OT: What are you having for dinner tonight??

Active Member

I'm looking for dinner inspiration! It needs to be healthy, kid friendly, yummy and quick - not asking for much am I??

So, what yummy things are on your menu tonight?

15 years ago

General

21 replies

Latest reply was from Debora

Katja

(website)

Active Member

It was fairly healthy and fairly quick:

1/2 pound ground beef sauteed with onions and carrots, then added leftover rice, s&p, parsley, oregano, some pine nuts and a little water and simmered it for a little while

baked spaghetti squash

steamed asparagus

15 years ago

MsMary

Veteran

I'm by myself tonight, so I had, uh, Halloween candy...

15 years ago

Active Member

That sounds yum Katja.

Lol Mary - well it ticks off 3 of the requirements - kid friendly, quick and yummy!!

15 years ago

Veteran

It was a cold day so I made soup:
cook 1 lb ground beef with 1/2 cup of onions
add 3 1/2 cups beef broth, can of veggies and 2 cans of Italian stewed tomatoes
let boil then simmer for 10 min. and break up the big chunks of tomatoes.
Serve with cooked wide egg noodles and loaf of crusty bread. (I like to cook my noodles/rice separate from the soup so they don't get mushy.)

Thur, I"m making Salmon Pesto:
1 lb Salmon fillet cut into 4 pieces
Preheat oven to 475 degrees
salt and pepper salmon, then brush on all sides with olive oil
Sear the salmon on a non-stick skillet 1 1/2 to 2 min on each side
place on a lightly greased baking pan and spread 1 tbsp pesto (I buy the premade garlic pesto) on top of each piece.
Roast in the oven for 5 - 7 min.
Remove from oven and let stand 2 - 3 min.
I serve with steamed veggies that I drizzle some pesto on and any leftover noodles from the soup dinner (another great reason to store the noodles separately from the soup!)

15 years ago

MsMary

Veteran

Okay, in exchange for the "comedy" appreciation, here's a great recipe that our family really likes:

Chicken-rice Roger

2 1/2 fryer or 2 packages frozen breasts or thighs, thawed (I use thighs)
vegetable oil
1 cup uncooked rice
1 tablespoon grated onion or half a garlic clove minced
2 chicken-bouillon cubes dissolved in 1 3/4 cups water, or 1 can chicken broth
3 ounce can of mushrooms
some flour

Coat the chicken with flour (I put it in a large Ziploc bag and shake, a couple of pieces of chicken at a time), and brown the chicken in a little oil.

While it browns, put the rice, salt, and pepper in a greased casserole, and strew the grated onion about. Put in the mushrooms, juice and all. Arrange the chicken artfully on top. Pour the bouillon over it. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for an hour. (I uncover it for the last 15 minutes or so.)

This makes great leftovers -- I make it with 6 or 7 chicken thighs and it makes a dinner for the 3 of us plus 3-4 individual portions to freeze for work lunches. (Adapted from "The I Hate to Cook Book" by Peg Bracken.)

15 years ago

Megan

Active Member

We are having:

*ricotta cake (me), BBQ chicken breast (BF)
* wild rice risotto
* zucchini fritters.

BF does all the cooking

15 years ago

Katiepea

(website)

Veteran

We just had festival burritos, a vegetarian dish which is a firm family favourite. To make, cook 1 1/2 cups of long-grain rice with a tsp of Tumeric to give it a bright and cheery yellow colour. After rice is cooked add 1 or 2 chopped avocados, a small jar of chopped chargrilled capsicum, 1 tin of 4 - 5 bean mix and if you have it, a handful of chopped shallots. Then put festival rice in the middle of a burrito and top with salsa and either yoghurt or light sour cream. It is really simple, very fast, one dish wonder and quite yummy! (My fussy boys all like it for what it is worth.)

15 years ago

Active Member

Katja, AJ, Mary & Kirstie - thanks for your recipes. I'll try them out over the next little while and let you know how they go. Passing the kid test will be the challenge. My very unfussy 4 yr old has all of a sudden decided to be fussy and I hate it (now I sound like a 4 yr old :-)). I'm hoping it's a passing faze, I really enjoyed not having to worry too much what I dished him up!

Megan, I am very envious that your BF does all the cooking!!! I actually enjoy cooking but sometimes the constancy gets wearing and it would be nice to have a some meals cooked for me. Does he make the ricotta cake for you??

15 years ago

rute

Veteran

Grilled salmon with vegetables. We Portuguese eat a lot of fish! Very healthy and light!

15 years ago

stylemama

Active Member

Last night was chicken nuggets and mini corn dogs and carrot sticks. Not good. Tonight will be turkey chili with as many veggies as i can sneak in there.

15 years ago

Tricia

Veteran

Last night was baked ziti with homemade tomato sauce, mozzarella, and chicken/roasted garlic sausage, plus salad and bread. My kids didn't eat it (they ate plain pasta and some sliced sausage we held back for them) but they're weird children who don't like tomato sauce.

15 years ago

Debora

Veteran

I'm going to try this one tonight:

Greek Pasta with Tomatoes and White Beans

8 ounces whole wheat penne pasta
2 14.5 ounce cans Italian-style diced tomatoes
1 15 ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
10 ounces fresh spinach, washed
1/2 cup reduced-fat crumbled feta cheese

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente; drain.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, combine the tomatoes and beans. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.

Add spinach to sauce; cook 2 minutes or until spinach wilts, stirring constantly.

Stir pasta into spinach mixture and heat through.

Sprinkle with feta cheese and serve.

Disclaimer: I've never made this before! It sounds easy enough, so I'll give it a try. Based on the recipe reviews, I'll probably add some onion and garlic for more flavor.

15 years ago

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

I think I'm going to throw a whole chicken into the crock pot and let it roast all day, then make some rice and green beans. Poor dd will probably have a sandwich on the day to dance.

15 years ago

Queen Mum

Veteran

great recipe ideas here.. I'm "favoriting" this thread.
Last night we had leftover oven-fried chicken (pound down chicken breasts, dip in egg, bread with panko, parmesan and italian seasoning, spray with Pam and bake)
Tonight....
not sure as we're out of leftovers....

15 years ago

RandomThoughts (Andrea)

Veteran

Last night we had kale and cannellini soup. YUM!

Tonight it's fast food as I am working a 12hr shift.

15 years ago

Barbara

Veteran

Last night hubbie and I had grilled brats with lots of mashed cauliflower! YUM. Tonight it's my killer chili that simmered all afternoon this past Sunday. I always make a huge pot and freeze some for later.

Khris, I LOVE my crockpot. I use it at least twice a week. It's great for whole chickens, pork tenderloin and beef stew.

15 years ago

MsMary

Veteran

Here's another super easy one that we just love. The ingredients seem odd, but the sprinkling of cheese over the top makes it really sing:

Chicken and Chard

1 bunch swiss chard
1c chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz chicken breast, cubed
1c cooked (brown) rice
1-2T soy sauce
1/2c shredded cheddar (2oz)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Wash chard. Cut stems off chard leaves and dice. Cut leaves into 1/2
inch strips.
3. Spray nonstick, ovenproof skillet with cooking spray.
4. Cook chard stems, onion, garlic, and chicken over med-hi heat for
about 8 min.
5. Add chard leaves, and 2T water. Cook 3 more minutes, until chard is
limp.
6. Add soy sauce and cooked rice and cook 2 more minutes.
7. Sprinkle cheese over top and put pan in oven til cheese melts, about
10 minutes. (or simply turn off stovetop heat, cover again until cheese
melts)

Serves 2-4 as main course.

15 years ago

Auburn

Veteran

I was craving soup (though it's not particularly cold out) and since I love ANYTHING that Ina Garten (aka Barefoot Contessa) does, I did a quick version of her Mexican Chicken Soup. I say quick because I used canned chicken broth and, in lieu of cooking my own chicken, just bought a rotisserie chicken and shredded it up. Quick, filling and satisfying!

15 years ago

Megan

Active Member

An, the BF definitely makes the ricotta cakes for me He even made up the recipe, the lovely man that he is! I honestly don't think I've cooked once in the 2 years since we've been together- the most I've done is cook pasta and reheated sauce. The BF rather fancies himself to be like Jamie Oliver and has recently mastered making ravioli from scratch and it's UNBELIEVABLE

Debora, that recipe sounds delish- I'm always looking out for good vego dishes How did it turn out?

15 years ago

Theresa

(website)

Veteran

OMG! Despite having a big breakfast and just finishing my morning tea, I'm now starving for at least 90% of these recipes!!

Tonight I'm having a version of shepherds pie - I just throw in loads of everything without ever following a recipe for this sort of thing. Then I'll freeze the leftovers and probably eat it for the next few days!

The girls are having a version of "pizza" - but think gluten free chickpea flour based base, no tomato sauce - a sauce based on cooked sweet potato & coloured with beetroot powder instead, minced mix of lamb/veal with a few vegies thrown in, and no cheese. I don't think it really qualifies as pizza but for 2 kids who have never had real pizza, they don't even know they are missing tomato sauce or cheese LOL

I'm going to copy some of these recipes though!!

15 years ago

Debora

Veteran

Megan, I never got around to making it. My hubby's out of town so I decided to wait and try it when he gets back. DS wanted pizza, so pizza it was!

15 years ago

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