- eat out

Tues-ramean noodles and sandwich

Wed- eat out Mexican (always eat tacos on Wed)

Thur-chef boyardee

Fri- fish sticks

Sat- call Meggie and see what she’s cookin, if I come up zero there go to Chinese buffet

Sun- sandwich for lunch and then Debbie’s home! :clapping:
 
how about a roast? put some potatos carrots celery and onion in with it and you have a full meal. it takes only a few minutes to set up in the morning then you can let it be all day while you do whatever you have to do.
 
www.allrecipes.com

six can chicken tortilla soup

Jamie’s cranberry spinach salad

easy roasted pork

amy’s barbequed chicken salad

fabulous fried cabbage

slow cooker beef stew

roast sticky chicken-rotisserie style

Search the website for these recipes. Easy and delish!
 
SDMom,have you gone grocery shopping yet?It would be loads easier if we knew what you had on hand, and what you were planning to buy.
 
well not turkey, that’s for sure

depends on what you mean by healthy, when cooking for a family that means it has at least 3 food groups covered, protein, good carbs and veggie and/or fruit, w/o too much fat, salt, additives etc.

in my experience most packaged hi-salt, hi-artificals mixes like hamburger helper, don’t cook up any faster than doing your own rice, noodles or potatoes and adding the meat and sauce, so they add bad stuff w/o saving time.

it also depends on if your family eats “mixed” food-casserole, one pan or pot meals, or of they insist on having each course separate on the plate

buy for a week or 10 days, pre-cook and freeze in meal size freezer bags or containers: (quantities depend on family size for 4 I would guess at these)
ground beef–get 5 lbs of leanest (trade off price/leanness any less than 85% lean you will lose too much).
1 lb as crumbles, cooked to just brown
1 lb as patties (freeze uncooked, separate w/plastic wrap)

mix 3 lbs with 1 egg, one package of veggie, onion or mushroom soup mix, 1/2 c. milk, and add a splash of olive oil if you got very lean meat, and bread crumbs (made from crusts or dried bread) if you are not low-carbing
make 1 lb into about 8-12 meatballs depending on size
make 2 lbs into meatloaf. add finely grated veggies to make up to 1/4 the volume if you want to get some more vitaminnies in there

cook and freeze, this is easier if you make 2 loaves, each will be one meal

chicken–whatever is best buy this week
cut up parts, split broilers, whole
bake with seasoning of choice, and freeze in meal-size quantities
one quick way to bake is in a broiler pan bottom with a bottle of non-creamy salad dressing, makes its own marinade

get one pack of boneless breasts for quick meals:
put in one-serving freezer bag with marinade, let sit one hour in refrigerator, then freeze. these can be thawed in a pan of cold water while you change clothes, set the table, get the kids settled etc, and quick cook in 10 minutes in fry pan, coutnerop grill, or broiler.

most markets have loose frozen fish fillets which cook quickly, poached in milk is great and fast

with some eggs, canned tuna, grated cheese for toppings, gravy and sauces in jars or mixes, you are good to go

I am working 4 oz uncooked meat as a serving, because you will be filling this out with
veggies - buy 5 bags of frozen mixes your family will eat
good carb–brown rice, other whole grains like kasha, barley,
whole wheat or hi-fiber pastas and noodles
 
I like to cook a meatloaf and use the left overs in pasta the next day. A simple dish of chicken with packaged beans and rice is always easy and good. Anything using a crock pot seems to be easy, like beef stew, or chilli, pulled pork/chicken.
Good Luck.
 
BamaRider said:
Well since ya asked. Debbie cooks well and we eat good, it is a hobby for her, and she always has something sweet baked up for me. But lets say she’s goin outta town for 7 days.

Typical menu when D is outta town on business.

Mon- eat out

Tues-ramean noodles and sandwich

Wed- eat out Mexican (always eat tacos on Wed)

Thur-chef boyardee

Fri- fish sticks

Sat- call Meggie and see what she’s cookin, if I come up zero there go to Chinese buffet

Sun- sandwich for lunch and then Debbie’s home! :clapping:
Click to expand...
*Aww, Bama … I knew I’d get great meal planning AND some laughs from you! 👍 Thanks for your post … I’ve had a rough day and this one definitely helps end my night with a smile 😃 Oh … and if you get a chance, maybe you can share one of Debbie’s recipes since you are always boasting about her cooking? Not that your suggestions weren’t good enough or anything 🤷 *
 
mkipp said:
I like to cook a meatloaf and use the left overs in pasta the next day. A simple dish of chicken with packaged beans and rice is always easy and good. Anything using a crock pot seems to be easy, like beef stew, or chilli, pulled pork/chicken.
Good Luck.
Click to expand...
Ah, my old friend – the crock pot! I had forgotten that I had one since I stored it way back when. I do have a few good recipes using that thing … I’ll need to use it more often. Thanks for the reminder! 👍
 
Italian chicken and vegetable soup

1 T olive oil
boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces (about 1 and 3/4 lb.)
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup sliced zucchini
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cans chicken broth

In a big Dutch oven heat olive oil over medium heat, add chicken, cook for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Add onion and carrots and cook for another five minutes. Stir in zucchini, tomatoes, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil then simmer, uncovered for half an hour.
 
puzzleannie said:
well not turkey, that’s for sure

No, no turkey for us this week. We had our fill last week, and our fill of left-overs the past few days!

in my experience most packaged hi-salt, hi-artificals mixes like hamburger helper, don’t cook up any faster than doing your own rice, noodles or potatoes and adding the meat and sauce, so they add bad stuff w/o saving time.

**I completely agree! DH & I don’t care too much for the packaged mixes. **

buy for a week or 10 days, pre-cook and freeze in meal size freezer bags or containers: (quantities depend on family size for 4 I would guess at these)
ground beef–get 5 lbs of leanest (trade off price/leanness any less than 85% lean you will lose too much).
1 lb as crumbles, cooked to just brown
1 lb as patties (freeze uncooked, separate w/plastic wrap)

mix 3 lbs with 1 egg, one package of veggie, onion or mushroom soup mix, 1/2 c. milk, and add a splash of olive oil if you got very lean meat, and bread crumbs (made from crusts or dried bread) if you are not low-carbing
make 1 lb into about 8-12 meatballs depending on size
make 2 lbs into meatloaf. add finely grated veggies to make up to 1/4 the volume if you want to get some more vitaminnies in there

cook and freeze, this is easier if you make 2 loaves, each will be one meal

**Thank you! DH is a meat-lover, so I am going to def. do the patties and the meat loaf 👍 **

get one pack of boneless breasts for quick meals:
put in one-serving freezer bag with marinade, let sit one hour in refrigerator, then freeze. these can be thawed in a pan of cold water while you change clothes, set the table, get the kids settled etc, and quick cook in 10 minutes in fry pan, coutnerop grill, or broiler.

most markets have loose frozen fish fillets which cook quickly, poached in milk is great and fast

with some eggs, canned tuna, grated cheese for toppings, gravy and sauces in jars or mixes, you are good to go

I am working 4 oz uncooked meat as a serving, because you will be filling this out with
veggies - buy 5 bags of frozen mixes your family will eat
good carb–brown rice, other whole grains like kasha, barley,
whole wheat or hi-fiber pastas and noodles
Click to expand...
**Gee, PuzzleAnnie … you make meal planning and cooking seem so easy! How many more years will it take me to get to that point? Can I just borrow you for a few days so I can learn all your secrets? 😃 THANK YOU SO MUCH! Have a wonderful week! **
 
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