Need meal ideas?

Question

First off, I'm a 22 year old married woman with no ideas for mealtime. I am a decent cook, so that's not the problem. The problem is, when it comes to dinner time and making a meal, I can't think of anything to make. I cook spaghetti so often, that my husband and I are tired of it. We grill chicken sometimes on the weekend on the outside grill and order pizza hut a LOT. We make tuna sandwhiches, and that's about it. The only sides I can think to make are greenbeans and corn... and greenbeans and corn...

I seriously need help here. What would be your normal, average meals throughout the week? Maybe even a few recipes of your normal, easy dishes.

Any help is appreciated!!!

Answer 1

This is my FAVORITE recipe for chicken parmigiana! It's unbelievable how easy it is to make it and the chicken comes out more moist than any other chicken parmigiana recipe I've ever tried. It says to marinate for 4 hours, but in a jam I've marinated for 15 minutes and it was perfectly fine. Serve this with your favorite spaghetti recipe!

INGREDIENTS

* 2 egg yolks
* 6 cloves garlic, chopped
* 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
* 6 tablespoons butter
* 1 plastic Ziploc bag
* 1/2 cup dry Italian-style bread crumbs
* 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
* 1/2 tablespoon dried parsley
* 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
* 1/2 tablespoon salt
* 1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
* 4 slices provolone cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. In a glass dish, beat egg yolk with garlic. Place chicken in egg mixture, and turn to coat. Cover dish and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight if possible.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
3. Melt butter and pour into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. In the Ziploc bag, mix together the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper. One by one, shake a chicken breast in the bag and then place it in the baking dish. Shake some extra Parmesan cheese on each breast.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts, spoon extra breading mix and place a slice of Provolone cheese on each breast. Bake for another 15-20 minutes more or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.
5. Serve with spaghetti.

I'll post more as I peruse my recipe box. :)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Beef stroganoff! There's a bunch of things in the recipe, but I can't believe how easy it actually is to make it. But there's nothing like putting a big forkful of egg noodles covered in that brown gravy into your mouth on a cool day... :p

(by the way, you don't have to use chuck roast. I've used ground beef and sliced sirloin - both great!)

INGREDIENTS:
2 pounds beef chuck roast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 ounces butter
4 green onions, sliced (white parts only)
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed beef broth
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1 teaspoon Worchestershire sauce
1 (6 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup white wine
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:
1. Remove any fat and gristle from the roast and cut into strips 1/2 inch thick by 2 inches long. Season with 1/2 teaspoon of both salt and pepper.
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and brown the beef strips quickly, then push the beef strips off to one side. Add the onions and cook slowly for 3 to 5 minutes, then push to the side with the beef strips.
3. Stir the flour into the juices on the empty side of the pan. Pour in beef broth and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and stir in mustard and Worchestershire sauce. Cover and simmer for 1 hour or until the meat is tender.
4. Halfway through the simmer, add mushrooms and white wine.
5. Five minutes before serving, stir in sour cream. Thicken with flour or cornstarch and cold water if needed. Heat briefly then salt and pepper to taste, serve over egg noodles.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

This is the BEST steak marinade I've ever used!!! My fiance almost died the first time I made this and completely abandoned the marinade he's been using for the past 10 years (steak is his absolute favorite food). I get recipe requests like mad every time I make this for people - they have no idea how simple and basic it actually is!!!

INGREDIENTS

* 1/2 cup olive oil
* 1/4 cup soy sauce
* 4 teaspoons McCormick® Grill Mates® Montreal Steak Seasoning (I now use their spicy seasoning because we love spicy hot)
* 2 pounds sirloin or strip steak

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine olive oil, soy sauce and steak seasoning in a large self-closing plastic bag or glass dish. Add steak and seal bag or cover. Refrigerate 30 minutes or longer for extra flavor.
2. Remove steak from marinade; discard marinade. Preheat grill or broiler. Grill or broil steak 8-10 minutes per side, or to desired doneness.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Who can forget tacos? This is the most amazing taco seasoning I've ever tried... After making this for the first time, I have yet to drop a package of taco seasoning in my grocery cart. :)

INGREDIENTS

* 1 tablespoon chili powder
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
* 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper
* 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1/2 teaspoon paprika
* 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
* 1 teaspoon sea salt
* 1 teaspoon black pepper

DIRECTIONS

Mix all ingredients together. Sprinkle onto ground beef as you brown it.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Every one seems to serve up guacamole in the summer and since it's coming up, here's a really quick but super delicious recipe!

INGREDIENTS

* 2 avocados
* 1 small onion, finely chopped (or 1-2 stalks of green onions, also finely chopped)
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1 handful of cilantro, chopped
* Splash of olive oil
* 1 capful white vinegar
* 1 tablespoon chunky salsa like Pace
* 1/2 lime, juiced
* 1 tablespoon sour cream
* salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Peel and mash avocados in a medium serving bowl. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Adjust and add more of the listed ingredients to attain desired taste and/or texture (sometimes I add more salsa for extra chunkiness). Chill for half an hour to blend flavors.

Hope this helps, good luck!

Answer 2

We were in a similar "food rut" a couple of years ago and there are a couple of things we did to get ourselves out of it. First, we started looking for easy but interesting meals we could do together by watching the Food Network, excellent food sites on the web and subscribing to Cooking Light magazine.

For grilling we got the Weber Big Book of Grilling. From it we learned a lot about simple rubs, spices and recipes that added a lot of variation to the things we were grilling. For meal planning and grilling times we also use the cookout calculator at charcoalbob.com. Enter the items you will be grilling and the time you want to eat and it will give you instructions for how to grill things like boneless chicken breasts, steaks, pork chops and burgers to that everything comes off the grill at the same time, cooked the way you want it, and at the time you want to eat. This makes it really easy to pull everything for the meal together and takes the guesswork out of the process.

We also found it helpful to plan and shop for our meals several days in advance, especially during the week when things can get hectic. We write our meals down on a little whiteboard on the fridge. As we discover recipes and meals we love, we add them to our "rotation."

As a result, cooking has become one of our favorite things to do, and something we truly look forward to doing together.

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Well since yall both like chicken and spaghetti why not try this dish, my family loves it, and it is pretty simple.

CHICKEN PARMIGIANA

4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 eggs, beaten
1 c. Italian style bread crumbs
1/2 c. olive oil
1 jar (15 1/2 oz.) meat flavor spaghetti sauce
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 c. (4 oz.) shredded Mozzarella cheese

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Dip chicken into egg and then bread crumbs. In skillet, heat olive oil. Cook chicken in oil until done and well browned on both sides. Pour spaghetti sauce into 11 x 7 inch baking pan. Put chicken on sauce and top with cheeses. Bake 15 minutes or until cheese melts.

For sides my family likes to have garlic bread and streamed broccoli. What a great meal! Enjoy!

Answer 4

Scalloped Potatoes with Pork Chops
Tender and moist potatoes arranged in layers make this dish easy to serve and enjoyable to eat, especially if cheese is added.
Container: 2-3 quart baking dish, greased
Servings: 8

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour


Scalloped Potatoes
Ingredients

- 8 large baking potatoes
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
- 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
- 2 cups milk, heated
- 1/4 cup onion, diced fine
- 1 cup optional: sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Coat baking dish with vegetable spray.
Peel potatoes and slice very thin. Place approximately 1/3 of potatoes in prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with half the flour and half the salt and pepper. Repeat layers. (add chops now)
Heat milk in small pan until hot; do not boil. Pour over potatoes and dot with butter. Cover dish and bake 45-50 minutes. Remove cover and continue baking uncovered for 15-20 minutes more or until potatoes are tender and chops are done.
Optional: If cheese is to be added, spread shredded cheese over top of potatoes during last 15 to 20 minutes of baking while cover is removed.


Barry the pork chops into the scalloped potates before baking. If chops are not thick they will cook along with the potatoes.

Answer 5

Here are some simple and basic recipes that should help you out a little bit.

Chicken and Stuffing

In a casserole baking dish:

Boneless Chicken Breast Cut Into Cubes

Prebake your cubed up chicken breast for about 15 mins at 400 degrees.

Stir in one can of Cream of Chicken or Cream of Chicken with Herbs (Recommended)

Top with prepared Stove Top Stuffing according to the box

Bake 40 minutes uncovered for 40 minutes

----------

Taco Salad

Cool Ranch Doritos
Ground Beef
2 Cans of Tomato Sauce
Shredded Cheese
Tomatos
Lettuce
Anything else that you like on your tacos

Brown the ground beef and add two 8 oz cans of tomato sauce. Let simmer covers for about 15 minutes.

You can use fresh tomatoes or canned. If using canned open and drain tomatoes and season to taste.

Prepare other fixings that you want

Crush doritos in your bowls and top with meat mixture and other fixings.

----------

Prepare a meat sauce using your ground beef and two 8oz cans of tomato sauce. Let it simmer until your macaroni is cooked.

Prepare your macaroni and cheese dinner the same way you would normally.

Grease an 8 in square baking dish.

Put half of the meat mixture or at least part of it on the bottom of the pan.

Put half of the macaroni on top of the meat mixture.

Put rest of meat mixture on mac and cheese.

Top with rest of mac and cheese.

Top with shredded cheddar and mozzeralla cheese.

*Hint* sprinkle the shredded cheddar cheese in between the layers for extra tasty and cheesey taste.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes.

----------

Meatloaf

pound of ground beef

1/2 cup of tomato soup

onions either chopped or dried: Use enough to taste

salt and pepper: again enough to taste

bread crumbs: enough to bind ingredients together

one egg

Combind all ingredients together and form into a loaf.

Place in a baking dish and bake for: 1 hour and 15 minutes at 375 degrees.

Serve with mashed potatoes, vegetables, and rolls.

Gravy: Use remaining tomato soup and put into a sauce pan with 1/4 cup of water. Occasionally spoon the drippings from meatloaf into gravy. Bring up to a boil and serve.

I hope these will help a bit.

Answer 6

This is one of my families fav. and simple and very good.
Chicken Roll-ups
2 tubes crescent rolls (pillsbury or Walmarts Great value)
1 can of chicken (14 oz.) or cooked chicken would work too
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup

Preheat oven to 350. Mix chicken and cheese together. Unroll crescent rolls and put about 2 tblsp. (or alittle more) inside and roll up the sides to make a ball. Lay on a greased baking dish (9x13) Bake for 25-min. or until golden brown Warm up soup in microwave and pour over the top. You really got to try this.
I'm sure you will love it!

Chicken Tortillas
Cook Chicken with taco seasoning and make a tortilla shell.
Add Onions, Avacado's, chicken, tomatoes, then sprinkle sea salt over it and lime juice from a key lime. Yummy!

Also, you could go to allrecipes.com and look there. Good luck

Answer 7

Buy a couple of basic cookbooks like Good Housekeeping or Betty Crocker for starters. They include extra information that you might need when deciding on a recipe. There are plenty of recipes online, of course. I menu plan for the week by going through my cookbooks and my own collection of recipes. I make sure I include lots of diversity for the week. By planning ahead you don't have to deal each day with what to make and worse, not have the ingredients. Have some fun and try different things.

Answer 8

Taco Bake 1 bag of tortilla chips 1 lb ground turkey or beef 1 small can of diced green peppers 1 bottle of medium taco sauce 1/2 onion diced shredded cheese 1 can of refreid beans Directions: Cook the ground meat and diced onions in olive oil. Cook until meat is fully cooked. Add the can of diced green peppers and the bottle of taco sauce and stir together. In a baking pan layer the bottom with tortilla chips, add some beans, cheese, and meat, then another layer of chips, beans, cheese, and meat. Keep layering. Cook in the oven at 350 for 25 minutes.

Answer 9

Try this one meal dish:

Ingredients:

1lb. ground beef (or ground turkey) browned
I large onion and bell pepper diced and cook until tender
1/2 cup your favorite barbecue sauce
1 bag of frozen broccolli (boil for 4mins.)
Ilb. whole potatoes (diced and boiled)
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
handful of chives
butter to taste.
lots of cheese (use your favorite)

Directions:

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Take browned meat and mix well with barbecue sauce. next, put in the bottom of casserole dish. next later will be your onions and peppers, next layer will be your broccolli, next will be your cheese. then mash your potatoes and add milk, sour cream, butter and chives. Put potatoes on top of cheese layer and add more cheese. Bake for 30 minutes. Hope you enjoy and you can alter recipe to your liking.

Answer 10

Go to allrecipes.com the most wonderful site for great ideas. People who actually try the recipes come back and review them and give some great tips for what worked for them and what didn't. I find that one of the most helpful things about this site.