DinnerGround beef stroganoff is one of my favorite 30-minute meals. Combine cooked egg noodles and ground beef with a smooth sour cream sauce with garlic and onion powder. Even kids like this dish.
DinnerCook the flour and butter mixture for 1 minute before stirring in milk to prevent the cheese mixture from sliding off your hands when you're assembling the dish in the baking dish. This baked three-cheese mac and cheese recipe is baked until the top is brown and bubbly and the inside is creamy. I like the brown edges best.
DinnerSpicy vodka pasta is an easy meal to prepare. Orecchiette or rigatoni pasta is served with a tomato-cream sauce and red pepper flakes. The sauce coats the pasta noodles (I like the spicy flavor of the sauce to be noticeable when eating).
DessertsI use this no-bake chocolate cheesecake recipe when I don't want to bake. It has a chocolate cookie crust and a thick, creamy filling of melted semisweet chocolate and cocoa powder that chills in the refrigerator to allow clean cutting, among other benefits of cheesecakes with a soft filling.
DinnerRoasting sweet potatoes at high temperatures browns them on the outside and cooks them on the inside. Searing a large quantity of beef makes it taste better in taco dishes. I really like making street corn beef bowls, they have cold and hot components.
BreadThis jalapeño cheddar sourdough recipe is ideal for making bread ahead of time or freezing: form the boule and hold it in the fridge; slice and freeze it the same day you bake it. I find this bread easiest to pack for lunch when I want jalapeño flavor throughout the loaf and melted cheese on the surface, though the crust gets messy.
DinnerThese hot honey beef bowls are suitable for meal prep. All ingredients except avocado and egg can be prepped ahead of time. Include the avocado and egg when serving the bowls. I make hot honey beef bowls when I want a rice bowl with sweet and spicy beef and crunchy sweet potatoes. I like the texture differences.
DinnerI prepare multiple Mediterranean lemon and dill chicken bowl lunches ahead of time when I don't have time to pack individual lunches but would like to have some ready to eat. I prepare the chicken and rice in advance and pack vegetables and tzatziki with individual lunches as needed. Lemon and dill pair well with cold tzatziki in a lunch.
DinnerExtra veggie turkey egg roll in a bowl can be served as a one-batch skillet dish for four servings to eat later at home. Ingredients for the dish and egg roll filling are turkey, slaw mix, carrots, edamame, and riced cauliflower with a salty sesame sauce.
DinnerI make these turkey gyro bowls to serve four people. I cook the turkey and couscous for dinner and hold the tzatziki back for lunch. All of the prepared dishes contain some hot and cold items. The turkey and couscous are cooked with oregano and garlic, as are the ingredients in the tzatziki sauce.
LunchTo make four wraps to eat for lunch, make tortillas and other ingredients in advance and assemble and roll the tortillas immediately before eating them. Vegetarian ingredients for wraps include lettuce, cucumber, bell peppers, carrots, alfalfa sprouts, and avocado, as well as hummus. Other ingredients are seasoned with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
DessertsWhipped cold cream to stiff peaks and gently folded into cream cheese adds texture to this unbaked cheesecake. The chilled cheesecake filling sets smooth and creamy, topped with fresh fruit or chocolate, if desired, for additional texture, and served over a graham cracker crust.
