10 Recipes You Can Turn to for a Last Minute Meal
It's 6 pm, do you know what you are having for dinner? If you don't, you are not alone.
Sixty percent of American households with children do not know what will be served for the evening meal at 6 pm. Ok, I just made that statistic up completely out of thin air. It has no basis in reality whatsoever.
But, like that old statistic about women over 35 having a better chance of being killed by a terrorist than getting married, it feels true. Especially when you're tired, the kids are whining, and all you want to do is crawl into bed with a good book and a bowl of cereal.
Not to worry. It is possible to throw together a good, home-cooked meal at the last minute. And you don't need to resort to a bunch of boxes of processed or manufactured foods either. Read on...
Be sure to check out my Shortcut Recipes, too.
1. Taco Salad with Black Beans
Corn and black beans add a refreshing change of pace to this taco salad recipe. The dressing is homemade, but comes together in no time.
2. Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Potatoes Recipe
This recipe has all the flavors of a philly cheesesteak in a twice baked potato. Deli roast beef is the secret ingredient that makes this recipe quick to prepare. And by baking the potatoes in the microwave instead of the oven, you shave 50 minutes off the prep time!
3. Beef Fried Rice Recipe
If you've got leftover cooked rice and any kind of cooked beef (leftover pot roast, brisket, flank steak or even deli roast beef), you can have this meal on the table in under 20 minutes! And it tastes better than takeout, too!
4. Baked Cod Recipe
This dish is healthy, easy to prepare, kid-pleasing and has just five ingredients! What more could you want? Be sure to use the Dijon mustard. It adds just the right amount of tanginess to make the fish interesting to adults, but not overpowering for kids.
5. Chicken Quesadillas Recipe
The nice thing about quesadillas is you can come up with dozens of different ways to vary the recipe just by changing the type of cheeses you use, adding vegetables or serving with different toppings. I like to serve these quesadillas with sour cream, tomato salsa and guacamole.
6. Sloppy Joes Recipe
Just brown some ground beef and add a few seasonings, and voila! You've got sloppy Joes! I like to serve mine on Hawaiian rolls (the sweet bread is a nice contrast to the meaty filling), but potato rolls and kaiser rolls work well, too.
7. Chicken French Bread Pizza
A garlic bread-like topping is smeared over French bread, then topped with rotisserie chicken and two kinds of cheese in this kid-friendly dinner recipe. The French bread crust makes this meal a cinch to prepare.
8. Tortilla Pizzas with Spinach
Mild baby spinach and a seasoned ricotta and mozzarella cheese topping give these tortilla pizzas a gourmet flavor. But they only take a few minutes to prepare.
9. Grilled Salmon Recipe
A quick dip in a marinade before grilling on the George Foreman grill gives this salmon recipe incredible flavor. Using the George Foreman means you can prepare this dish even in very cold weather (no need to go outside to grill) or if you don't own a grill at all.
10. Roast Beef Wraps
Who said deli meat is for lunch time only? These roast beef wraps are super fast to make (a George Foreman grill (compare prices) gives them that nice melted flavor without a lot of clean-up hassle). And a little Dijon mustard (or if you're feeling adventurous, horseradish mustard) adds a nice kick.