I Need Recipes!

Try the kraft foods website. They have some great, simple receipes. They even have a magazine they will send you with receipes. They even have a search engine where you can put in ingredients you have on hand and it will come up with a receipe.

Try these:
http://www.easyhomemeals.com/searchForm.asp

http://www.50plusfriends.com/cookbook/crockpot/index-5b.html

http://www.recipezaar.com/

Good Luck!

I came across this site called notakeout.com. It is a "foodie" style site, but the recipies look so simple and they give you a shopping list to print out and a game plan to make it simple and keep you from wasting steps around the kitchen.
I also love the Kraft meal plans where one bag of groceries makes meals for the entire week. It was amazing - and worked. My husband is kind of picky and he even liked it.
Best

Pulled pork! Pork roast in crock pot...cook all day on low. Shred with forks, return to crock pot and add BBQ sauce. Serve on rolls. (Add some 1/2 c. apricot preserves to the BBQ sauce for a sweet, yummy taste!)

If you Google "once a month cooking" you will see tons of websites that could help you. If you do your monthly cooking all at one time, you will feel more like "cooking" since the meals are already made and if you do it on a day that your hubby is off of work, you can both make all the meals together. There are also places like "Let's Dish" where they provide everything there to make all the meals in advance. Your budget will definitely thank you since eating out and quick meals are more expensive than planning meals and eating at home.

Good luck :)

I'm another crock pot fan. I'll cook two meals worth and have leftovers later in the week. I make lasagna and soups and freeze servings to use when I won't have a lot of time to cook. And, frozen veggies are my friend. :-)

Here are two of my favorite crock pot recipes:

Crock Pot Applesauce Chicken

Ingredients:
4 frozen chicken breasts or thighs (If thawed, cooked less)
1 ½ c. applesauce
1 Tbs. dried onion flakes or 1 yellow onion chopped finely
1 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
¼ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ tsp. red pepper flakes, optional

Directions:
Use a 3- or 4-qt. crock pot.
Put frozen chicken into crock pot. Add onion. (If you are using the dried onion, add it to the applesauce.) In a bow, mix applesauce, vinegar, garlic, and spices together. Pour on top of chicken.
Cover and cook on low 5-7 hours, or high for 3-4 hours.

*The first time I made this, the chicken was tough. I think I cooked it too long, so aim for the shorter side of cooking time

No Peek Beef Casserole

2 lb. stew beef (1 inch pieces)
½-1 envelope onion soup mix
10.5 oz. cream of mushroom soup
4 oz. canned mushrooms
½ c red wine
Combine all. Stir. Cover. Cook on low 8-12 hours or high 4-5 hours. Serve over noodles or rice.

Enjoy,
J.

shepards pie

make enough potatos to serve 3 people with a little extra

1.5 lbs ground round (cooked with some seasoning) (per two people with leftovers)
1 pkg brown gravy mix ( use 1/4 cup less water than what calls for) you want it to be kind of thick add water and mix to cooked beef
2 cps mixed veggies (corn.peas,carrots) add to mixture
pour mixture into a large corning baking dish
spread mashed potatos over mixture
bake for 25 minutes at 350 potatos will get golden brown
once fully cooled it can be frozen and reheated.

Stuffed Peppers
6 bell peppers(green are cheap, red are more expensive but sweeter)
1 cup cooked rice (you can get boil a bag and comes out perfect)
1 onion
1 jar of Prego(most flavorful sause so you don't have to add spices)
1 bag shredded cheese
1 lb hamburger meet

cut tops off of bell peppers,use hands to clean inside out, place all in lg. pot w/boiling water, poke with fork to see if they are tender(they will start to lose that bright color), remove and place in strainer to get rid of excess water

cook hamburger meat draining grease, halfway through add chopped onions to cook down, once finished add prego and rice

Stuff Peppers with meat mixture top with cheese and place in over until cheese melts @ 350 degrees.
*if you need more flavor buy Italion seasoning in the spices and you can add 1/2 cup parmasean cheese to meat mixture.

This is fast and quality food you can eat up and not get heavy on.

www.allrecipes.com has loads of simple, budget and kid friendly recipes on it. I think you can even sign up to receive a weekly e-mail of current featured recipes.

I hate cooking, too. I mean, really hate it, like if I had unlimited ingredients I'd rather starve than cook them.

I started going to Dream Dinners about 4 years ago and have never looked back! Once a month, I go for 1-2 hours and they have all the ingredients for an entire month's meals all prepped and ready to go. They provide instructions on how to assemble everything and even a little freezer label stating what it is and how to cook it. So every night after dinner, I take one meal from the freezer, put it in the fridge to thaw, and every night when I get home from work, the meal is thawed and ready to go. Most meals take a minimum of actual cooking and zero prep work since you already did that, it's all right there ready to go. The meals are pretty healthy, and honestly they are not that expensive. I've saved about $200 a month on my grocery bill. If you don't have Dream Dinners nearby, there's always Super Suppers, Dinner My Way, etc. I buy the 6 serving dinners and that way there are leftovers that I can take to work for lunch the next day.

I hope that helps you! It makes dinner preparation so much less of a chore!

If you hate cooking I would invest in a slow cooker and buy a recipe book for slow cookers. It's very hard to screw up slow cooker recipes. You start them in the morning and they just get better and better as they cook. You can serve most slow cooker meals with quinoa, rice, cous-cous, etc. If you get a nice big slow cooker you will have plenty of room for delicious left overs.

I also do lots of simple meals -- a bag of frozen mixed veggies (about a dollar from Kroger) in a steamer in the microwave, some grilled meat (chicken breast, chicken legs, ground turkey patties, anything), a starch side. Easy peasy.

You're in Arlington -- Hit up Half-priced books for a few recipe books. Great place to get started.

I would also suggest looking at the cookbook by that food network lady that does "almost" homecooked. I've seen her cookbook at Half priced books too. She uses some short cuts to make meals faster. Found her.. Sandra Lee - Semi homecooked
http://www.foodnetwork.com/semi-homemade-cooking-with-san...

Good luck :)

To make it simple and use the ingredients you mention, toss some onion and peppers in a skillet with olive oil for about 4 - 5 minutes, remove them and toss chicken or beef in the same skillet, season to taste, and cook until meet is just cooked. Add the veggies back in and top with about 1/4 cup chicken or beef stock and cover. Let it simmer for about 2 - 3 more minutes and place on top of a bed of rice.

A rice cooker and crock pot will be your best friends if you hate to cook. Recipes are enclosed in both boxes.

I think if you hate to cook, then ground beef is your best friend!! Sometimes on weeks when I am just not in the mood I buy the three lb chub of beef and I make the following three things.
1)Spaghetti-saute onion, brown 1 lb ground beef in sauteed onion, add store bought bottle of sauce, season up sauce w italian season, a dash of sugar, and a bit of Tony's, bring to a boil and then let simmer about 10 min, boil noodles and drain, serves 4. For a side I buy those little mini ears of corn and you just boil them for like 5 min and they are perfect.
2) Tacos-saute onion, brown 1lb ground beef in sauteed onion, add 1 pkg of taco season(I use Great Value from Wal-Mart for only 33 cents!) and follow instructions, put 1/4 cup meat in tortilla or taco shell and add shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, salsa, avocado and sour cream. The best part is if your kids are old enough, they can just build their own. I usually do a mini ear of corn with this meal too. Makes two tacos for 4 people.
3) Meat Over Rice- saute onion, brown 1lb ground beef in sauteed onion,add one can of low fat cream of mushroom soup(store brand works great), pour in just enough milk to get soup into a more liquid state but not too watery, stir and season with a dash of soy sauce, salt, pepper, garlic powder and Tony's. Serve 1/2 cup of meat mixture over 1/2 cup of rice. I usually just boil some frozen broccoli and it goes great with this meal:)
When I am REALLY not in the mood, I get my onion in the freezer section. They actually sell chopped, frozen onion. It tastes great and costs like $1. So that is what I do with 3lbs of ground chuck when I want some easy meals. I didn't put this in the directions, but make sure you drain the meat before doing anything else after you brown it. I keep a pickle jar or coffee can in the fridge to pour the grease into and just toss it in the trash when it's full. Best of luck!! I second the rice cooker suggestions and the Allrecipes.com suggestions, both of those have been a life saver for me!!!

I hate to cook, too. I found a crock pot recipe book that has 5 ingredients or less per recipe for those of us who hate to cook (no chopping up a million things and buying a million different spices). The kinds of ingredients you use are ones that already have more than one thing in them..... like I made a yummy recipe the other night and all it was is a couple of large sweet potatoes, an onion (I used half an onion), cut up pieces of uncooked chicken breast, and a container of honey mustard salad dressing

I make meatloaf, too. You can do an internet search and find a zillion different recipes to suit your preference-- mine is a pound of sirloin, plus a tube of Italian sausage, one egg, a generous squirt of barbque sauce, and enough bread crumbs for it to look right-- I'm sorry I don't measure it, but it's somewhere probably around a cup of seasoned crumbs. That's it. Because of the flavors in the sausage, seasoned crumbs, and bbq sauce, I don't add anything else. Mix it all up well and spread it in a baking pan. I stopped doing it in a loaf pan and started using a square brownie pan instead-- it cooks faster because it's spread out more and it gets crispier on top. Cook at 350 --check after 40 minutes and see if it's done to your liking or cook longer. Usually takes an hour, but check it after 40 just in case.

I made meatloaf yesterday and I think no one was hungry because they like it when I make it but there was a lot left over, so tonight I made lasagna. You can buy the noodles you don't have to boil first, or you can make it with ziti noodles so you don't have to fuss with the slippery lasagna noodles. I just stirred the leftover meatloaf (broken up) into a jar of sauce, then followed the recipe on the lasagna box to stir 2 eggs with ricotta cheese and shredded mozarella. I had another jar of sauce on hand to add more sauce as I went--- I again used brownie pan and made 2 smaller ones instead of one big one so there were no leftovers to clean up and I have a second pan to pop in the oven for an easy dinner again in a couple of days

A crock pot may be your best friend. However, you can do somethings in the oven as well:

pot roast with carrots, peas and potatoes
whole chicken or wings with rice
chicken wings with spaghetti sauce over rice
corned beef with potatoes and cabbage
dirty rice with a side of broccoli or green beans
lasagna and side salad
spaghetti and side salad
mini meatloaves and mashed potatoes
cajun baked fish and rice with a side of green beans
pot pie (2 store bought pie shells, frozen veggies, your own gravy and chopped meat of your choice)
chili with corn bread baked on top

I try to buy in bulk and prepare all of my own food, that way, I know the sodium and fat contents are not high. Make sure that your veggies are fresh or frozen, even if it says low or no salt on the can, there is (under a certain amount, they aren't required to list it). My list is endless, but I try to spend minimal time in the kitchen because I have so much to do, so most of the things that I named to you only require about 10-12 minutes of prep time. If you need any help on how to prepare these things, don't hesitate to drop me a line. I gave too long a list to give you step by step for everything here.

I'm going to second the allrecipes website. AWESOME! Reviewers rate the recipes so you know if they are decent. They have a "recipe of the day" and easy, quick meal options.
Also, supercook.com is great. If you stock your kitchen with the basics, you can type in what ingredients you have at home and the site will list all the things you can make with what you have at home at that moment. It's great for when you didn't plan ahead and don't know what to make.
Also, crockpots are the best. You put a chunk of meat in it and it cooks itself. Pulled pork, as mentioned.... perfect. You can do beef roasts, chicken with pasta added later soups. Beef stew- throw in the beef with carrots, potatoes, and any other veggie want and it's done. Allrecipes has crockpot recipes, too. Good luck and happy eating!

Cracker Crumb Chicken

Boneless, skinless chicken pieces
Melted butter or margarine
Finely crushed Club Crackers

Dip chicken pieces, one at a time, into the butter then roll in the cracker crumbs. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes till golden. (you can use bone-in pieces, but they need to cook longer -- about an hour)

www.tasteofhome.com is a great website... has recipes with ordinary ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen.

they have a magazine too and a cookbook that comes out annually

My aunt gave me about a dozen of these cookbooks when I moved into my own apartment years ago. I had fun trying new recipes. The cookbooks have all categories: appetizers, main dishes, desserts, cooking large quantities, etc. good luck!

To make it easier, work into things. Don't try to make something from scratch every night. Maybe get a few recipes you can make from scratch a couple nights a week.

For the rest, use frozen pizzas, hamburger and chicken helper, packaged crock pot meals, and family-sized frozen meals. Those usually provide enough for leftovers. Make sure to choose options that are reasonably healthy, though. Check the labels.

An occasional rotisserie chicken from the super market works well too. I use the leftover meat the next day for a chicken soup. Just get all the meat you can off the bones and dump it in a pot with some chicken broth, quick cook rice (Uncle Ben's long grain and wild rice works well), and some sort of frozen veggies (carrots and peas work well). Then boil it all until the rice is cooked. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Salads are easy to make and steaming about any frozen veggies are also easy. Cheese sauce makes those veggies kids dislike more palatable. To make it, melt Velveeta with some milk until you get the thickness you prefer. Remember that the steamed veggies will probably have a bit of water around them that will thin the sauce a bit. You can Velveeta w/ 2% milk that's a bit healthier than regular Velveeta, also.

Once you get more comfortable making things from scratch, you can start doing more of the from scratch things and less of the convenience things.

You say your husband is a good cook. When he's home on weekends, have him show you how he makes some of his simpler things. Then you'll have those recipes to use and some practice on how to do it before you have to fly solo.

Expand your sandwich repertoire - get lots of different cold cuts, or make a tuna salad.
Buy a premade rotisserie chicken and either buy mashed potatoes, get the half-made frozen kind, or make from scratch and make some frozen veggies.
Other things to do with a rotisserie chicken - shred and serve with rice, black beans and tortillas. Shred and coat with BBQ sauce and turn it into "pulled chicken" sandwiches. Cut up, mix with veggie mix, top with cream of chicken soup, top with biscuits from a can and bake for the easiest chicken pot pie.
Think creative on pasta - serve with meatballs (the frozen ones). But also try ravioli or tortolini or gnocci (potato pasta). Instead of tomato sauce, try pesto.
How about breakfast food? Scrambled eggs and toast and fruit. Or you can make bake-able french toast. Place sliced bread in a glass dish. Mix 2 parts egg and 1 part milk and pour over and refrigerate overnight. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes - 1 hour.
Hope this helped!

Check out some food blogs there are a ton out there. One of my favorites is mommyskitchen.net. From there you can find other sites linked to hers.

One of my easy things is bbq chicken sandwiches. I get a couple of onions doesnt matter yellow, white etc. Cut into thick slices and line the bottom of the crock pot with them. Then get chicken breast, lay it on top of onions. Put salt, pepper etc. Whatever you like. Little bit of water and then cook on low for about 8 hours. When its done, shread with fork. We put the meat on store bought onion rolls and then I have a plate of fresh sliced onions and pickles to put on the sandwich. Add some bbq sauce of your choice to the buns and then serve with chips or fries! Its real easy!

Go to allrecipes.com. They have great ideas there, and every recipe I have tried from that site has been a big hit with my family!

And as a side note - cook using whole foods (not processed) and it will help your hubby lose some weight!

Fresh veggies are alway the best, but frozen is the next best and much easier. Most frozen veggies all you need to do is put in a microwave safe dish, with a tiny bit of water and pop in the microwave.

For dinner tonight... just put it in the oven,
pork loin, sprinkle with garlic powder and pepper, place in the center of a glass baking dish. Cut up potatoes (I leave the skins on, making sure I scrub them first) and carrot and place them around the roast. Add about a 1/2 cup of water to the pan, put in the oven at 325 for about an hour.

Grilled boneless chicken breast can be your best friend. Marinate the chicken breast in a bowl or a big ziplock for a few hours, overnight is better). Italian salad dressing makes a great marinate or there are tons of varieties in the store. (note: you don't even need to marinate, but I think it keeps the meat moist). Another trick to helping keep it moist is cut the breast in half, it cooks more evenly so the ends aren't overcooked. Now you can have the chicken breast just as is for dinner. You can cut it into chunks and toss on top of a salad for a light meal. You can slice it up to make sandwiches. You can use the chunks to make chicken salad.

For a side dish, a favorite for the kids, ranch potatoes (hot or cold). Peal and cut potatoes into chucks, boil until cooked, and drain. Mix dry ranch dip seasoning with sour cream and mix over the pototoes. If you'd like add some chives, scallions, or chopped celery.

Tacos are simple. Brown a lb of ground beef, drain off excess fat, add a taco seasoning packet and water (the amount is on the back of the package), simmer. You could also saute some onions with the ground beef. Serve on taco shells or tortillas, topped with any combination of the following sour cream, salsa, shreaded lettuce, shreaded cheese, chopped tomatoes, chopped black olives. You could also drain and rinse canned corn or black beans and add these.

Have fun!

chicken pot pie: 2 thawed pie crusts, 2 can of mixed veggies, 2 cooked chicken breasts cut up in small chunks, 1 can cream of chicken soup, 1/2 cup milk......mix all ingred together & pour into pie crust, put the other pie crust on top & poke holes with a fork & cinch the pie crusts together & bake on 350 for about 45 min....yum

beef stew over mashed potatoes: beef stew meat, can of beef broth, 2 packets of brown gravy, lots of veggies (whatever your kids will eat) mine like mushrooms, peas, carrots, green beans.....put everything in a crock pot on low for 8 hours & serve on top of mashed potatoes........this is my kids favorite dinner

taco soup: brown 1/2 pd-1 pd hamurger meat with onion, put into crockpot, add 4 cans diced tomatoes, 2 cans kidney beans, 2 can pinto beans, black beans, 1 can corn, 1 packet ranch dressing, 1 packet taco seasoning, cook on low 8 hours.......serve with shredded cheese, sour cream....use tortilla chips to eat or serve on top of rice

Hi Betheny,
Corn Flake Chicken ! Soooo easy. I buy the Great Value chicken breast from Wal-mart. Thaw about 3 hrs before in a sink of cool water.When you are ready to cook, heat oven to 350, Prepare a cookie sheet lined with foil and sprayed. If you have a food processor,(if not, just crush the old fashioned way!) crush about 4 c of corn flakes and lay out on a plate, put about 3/4c of ranch dressing and dilute down a little with about 1/4 c warm water, in a dipping bowl. Now season your chicken with lemon pepper, a little salt,, garlic, pepper, whatever you like, dip in ranch, roll in flakes, lay on cookie sheet, bake for 45 min on 350 ! Keep in mind, you may need to make more flakes or ranch depending on how much chicken you make.

Could you send me your personal email? I can share many and they are easy and fun, plus good to eat.
Never mind-I just read your replys and they are awesome. I also got a couple new recipes from them-way to go. Good Luck!