Life is busy and stressful. And I'm lazy. And don't enjoy cooking. (Since we're already on the honest train.)
I am going to make a concentrated effort to get back at it though. We've got a full pantry of things that need to be consumed and our grocery budget has been gradually creeping up month after month because of my laziness.
One awesome new change, is the addition of an extra cook in the house. Jay has taken over Tuesday/Thursday food responsibilities. I love being able to come home from work and just crash (or get straight to laundry/cleaning the bathrooms/dusting/etc.)
This change has come at the cost of healthy eating, but I just don't care. I'm falling back on many of the tried and true easy dinners I use to fix a few years ago when we were first married. For this week, time to make a plan!
Monday: Chicken Helper
I toss in some frozen broccoli to make it stretch a bit further.
Tuesday: Cheddar Brats
Jay's one request to taking over some of the dinner responsibilities is that I buy things at the store easy for him to prepare.
Wednesday: Ham sandwiches
I'm doing a Knoxville Track Club social run that evening. If we don't stop by Barley's for dinner following the run, I'll just make sandwiches when I get home. Add a pepper jack cheese, a hamburger bun, and a toaster over and all of a sudden sandwiches seem yummy!
Thursday: Pizza
Jay's perfecting the art of frozen pizza on the grill.
Friday: Baked Ravioli
I'm uber lazy with this one: some frozen ravioli, a jar of spaghetti sauce and mozzarella cheese.
What are some of your go-to meal ideas when you don't feel like cooking?
I like the idea of jay cooking and the frozen pizza on the grill. I think you better share instructions - like do you thaw it?
ReplyDeletei have no clue how he does it! maybe i'll get him to write a guest blog. :)
DeleteGlad that you have a bit of kitchen duty assistance now. :) Our go-to meal ideas are pretty boring - grilled chicken and some sort of vegetable. We always have both on hand. We do tend to switch things up with the chicken in the way of spices or marinades.
ReplyDeletechicken is a staple here too, assuming i remember to get it out of the freezer. definitely easy to throw some marinade on it and shove it in the oven or at jay...um...i mean...on the grill.
Deletesince A now gets home before me I've slowly handed over some of the cooking reins to him :-) Tonight I put our dinner together and left it in the fridge with instructions on the aluminum foil on how long and what temp to bake it. Of course, he loves to grill, and as long as it's an easy-to-follow recipe (like my potato leek or tomato basil soups) he enjoys cooking as well. And if it's a family recipe from HIS family he loves making it (hello artery clogging spaghetti and lasagna!)
ReplyDeleteYou know me...I meal plan a month in advance and then adapt each week as needed :-)
Some of my easier options:
taco mac
meatball subs (cook meatballs in marinara, add spices and mozzarella and/or provolone, put on hoagie/ciabatta roll)
we have pizza night every week on thursday. I keep a rotating menu of pizzas to not get bored :-)
cheesesteak chimichangas
gourmet mac&cheeses (ny deli, philly cheesesteak, cubano...Rachael Ray has a ton of mac-n-cheese recipes)
creamy chicken taquitos
burgers (chicken, beef, turkey)
All these are simple...I also have several that I'll put together ahead of time and then have A pop in the oven so it's ready when I get home. And then of course there's my love affair with the slow cooker :-)
Im trying to get back in the meal planning habit too.
ReplyDeleteWhen I'm lazy our go to meal is taco salad. We can eat that for days at a time.
I am THE WORST AT MEAL PLANNING!! I'm trying but things always seem to get in the way...like my laziness! It's nice that Jay is helping even if it's not the healthiest meals. It's nice to have a break! Burgers are our go-to easy meal.
ReplyDeleteI was never great at planning what to cook, but in the summer I become a colossal failure in the kitchen! Lol- too hot to cook! We do sandwiches or cereal A LOT. When we want hot food but I still don't want to cook...slow cooker BBQ. Makes a ton and freeze leftovers.
ReplyDeleteI'm finally catching up on blogs! Yay for having help in the kitchen!! One of my go-to meals is broiled Tilapia. I brush them with olive oil, sprinkle on some Tony's & broil them for 4-6 minutes per side. Super quick & super easy! Another quick one is a casserole-type dish consisting of cooked bowtie pasta, spaghetti sauce, browned ground beef, & frozen spinach. Mix it all together, top it with mozzarella cheese, put the lid on it & cook on low until the cheese is melted. You can also throw it in the oven to melt the cheese, but I try to avoid using the oven in the summer!
ReplyDelete