The million dollar question

[Tinkerbellaella]

I get asked this every day...What is for dinner? I have started to turn it back on them. I say, "I don't know. What are you making?"

I am in a rut as to what to make. So, what are you making for dinner? Help everyone out with this question and maybe it will spark new dinner ideas for us all!

[RedSoxFan]

I hate getting asked that question every day. Tonight it's just boneless chicken dipped in bread crumbs and fried in olive oil. Will put in the oven covered for 30 min at 350 with this topping drizzled on it: 2 tbs melted butter, 2 tbs olive oil, 1 tbs lemon juice, basil, oregano and garlic powder. I will also have rice pilaf, veggies and cranberry sauce.

[Nascfan]

I hate getting asked that question every day. Tonight it's just boneless chicken dipped in bread crumbs and fried in olive oil. Will put in the oven covered for 30 min at 350 with this topping drizzled on it: 2 tbs melted butter, 2 tbs olive oil, 1 tbs lemon juice, basil, oregano and garlic powder. I will also have rice pilaf, veggies and cranberry sauce.

I'm coming to your house for dinner.

How 'bout breakfast for dinner? A big ol' mess of scrambled eggs, toast, sausage or bacon, we usually have some frozen potatoes of some sort like hash browns on hand to throw on the stove too.

[DizNee143]

tonight is steak..(seasones with "meat magic"..awesome seasoning!!) with baked potatoes..and some asparagus for me and some broccoli for the hubby since he doesnt like aspargus..nothing to crazy..

[Tinkerbellaella]

Meat magic ????? Is that a brand?

[SBETigg]

Tonight is red beans and rice. For two, I lightly sautee a diced onion, a smashed and diced clove or two of garlic, a diced red pepper, diced green pepper, add a can of diced tomatoes (I like the seasoned ones, either mexican or basil oregano and garlic), a can of red kidney beans, salt, pepper, cayenne, and red pepper flakes to taste (light on the pepper flakes and cayenne) and serve it over brown rice. Simple and filling. We like to go meatless a few times a week.

[disneyfan328]

Or at least that's what its called in my house according to my DD. She says cause its like lucky charms "magically delicious!!!"

All it is is bonelss skinless chicken breat that you need to marinate at least for a couple hours (best if you can do it overnight) We use the Zesty Herb marinade by mccormick. It is way better than any of the Italian dressing marinades that we have tried. then we grill the chicken, make some steamed rice and a veggie.

There is almost never any leftovers!!!

[trapper]

love this topic! Hate the question. I try and make a menu on Sunday then go grocery shopping that way I don't have to make multiply trips so today I am making baked chicken breasts with crushed rice crispy cereal on top, mashed potatoes and gravy and peas. Tomorrow is a crock pot meal of beef tips and gravy over egg noodles. mmm it's good. I love using the crock pot or for Christmas I got a pressure cooker that I love also. I use the Fix it and Forget it for Entertaining or The Fix it and Forget it 5 Ingredients or Less or the Fix it and Forget it Lightly cookbooks for the crock pot love those.

[DizNee143]

Meat magic ????? Is that a brand?

yes...i know it comes in a white box..lol..im at work right now..but when i got home ill try to remember to take a good look at it and report more about it..

its called meat magic..and theres different ones for different kinds of meat...

soooo yummy!!

[DizNee143]

Tomorrow is a crock pot meal of beef tips and gravy over egg noodles. mmm it's good.

yumm! how do you go about making that? it sounds really good..and its somethign im pretty sure my hubby will eat..(he is such a picky eater)

[Tinkerfreak]

Corned Beef, cabbage, potatoes and carrots and maybe some biscuits if I have time. I like this because I just cook it all in one big pan. I can throw the meat in and simmer it for a couple of hours while I am doing other housework (or on Intercot:blush:). Then I add the veggies about a half hour before the meat is done and thats it. I only have one pan to clean up and the leftovers are great for a couple of days.

[LauraleeH]

I just asked my mom!!! :D
She asked me where I wanted to drive-thru haha.
She made me a big birthday lunch...homemade chinese food!! So I think tonight is gonna be a soup night...we have a lot of those lately with the economy being the way it is. But at least it's healthier and yummier than fast food ;)

[Beast_fanatic]

For dinner tonight, we had turkey breakfast sausages and pancakes.

[DisneyDog]

I also make a shopping list on the weekend and plan out a menu. Tonight is mac and cheese from a box. Nothing too fancy. I do my best cooking on Sunday. Make something big enough so we can have it on Monday too. Monday night I made an amazing bbq meatloaf. I got the recipe from the Food Network's website. It was really easy and I already had most of the ingredients at home.

I've been shopping at Aldi. Anyone else have one of those near their home? I don't mind buying generic, and I am spending 1/2 what my grocery bill used to be at the regular supermarket. I love Aldi!

[SBETigg]

Tonight it's honey mustard marinated chicken breasts, broiled and served on a salad for the husband and me, and on rolls with ranch dressing, lettuce, cheese as sandwiches for the two kids.

[Beast_fanatic]

I don't know what we are having for dinner tonight, I just know we are going out. :D

[coloradowendyl]

We have a huge white board in the kitchen. Everyone in the house is required to put ideas they think of for dinner on it and I use those for planning meals. Child #2 regularly lists every mexican recipe I have ever made in huge red letters lol!

It is amazing how quickly I can end up with 20 or 30 ideas on the board and as I use them, I cross them off!

I am not a weekly shopper....I have been more of a sale shopper for years so we are typically pretty well stocked...the food storage in the basement is fondly referred to as the "bomb shelter" !

Wendy

[jrkcr]

Dh is not in any harm of loosing his job, but I am still paranoid about money. So I have been very frugal lately with our menu.
We have dinner of beans at least one night a week-my favorite is a black bean soup(so easy my 9 year old can make it!). And I roast an entire chicken stuffed with onion and celery,with rosemary under its skin about once every other week, then I freeze the carcass and use it to make homemade chicken noodle soup. And breakfast one night a week, since DH and I only eat oatmeal in the mornings.
But in answer to your question...tonight I am making spagetti, red sauce with meat(not meatballs, cause I don't know how to make them), and garlic toast.
My biggest change has been no fast food, and eating out at nice restaurants only for special occasions. And I buy only what is on sale that I have a coupon for. I have a lot of time to organize coupons and read sales papers. So I make it a challenge.

[Tinkerbellaella]

These are some great ideas so far. I just tend to get in a rut and cook the same things over and over.

[pink]

I just make my own dinner.

I would be happy with a ham sandwhich and some chicken noodle soup. :mickey:

[Disneyatic]

Tonight we are having goulash...
I brown lean ground meat and season with salt, pepper, garlic and chili powder.
Then I add pasta (I like rotini) and a can of beef broth to simmer it in. I also add a can of mild rotel, a small can of tomato sauce and a can of corn. Then I simmer it all together until the noodles are tender.
It's simple and yummy.

Another favorite of mine is chicken & rice.
I get the boxed cheese and broccoli rice and start putting it all together in a glass baking dish, after that's all mixed, I put the chicken breasts right on top (they are usually covered by the rice juices) and then bake it all together in the oven for about an hour.
The rice flavors the chicken and it's a great 1 dish meal!

[Bethis26fan]

Not tonight, but wednesday night we are having Taco soup. It's a something new for me. A lady at work brought it in for us. It was so good, so I'm going to make it then.

[garymacd]

What's for dinner?

"East Wind and Pea Straw."

That was my old dad's answer whenever we asked the question.

I never knew what that meant. Now it's too late.

[jennbunn]

tonight i made meatloaf,mashed taters,and corn. we are also in a rut. i make tacos and pizza at least once a week. we need some new ideas. ds is a super pickey eater so it's hard to try new meals

[beksy]

I seem to do lasagna and a family favorite known as "chicken casserole" that is super easy and quick all the time. It's hard to adjust from cooking for 5 (at home I did the cooking since Mom is so sick) to cooking for 1 since I went away to school! I have tons of leftovers that I freeze.

[Tick-Tock]

Green chile chicken bowl - rice, black beans, green chile sauce, chicken, monterey jack cheese.

Med salad - roasted red peppers, olives, mozzarella or feta, red onion, vinaigrette dressing

Beef and Spanish Rice Enchiladas with red sauce

Roasted Veggies - red potato, parsnip, carrot, turnip, red onion, garlic, pearl onions, topped with olive oil (with thyme, salt, and pepper) and roasted

Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole

Manicotti

Chicken Pot Pie

[Tinkerbellaella]

That green chile rice bowl sounds good!! How do you cook the chicken? Is it marinaded?

[Tick-Tock]

That green chile rice bowl sounds good!! How do you cook the chicken? Is it marinaded?

We've done it two ways. One is to chop it into chunks and brown it in a pan. The other is to get a hot roasted chicken from the grocery store and slice off the meat. We don't marinade it, but you probably could if you wanted to.

[Bethis26fan]

This thread inspired me. I wrote out a meal plan for the next month. I’m sure we will change some things, but at least I have a plan.:blush:

[Aggie97]

I hate coming up with dinner ideas! I'm glad I'm not the only one.

It's chilly and rainy here today, so tonight I'm making chicken tortilla soup.

[DisneyDog]

This past week I made roasted chicken and potatoes. Very easy, very yummy. Take whole chicken legs (with the thigh attached) and put in a large roasting pan (I use a turkey roaster). Dice sweet vidalia onion and spread throughout the roasting pan. Peel and cut up baking potatoes and put in the pan. Put in baby carrots. The amounts are up to you and how many people you are feeding. Then, drizzle everything with olive oil, and season with paprika, garlic powder and black pepper. Cook on 425 for about an hour, until the potatoes are very tender. I usually "stir" the ingredients every 20 minutes so that it doesn't stick, and maybe put in a little extra olive oil if necessary. It is soooo yummy.

[sleepingbooty]

Tonight I made one of those boxed meal kits - the Macaroni Grill brand Chicken Marsala. It was really good! Probably better than if I'd made it from scratch. I tend to do mostly easy meals, using a lot of convenience foods - but then once a week I'll try a new recipe. The kids never like it - which is why I do the easy stuff the other nights!

[Hull-onian]

Today is Sunday and it is raining fairly hard. So I figured a nice tuna noodle casserole would do. I top it off with parmessan cheese, bread crumbs mixed with butter, and right at the end of baking it I put Frenchs' Onion rings on top. It is soooo good for this type of weather.
During the week it is chicken pot pie, spaghetti, mashed potatoe's and chicken, and one night fish. It isn't easy to come with new ideas week after week, and I wish people in the family would realize it, don't you?:tasty:

[DisneyLuvRSince76]

Dh is not in any harm of loosing his job, but I am still paranoid about money. So I have been very frugal lately with our menu.
We have dinner of beans at least one night a week-my favorite is a black bean soup(so easy my 9 year old can make it!).

I have the same paranoia about my dh and his job :blush:. I know that his job is not in jeopardy, but I still tend to worry.

Can you share your Black Bean Soup recipe. I tried to make it for the second or third time last week, and it was definitely not good. I absolutely love black bean soup, but for some reason have a problem making it. When I really have a craving for it, I end up going to Bahama Breeze and ordering it.

Tonight for dinner is leftovers - Hot & Mild Italian Sausage with various sides. Tomorrow (Monday) will probably be 'Easy Cheesy Chicken Manicotti'.

[amy-rella]

Tonight, we are having homemade beef and noodles. I put a small roast in the crock pot this morning and made a batch of egg noodles, with the help of my DD9. She rolled them out and cut them with a pizza cutter and they dried all afternoon. We try to make a nice homemade dinner every Sunday when things are less hectic. During the week, we make tacos, baked chicken and rice, spaghetti, etc. We are it a rut, too. I like all the new ideas everyone is sharing!

[stitchaholic]

made racheal ray's chicken riggies,it is spicy ,hearty,yummy and choc full of veggies.

it is a chicken and rigatony dish with plenty of roasted peppers and a can pf tomatos

[mouseketeer mom]

I put a top round london broil in a cooking bag. Reynolds makes the cooking bags and everything comes out so tender. I threw baby carrots in the bag with the meat, threw a bottle of teriyaki marinade over the meat and carrots, sealed the bag and roasted it about 1 1/2 hours. I fried some yukon gold potatos with onions on the side. Delicious and easy.

Tomorrow I'm taking thin cut boneless chops and coating them with A Taste of Thai peanut bake. Its like shake and bake, but with a Thai twist. I bake it in the oven about 30 mins. Then I'm making Knorr teriyaki noodles with vegs on the side. Quick and easy and delicious!

[Stich8818]

That we tried over the weekend..For those of you who like Buffalo Chicken..Grab your slow cookers...Chicken breast (about 4 or5)..One dry ranch packet(Hidden Valley or genaric).. and some Franks Red Hot...Throw a little of the franks in the bottom...put some chicken in...cover with a little more franks...then 1/2 of the packet(covering the chicken)...lay another row of chicken on top of that then franks and the rest of the ranch..Slow cook6-8 hrs..When done..pull apart chicken with a fork...to make a shreaded chicken..serve on bread buns of choice..mmm good stuff..


Also how much Franks you use controls the heat..

[Tinkerbellaella]

That chicken recipe sounds good!!! How much Hot sauce did you use? Never used it before to know how much to use. We are about a medium spice family.

[RedSoxFan]

Tonight was lasagna and a garden salad. Tomorrow will be tuna sandwiches as it's Ash Wednesday and because DS17 has a high school basketball game -- playoffs!!

[SandmanGStefani24]

sometimes a nice side can jazz up a normal dish. one really easy side is a roasted veg medley. take a small to medium oven dish and fill it with cubed potatoes, carrots, red or yellow onions and anything else you might like, drizzle lightly with olive oil, season with emeril's essence, mrs dash, or your own spices and bake at 375 for 35-45 minutes. makes the kitchen smell fantastic and tastes great!

another fun and easy dish is a homemade pizza. take a ready to bake crush from the deli or pasta section, and top with your fave toppings, or fancier ones like proscuitto or panchetta, and bake for 10-15. quick, fun and bound to be better than take out!

[Stich8818]

That chicken recipe sounds good!!! How much Hot sauce did you use? Never used it before to know how much to use. We are about a medium spice family.

Well honestly it's a trial and error to speak..There are a few brands of the Franks line...there is the regular sauce(which I use) then there is 3 other flavors. There is a specific Buffalo Wing Sauce from Franks that might have a little less heat.