Freezer Meals or Fast Meals

A crock pot will go a long way to helping you.
Put the ingredients into it in the morning, have it cook all day and it's ready when you come home.
Chili, soups, stews are all great.

I'm sure you'll get lots of food ideas so I'll just chime in with this, bring your boys IN the kitchen with you! I don't know why so many moms think they should be stuck in the kitchen while the kids are out doing something else. Kids actually LOVE being in there with you and being a part of making the meal, even if it's just reheating leftovers or sticking something in the microwave or oven. If they are still little they can set the table, stir the sauce, help put dishes in the dishwasher, etc. Bigger kids can wash and chop and REALLY be a help, and you get to spend time together talking about your day.
My kids are 22, 19 and 16 now and meal time is still quality family time in my home (and they all know how to cook, an important life skill!)

Congrats on embarking on this new phase of your life!

Rachael Ray does a ton of articles on cooking once a week and creating new meals. For example, a roast (or supermarket rotisserie

Depending on what your kids eat, some good recipes to google are:

1) Tamale Pie (ground beef, tomatoes, any veggies they like such as peppers and corn), and a corn bread topping. You can make it in a big casserole dish, then split it with a spatula into several nights' meals.

2) American chop suey

3) Chicken nuggets or fingers (we make our own with wheat germ and whole wheat bread crumbs

4) Stir Fry - make the rice ahead, pre-cut the veggies or use what the store packs for you, then fry up in about 10 minutes with the reheated rice.

5) Pasta & meatballs - you can make your own or buy the frozen turkey or Italian meatballs

6) Roasted vegetables - make on a cookie sheet in about 20 minutes. Use any combination of sweet or regular potatoes (oven fries), or any kind of squash, and you can add in broccoli or cauliflower florets to the potatoes or make them separately. If you wash and pre-cut the veggies (except the potatoes - if you pre slice, coat them in oil before refrigerating so they don't turn brown), you can throw everything on the cookie sheet when you get home, and talk about their day or supervise some homework while stuff bakes.

7) Honey mustard chicken - marinate chicken tenders in a half/half mix of the two, throw into a baking dish when you get home and they cook in about 25 minutes at 350, less if they are smaller pieces.

8) Teriyaki chicken - same as above, just soy sauce or teriyaki glaze.

9) Use quinoa, couscous or Israeli couscous for a faster cook time than rice. Add canned or presoaked/crockpot-cooked dried beans, a handful of frozen veggies (corn, peas, etc.) into this as it heats.

10) If they eat eggs, look into quiches (spinach, Lorraine) or frittatas (like quiches but without the crust). Also google "muffin tin eggs" and you'll see quick little mini-quiches that are great for breakfast or dinner.

11) Homemade pizza - the kids can do their own. Get them involved in meal prep. Use refrigerated pizza dough (our supermarket has regular and whole wheat in the dairy section and the prepared foods section), a pre baked crust (such as Boboli or others), or Naan bread.

Check out the website for Cooking Light magazine. They have some really tasty, quick meal ideas.

Dinner time is a pressure cooker, no matter the family dynamic.
Here's a couple things that work for us.
•Cook a few things on Sat or Sunday (or your day off).
Meatballs, meat sauce, meatball subs O. night, pasta & meatballs another.
Chicken soup/chicken salad
Meatloaf--hot O. night, cold Sammies another
•when you make something, double it and freeze half. Defrost when you leave for work Soups? Make big pots! Freeze quarts of it.
•fast stuff: sloppy Joes, hamburgers, breaded chicken tenderloins (20 minutes, add salad, veggie) pepperoni rolls with pillsbury pizza crusts, pepperoni, mozzarella (20 minutes at 350), cold or toasted subs, philly cheese steaks, cod fillet sandwiches, cold green salad, add grilled chicken strips or leftover steak, beef roast.
•Crockpot! Soups, shredded chicken & salsa for enchiladas, etc. Roast, potatoes, carrots.
Good luck!

I like to buy meat in large quantities and freeze it in portions. On my good days, I place the appropriate amount in the fridge in the morning so that all I have to do is broil it. That is a huge time saver.

Tacos
Spaghetti or pasta
Stir Fry

As much as possible, chop vegetables and cut up meat the night before. If you do a stir fry, you just throw the meat and veggies into the pan for 5 to 10 minutes and make some rice.

For me the key is really doing some prep the night before or doing prep on the weekends and freezing portions. I don't usually cook the entire meal and freeze it. Usually it's just parts of the meal. Then I can cook them all in a short amount of time.

I would just like to say that although most of the time electronic items don't catch on fire but it can happen. IF you do decide to do a crock pot or something similar please check the cord for cracks and wires. I had a friend whose house burned to the ground because they went down the street to a softball game and left a floor fan running. It shorted out and they lost everything.

So I always use a crock pot and other things like that when someone is home.

You can do a lot of cooking on the weekends and freeze them into single meal servings. Then when you get home you can quickly heat them up.

But getting the kids in the kitchen helping is sharing chores and making memories. Don't discount it completely.

i cook taco meat in big batches on the weekend and put the amounts we need for meals in small bags and thaw out enough to make simple cheese, lettuce and meat tacos. minute rice and some corn and i call that a meal.

i also love my slow cooker, i can toss chicken, pork or beef in and add some carrots and forget about everything. i just google or pinterest recipies for what ever i have and looks ok.

We have a pot of pasta, and a pot of rice on the go at all times. Meaning, I cook up pasta, drain it, rinse with cold water, then toss with some oil so it doesn't stick to itself. Undressed, it keeps in the fridge for a few days. Same with rice.

When we want a fast meal, we saute onion, fresh or frozen veg, and a small portion of quick cooking meat (chicken breast strips, skirt steak, ground beef, pork chops, bacon, meatballs). add the sauce/ seasoning of your choice and take it in all sorts of directions-
marinara, alfredo, pesto, vodka - italian
masala, curry- indian
peanut/ siracha - thai/ malasian
teriyaki- japanese
soy/ plum - chinese
salsa, taco - mexican

at the last minute after the veg is either wilted or cooked add the pre-cooked starch (pasta/ rice) and heat enough to warm through and absorb some of the sauce. dinner in 15 minutes max.

Also, if you like salad, you can chop everything, so long as you don't dress it until the last minute, you should be fine.

Best,
F. B.