6 Simple Dinners

I cook at least 5 dinners a week and don't want to be spending hours in the kitchen.  I love to share simple dinners with you that are affordable, quick prep, quick clean up and are recipes that the kids and parents will enjoy.

1. Charcuterie Boards

They're easy in the sense that you chop, grab lots of little bits of food and use no dishes.  Plates are optional, too.  That makes clean up a breeze.  I tried something new - sectioned off the board - salty crackers, meats, cheeses, fruits and veggies.  This would be great if you don't like your food touching or different kinds of foods touching.  

Tips: Aldi has the best price by far on cheeses, meats and crackers.  If you're interested in giving a charcuterie (char-coo-tree) board a try, start small.  Buy a couple cheeses, a couple meats and add in your favorite crackers.  Once you feel confident building a smaller board, you can start adding in new ingredients.

2. Teriyaki Chicken

I used 2 cans of cooked chicken drained, added Teriyaki sauce, sauteed a bag of stir fry veggies with some soy sauce and made boil in a bag rice.  My family thought this was a very delicious meal and it was so easy.  It also cost under $7 to feed the entire family.  It would have been 4 or 5 times that to get a similar meal out.

3. Taco Tuesday

I've been trying to put Taco Tuesday on the menu most weeks.  The kids have come to expect Mexican food on Tuesdays and it makes my life a tiny bit easier to just know Tuesdays are for tacos.  This night we did a build your own taco bar.  Some made nachos and some ate soft tacos.  Everyone was happy and I made enough leftovers for a few lunches that week.

I'm hoping to rotate soft tacos, taco casserole, taco lasagna, taco dip, nachos, build your own nachos, taco soup, tostadas, lettuce wraps, alternate meat - chicken, ground turkey, ground beef, etc. to keep things interesting for Taco Tuesdays.

4. Carry out

Figure out where you can get carry out or Door Dash affordably for your family.  And pay attention to coupons and deals they email out.  We know that we can get a delicious pizza and breadsticks at Caseys gas station for a great price.  It's delicious.  I know - gas station pizza!?!  How can that be good?  I don't know why, but it's the best pizza.  We'd highly recommend it.  We try to save carry out or Door Dash dinners for Friday nights or nights when we're busy with sports and don't get home until right at dinner time.

5. Traditional Easter Meal

I bought the 1/4 a ham that comes sliced at Walmart and fried it in a skillet.  No oils, just browned both sides a bit.  My family loves it!  It's about $10 and it's two meals at our house.  I made my homemade crusty bread, deviled eggs and premade mashed potatoes.  I love doing some homemade items + convenience items at the holidays.

6. Rotisserie Chicken & Roasted Veggies

If you ever need to "phone in" a dinner, this would be a good one.

Grab a rotisserie chicken at the store and then chop up all the veggies you have on hand.  I found these Lemon Pepper rotisserie chickens on clearance at my Walmart for $4.78.  It didn't taste very lemon peppery, but it was good.  We all dipped ours in different sauces.  We roasted the veggies (30 minutes at 425) with olive oil and Montreal Steak Seasoning, made some stove top cous cous (this kind is our favorite) and fruit and everyone was happy. 

Would your family eat any of these simple dinners?