Meal Ideas - Ann Arbor,MI

My favorite lately is the cheesy shicken and rice casarole on the back of the Ccampbells cream of chicken soup label. It is really easy and quick and the whole family loves it.

Hi there, I work full-time and find it challenging to put something on the table that is quick yet healthy and nutritious. Here's a recipe that my entire family loves (even the little ones!)

Chicken "chili"
2 cans fat free chicken broth
2 large cans of tyson chicken (undrained)
2 cans no salt added corn (drained)
2 cans Great Northern beans (undrained)
1 jar salsa

Mix together in a large pot and simmer for 15 minutes. Lots of fiber, and tastes great. Serve with baked tortilla chips or fritos.

Hi K.. Ravioli soup: Sautee onion and garlic in olive oil. Put in a big pot with whatever canned tomatoes you like and chicken stock. When heated though add ravioli. Cook for about 10 minutes. Just before serving, add fresh spinach. I use the mini ravioli and Difratelli crushed tomatoes. It doesn't take long to make.
Beef and Barley soup: leftover roast cut up, cubed potato, celery chopped, beef stock, and barley. Combine in a crock pot and let slow cook all day.
ope this helps, L.

I got the Rachael Ray cookbook YUMMO for Christmas, and love it! It's full of great ideas and recipes. Most of the recipes I don't follow exactly, I just use it for inspiration.

There are a couple of sites for easy to do recipes.
Check out campbells.com, taste of home.com and also prevention.com

I hope that this helps you.

J. C

I 2nd the Kraftfoods.com site. You can also sign up for their magazine that comes out a few times a year. It has some great ideas in it. I really like the chicken bruchetta bake they have on there. SUPER easy.

As much as I don't like using boxed processed stuff, it works in a pinch:

PastaRoni white cheddar shells - make and stir in cut up deli ham & canned peas

Velveeta shells & cheese - cut up onion/red pepper/green pepper, cook with hamburger and spices (i have used garlic/pepper or cumin/chili powder), make shells, stir together

Lipton spanish rice - cut up onion, cook with hamburger, cook rice, stir together and put in baking dish and top with cheese, bake at 350 for 20-30 mins

French Fry casserole - layer uncooked hamburger, onion, canned or frozen green beans, cream of chicken or mushroom soup, sliced cheese (we use colby jack), frozen french fries or tator tots - bake at 375 for 1 hour

kraftfoods.com has LOTS of yummy and easy recipes. Our faves are pizza pasta, and these yummy meatballs with shredded carrots in them. Check em out :)

My favorite meal - Burnt Hot Dogs - Put hot dogs in a frying pan on high, go to next room to do laundry, return to very burnt hot dogs, give them to the dog and call the pizza guy. Okay, it must be late... seriously - the easiest recipe?
- Ramen Noodles, Pre-cooked chicken breast strips, peas --- cook in pan for 5 minutes.

or a tiny bit more sophisticated...
- fajitas - soft burrito shells, pre-cooked chicken strips, sauteed onions and peppers, shredded cheese, salsa

or something that appears gourmet...
chicken puff pastries...
- In medium skillet over medium-high heat, heat 2T butter. Add 4 chicken breasts, salt/pepper (if desired) and cook until browned. Remove chicken from skillet. Cover and refrigerate 15 minutes or up to 24 hours.
Thaw Pepperidge Farms Frozen Puff pastry sheet at room temperature for 30 minutes. Mix 1 egg and 1T water and set aside. Preheat oven to 400° F.
Unfold pastry on lightly floured surface. Roll into 14 inch square and cut into 4 (7 inch) squares. Spread about 2-4 Tablespoons of Herbed Cream Cheese in center of each square. Sprinkle with 1 Tablespoon parsley and top with cooled chicken. Brush edges of squares with egg mixture. Fold each corner to center on top of chicken and seal edges. Place seam side down on baking sheet. Brush with egg mixture.
Bake 25 minutes or until golden.

Here's a simple recipe which only includes a couple ingredients.
Place chicken breasts on the bottom of a baking dish. Cover with slices of swiss cheese. cover the entire dish with cream of chicken soup. (I like to use cream of chicken with herbs). Sprinkle about 1 1/2 cups dry stove top stuffing on top. Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes. Let the dish cool for a little bit so the cheese can harden back up a little.
I work out of the home full time and have 2 kids. I can get home, make dinner, and be done eating by 6:30 or 7:00 at the latest. My 5 year old daughter loves it.
Serve with prepared stove top and a frozen veggie for an easy weeknight meal.

I really hope you try this because it is delicious and really easy.

Slow cooker recipes ROCK! I love my slow cooker. Throw everything in... and then forget it until dinner.

I've written out some of my favorite recipes. I apologize that there aren't many specific measurements. I have done these for so long I don't use a recipe anymore and often have adjusted the amounts to suit our tastes.

One slow cooker recipe I use often is: Beef Stew

Stewing Beef
Onion
Mushrooms
Carrots and any other 'root' veggies that you may like. I often throw in some parsnip
1 can V-8 or other Vegetable Juice
Worcheshire Sauce
TBL Sugar
A thickening agent, like tapioca (you need 4-5 TBL)

Set it and serve over wide egg noodles. Super yum!

Another recipe I like is this one for Meatloaf. I know what you're thinking MEATLOAF??? YUCK! But this is good.

1 lb ground beef
1/2 lb ground sausage
1/2 medium onion chopped fine
some parsley (if you like, I don't always use this) chopped fine
1/2 cup BBQ Sauce
2 eggs beaten

mix everything together, press into a loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes at 350.

Remove from oven and spread topping on.

Topping:
Dijon Mustard (a really good hearty squirt)
BBQ Sauce - about 1/4 cup give or take

Return to oven and bake an additional 20-30 minutes

Serve with potatoes and veg.

Have some extra 'topping' on the side... it's a really yummy sauce for the meatloaf.

Seriously...I typically hate meatloaf. This recipe is awesome. My husband and daughter devour it!

Another good standby for us:

Tuna Caserole

Noodles - cooked to al dente
Frozen (or canned) corn and peas
2 large cans of Tuna in Water
RANCH DRESSING (enough to take the mix wet and saucy)

Mix everything together
Put into a casserole dish, bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Quiche

1 Pilsbury ready to bake crust - baked
6 Eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup dry white wine (the milk/wine ratio can be adjusted to taste. If you don't normally use wine in cooking, use more milk and less wine.)
Paprika - couple good shakes
Salt/Pepper
1TBL Dijon Mustard

Mix everything together with a whisk.

In your baked and cooled pie shell, put in your 'fillings'. It's a good idea to always include grated cheese.... about 1/2 of one of the smaller bags.

Other good fillers are mushrooms, ham cubes, and peppers. I will also sometimes throw in some baby spinach for a boost of vitamins if the family hasn't gotten a good amount of veg during the day.

You can also do just cheese, tomatoes and basil. Be creative and use whatever your family likes.

Put your fillings into the pie shell, and gently pour the egg mix over top. It's a good idea to put yoru pie plate on a cookie sheet for easy transfer to the oven. The pie plate WILL be very full with liquid.

Bake at 375 for about 60-70 minutes. This may need to be adjusted depending on your oven. The quiche should be a little puffy in the oven, but not gooey in the middle. It should be set. A knife in the middle should come out clean.

Remove from oven, let set for 5-10 minutes. It will 'fall'. That's normal. Letting it set before serving allows for much easier serving of the pieces. Cut like a pie and serve. Great with a salad.

So...there you go. If you want to try out some good easy recipes, next time you're at the grocery store and standing in the checkout line... look for those little small paper back recipe books. I've gotten SO many great ideas and recipes from those. I have quite the extensive collection in addition to my numerous cookbooks. (I'm a kitchen addict. ha ha ha) But really, they are typically good recipes that are easy. Normally they also will include some good 'kitchen tips'. Around the holidays you can always find some with super dessert recipes.

Also, if you're looking for good cookbooks... Nigella Lawson. Love her. Her recipes are easy to follow and are ALWAYS fabulous. I have NEVER gotten a bad review from anything of hers I've done. She'll make you look like a kitchen goddess! :-) I've often made things of hers ... desserts or breads and people have thought I BOUGHT it at a bakery or something.

Good luck! Watch out though.... cooking can be addictive! :-) Once you get the bug and find how fun and easy it is, you too could become a kitchen addict.

Enjoy!

One of the easiest dinners we make that pleases everyone is doing breakfast for dinner. For us, that usually means pancakes or french toast, sausage and fresh fruit like berries, bananas or melon slices. Pick your favorites and whip them up. Sometimes I make an omelette and toast for the hubby with eggs, ham and cheese. Not stuff we make frequently but good for a nice easy, quick meal once in awhile.

K.,

A few of my simple meals are :
Burritos and sauce

6 frozen burriots placed in a greased cake pan.

In a sauce pan combine:
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 10 oz can tomato soup
2 cups water
1 envelope chili seasoning

Bring to a boil and pour over burritos in cake pan. Bake 350 degrees for 30 min then top with shredded cheddar cheese and return to oven until cheese melts.

MEATBALLS AND SAUCE
1 lb pkg frozen meatballs in crock pot
use any of the following for sauce:
cream of chicken or mushroom soup
BBQ sauce
Spaghetti sauce
Stir fry sauce
Sweet and sour sauce

*if using cream soup serve with noodles (or instant mashed potatoes), if using spaghetti sauce serve with spaghetti, if using stir fry or sweet and sour sauce serve with rice.

BREAKFAST BURRITOS
scrambled eggs
any of the following
peppers
onion
cooked sausage, ham, or bacon
cheese
cooked broccoli
cooked shredded or cubed potatoes

combine and roll into tortilla. These are also great to make in advance and freeze individually for breakfasts.

BREAKFAST CASSEROLE
6 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 cup cooked and drained sausage, or ham or bacon
2 cups southern syle frozen hash browns
1 cup shredded cheese

mix and pour into cake pan, cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake the next day 350 degrees for approx 30 min or until eggs are set.

I have more too, if your interested let me know and I'll get some additional recipes around for you.

Hey, K.,

I know you have alot to chose from here...I am also not a stellar cook, but these two recipes are easy and taste great!

Lemon Chicken and Rice

4-6 defrosted chicken breasts (I get the bags of frozen ones)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup lemon juice

AS MUCH AS YOU WANT OF THESE:
dill weed
garlic powder
salt
pepper

Mix olive oil, lemon juice, and seasonings. Dump over chicken. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes, then uncover it and bake at 425 for 10 minutes. (If you are serving more, just add more chicken and use more oil and lemon juice in equal amounts. Then adjust seasonings accordingly.)
Make up some rice (whatever you prefer). The sauce tastes GREAT on both the chicken and the rice. I always make extra sauce! This is a great recipe for guests, since it tastes and smells great, but doesn't require a culinary degree. I serve it with steamed broccoli or pea pods or other veggies I have in the freezer.

POTATO SOUP....
(don't worry, you won't cut or peel a single potato!)

1 bag southern style hashbrowns (2 lb. bag)
1 can chicken broth
1/2 cup chopped onion (I use the frozen chopped, to use even less dishes and time!) You could use minced onion too...from the seasoning section.
1 package cream cheese (I use the 1/3 less fat kind)
1 can cream of chicken soup (I use the 98% fat free kind)
1 cup milk

Combine hashbrowns, broth, and onions in large pot. Heat until boiling...when the potatoes get soft...about 15 minutes. Add other ingredients and mix well. Heat through. I serve it with chives, cheddar cheese, and bacon. This soup is GREAT for kids, because it is really normal looking and palatable, but you can add stuff to make it more interesting. By far, the best potato soup recipe I have ever used, and the easiest. I just made a huge batch of it last weekend for extended family. Every drop was gone!

Happy cooking! :)

jess

We call it Junk... Others may call it mexican lasagnia...
I don'[t know exact amounts so i'll just tell you how I do it...
2 lbs of browned beef
1 or 2 packs of tortillas (i use flour, but corn works too.)
a couple cans of tomato sauce can also use any spaggetti sauce)
a couple cans of whole kernel corn.
Layer in a pan...
Top with shredded cheese and bake at about 400 until warm and cheese is all melty. (1/2 an hour if beef was hot, longer if it was cold)

I sometimes use left over taco meat

Serve and top with sour cream...

You can also put in beans... We call it junk because this was the dish mom made to use up a bunch of cans of stuff that the lables had all mysteriously vanished from... (Two 2 yr olds did that) so we never really knew what was in it...

I'd recommend the Kraft website. You can sign up for their email newsletter and they send out all kids of great recipes. They're simple with common ingredients (and lots of kraft products). They'll even send you a monthly magazine with tons of recipes as well, and there are lots on their site.

Aside from that there are lots of great recipes online on other sites, just type in an ingredient, a recipe name, anything like that and you'll get lots of options to choose from.

Good luck!

one of the greatest sites I use is www.allrecipes.com
they have all kinds of meals, including quickie meals, and all levels of complexity.

There is a rating system, and comments on each recipe, as well as preparation time. I store all the ones I use in my free recipe box, that way, if I travel, (or just go across town to a friend's house) I have access to all of them.

Great ideas on their home page.

2 of my absolute favorites from this site are the black bean layered enchiladas (20 min tops) and the Easy Slow cooker French dip.

NOTE: I have never had a recipe fail when I check the rating - I dont use anything under 4 stars. I do catering, and many many people love these dishes. I can count on the quality of the reviews.

Happy searching.

Hi K.,

Boy, this is right up my alley!! I love food, but really hate spending all day in the kitchen making it happen, so I have quite a few delicious but easy dishes! Heres 2 of them...

#1)A roundsteak (or similarly cut beef), 1-2 green peppers, 1 16oz can tomato sauce. Slice your beef and peppers into strips,toss into a crock pot. Cover with t.sauce. Pepper to taste...stir. Cook at either 4 hours on high...or 8 hours on low. Stir occasionally. Serve with mashed potatoes, or over them (instant works here! lol) and veggie of choice. I serve corn, as we like it and adds color to the plate!

#2)Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare Stove Top Chicken Stuffing as directed on package, set aside. Mix 1-inch pieces of chicken (1 & 1/2 pounds worth), a can of condensed cream of chicken soup, 1/3 cup of sour cream and a 16oz bag of frozen mixed veggies in a 13x9-inch baking dish. Top with the prepared stuffing. Bake for 30 min. or until chicken is cooked through. (you can find this recipe on the back of the stove top box!)

Both these have received raves from my family and friends as well. Super easy...super yummy! Enjoy!

Oooops, thought of another one...cheap and easy!!

Brown 1&1/2 pounds burger with half a med. onion chopped in fry pan. Drain. Add 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, 1/2-3/4 c. sour cream, pepper to taste. Heat through and serve over noodles. Kind of a mock stroganoff! Fast and easy!!

J.

I have a lot of easy recipes but one recipe book I love is "Fix It And Forget It" It is for slow cooker (crockpot) recipes. The recipes take very few simple ingredients and most don't take very long (4-5 hours) to cook.
You can find it at amazon.com. I have even seen it at local stores that carry books too.

Happy Cooking!!

I hate cooking. HATE it. Here is a recipe that a friend gave me and now I make it a lot, we love it. Really easy and good.
Chicken Potpie

package pillsbury refrigerated pie crust (2 crusts)
1 lb chicken breast
2 cups vegetables (I used Trader Joe's frozen "organic foursome" has peas, beans, corn, carrots, measure out 2 cups, but any frozen veggie mix is good)
1 cup potatoes, cubed
olive oil
2 cans healthy request cream of chicken soup
1/2 c skim milk
salt, pepper, onion powder, whatever else you want

OK. Follow pie crust directions, bake the bottom crust in a nice pie pan (ungreased) 450 for 10 minutes. Cook the chicken in salted water, cube. In a saucepan, heat olive oil and cook the cubed potatoes until a little soft and browned. Add the 2 cups of frozen vegetables and stir together to heat through. Add the cooked chicken and 2 cans of soup, milk, seasoning. Stir together, Pour into the baked piecrust. Roll the top crust over it and press the sides down with a fork, cut slits in the top. Bake this in the 450 oven for a half hour. I can't tell you how great this turned out! You can save time by preparing the chicken in advance and prepping the potatoes beforehand. Or buy precooked chicken.

I love the website www.allrecipes.com ! It has great recipes and ideas. 2 good features - you can search by ingredients to find something to make with what is in your cupboard and most recipes have reviews to read. Read through the reviews before making the recipe. It saves a lot of mistakes!

Have fun!

My favorite easy dinners are quesadillas, tacos, burritos (anything Mexican-ish). Just need to have tortillas, shredded cheese, salsa on hand- and for extras I throw in black bean, avocado, chips. I am vegetarian, so I don't have to worry about meat- but my husband sometimes adds chicken (grilled and sliced)/. Those are always my "default" meals when I don't want to think of anything. I love cooking, but being a full-time working mom, I hate thinking of what to make.

I'm a member of e-mealz, which is a subscription based menu planning service. It's $15 for 3 months and what you do is logon every Tuesday to get a new menu for the week. It has the recipes AND the shopping list for each meal. There have only been a few things we've tried that we didn't like and there is so much variety. Best of all, the meals are EASY!

my friend just gave me a super easy but great recipe! Take a whole chicken bought at store (or bake up your own chicken) tear to pieces and throw in a crock put. Dump in 1 large jar of salsa (30 oz) I used the black bean and corn salsa and it was awesome! Then throw in a bag of cubed monterey jack cheddar cheese. Then throw in 1 large jar of northern beans. Use more or less depending on how much you like beans. Mix it all together and let it simmer for a couple of hours. Serve with tortilla chips and sour cream or by itself. It's awesome!

Simple:

1 to 1 1/2 pound beef stew meat, (I partially freeze, then cut into smaller pieces than what the grocery store does), brown in a non stick deep skillet. Once browned, add onion or mushrooms, if you like, then 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1 can golden mushroom soup, and one can of either french onion soup or beef stock; all undiluted. Stir and simmer for atleast 45 minutes - the longer, the better. Boil up some pasta - my kids like the bow ties, but I also have used penne, or just wide egg noodles. Drain pasta, toss in with meat and add some sour cream if you have some around.

Goes great with a tossed salad and some garlic bread.

Hi, self taught, my mother's fav. meal was hamburger helper, not really that bad. Vinigar, olive oil, lemon, or lime, and garlic, this is a great marinade for chicken, or beef, I use balsamic vinigar 2tsp. then wh. vin. If possible leave in sealed tupperware over night. Then grill, bake at high temp, broil, or cut up and bake or fry, I make chicken nuggets with parmesan cheese and flour mixed together. Another one to try, in one large fry pan, baby bella mushrooms, red & green peppers, zuccini, celery seed black pepper, little salt, olive oil, cook to al dente, pour into bowl set aside, while veg's are cooking, boil water in sause pan, add water to fry pan, cook barilla fettuccine al dente, set aside,in same sause pan, 2C 2% milk, sargento classic 4 cheese mexican, philadelphia cream ch. asiago & parmesan, cook slowly, until all ch. melts, cut grilled chicken into strips, then pour everything back into the fry pan, garnish with more ch. serve. I made this last night, a family favorite. Without the butter, it does not seperate, and hopefully not as much fat. Takes about 1/2 hr to make. 2 hr to clean kitchen. lol Enjoy!

I love the chicken pot pie recipe on the Bisquick box. THere are some other easy ones too.

My friend gave me this one:

Spread a package of refrigerated crescent rolls in the botom of a 9x13 pan - flat, not roled up. Pop it in the oven until it starts to get cooked.

While that is cooking brown some hamburger and mix it according to the directions on a packet of sloppy joe seasoning.

Spread the sloppy joe over the crescent rolls, put shreaded cheese (whatever kind and how much you like) and then top with another pack of crescent rolls to make the top crust. Cook until golden brown, let set for about 10 minutes and serve. My husband requests this one and there are not too many things he requests.

look at allrecipes.com, too. there are lots of categories and ways to search on there.

Spinach Lasagna Rolletini
Ingredients:
1 box frozen spinach
2 lbs. of ground turkey
1 lb. of mozzarella cheese (shredded)
parmesan cheese
ricotta cheese
lasagna noodles
green pepper
onion
mushrooms
olive oil
garlic
large container of marinara sauce

Directions:
In a large pot, boil water with salt then add lasagna noodles. Cook until tender. Run under cool water and drain. Sprinkle with olive oil. Set aside.

In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil and brown ground turkey with peppers, onions and mushrooms and garlic. Season to taste with Italian seasonings and/or seasoned salt. Add ricotta cheese and drained spinach.

On a seperate plate take a lasagna noodle, spread it out and put in a good spoonful of meat/cheese mixture. Roll the lasagna noodle and place in a glass baking pan. Keep doing this until all the noodles are used and line them all up in a pan. Cover with marinara sauce and shredded cheeses. Sprinkle with parmesan. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Enjoy!!

Chicken & Zuccini
Ingredients
3 zuccini
2 squash
1 onion
2 large chicken breasts
1 can diced tomatos

First, I slice up the zuccini, yellow squash and onion and cook in a pan w/ some olive oil. Add any seasonings you like.

Then, while that's cooking I slice up some bonless/skinless chicken breast into bite sized chucks and cook those in a separate pan.

Once the chicken is cooked, and the veggies are just about done, combine all into a larger pan and add a can of diced tomatoes...or you could used fresh ones too, but we usually used the can ones.

Cook on med. heat until the veggies are completely cooked, stiring occasionaly, and it's done! Simple, easy and so tastey.

CHINESE CABBAGE SALAD

Dressing:

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce

Salad:

1 head Bok Choy or Napa cabbage, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 pkg ramen noodles
4 oz slivered or sliced almonds
1 tablespoon butter

Mix dressing ingredients. (Speed mixer will thicken dressing.) Set aside.

Chop cabbage and green onions.

Crush ramen noodles. Discard flavor packet. Mix with almonds and butter and brown in skillet. Use as garnish on top of salad.

Mix as needed then serve.

*This salad should be made and served immediately as it will get soggy if stored after mixing.

Chicken in Red Sauce:

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 small cans of tomato sauce
1 cup of chopped cilantro
1/2 chopped green pepper
1 small onion chopped
1 garlic clove minced
1/2 cup of pitted spanish olives
1 small zuccini chopped
seasoned salt
pepper
1 cup water
olive oil

Directions:

Rinse and filet all chicken breasts and season with seasoned salt and pepper to taste. Heat 1/2 cup of olive oil in a saute' pan. Add chicken breasts and brown on each side. Place browned chicken breasts in a glass cake pan or casserole dish. Add all other ingredients. Cover with foil and bake on 350 degrees for 90 minutes on top rack of oven. Remove from heat and serve over white rice.

Serves 4.

Enjoy!!

Taco Soup
1/2 lb. ground beef
1 chopped onion
1 7oz. can green chilies
1 14oz. can diced tomatos
1 package of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing powder mix
1 package of Taco seasoning
3 cans chili beans
2 cans of corn, or 1 bag frozen
6 oz. water

Sautee the onions and cook w/ the ground beef until brown. Add the 2 powder mixes and water, stir.

Dump in the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes. How easy is that??!

Top with any/all of the following: sour cream, shredded cheese, and avocado.

I bet putting some tortilla chips on the bottom of the bowl before serving would be good too, like a taco salad....mmmmmm

Easiest meal I know is to roast something. Tyson whole chickens on.sale this week at kroger. Take off wrapper grab by leg rinse under faucet, inside and out. Sprinkle whole thing with mix of 2 tablespoons salt, 1tablesp on basil, 1teasp garlic powder, 1/4 teasp pepper, and 1/2teasp onion powder. If you don't have these spices, just use salt( careful not to use too much), rub it in a little, inside and out. Bake at 375 for 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours(160 degrees middle of breast meat). You can look up cooking times per pound online a temp gauge is best and cheap at walmart. Don't forget to put water in bottom of pan. You can use a rack or not.

Save the pan drippings and add the chicken body (after you take the meat off) to a pot with the pan drippings and boil for 4 hours, strain out the bones and you can add the leftover meat, some carrots, onions, celery, cook until carrots are done, then bring to boil, add some noodles and you have chicken soup. Or freeze some of the broth for huture

Hi K.---I love www.eatingwell.com for great, healthy recipe ideas. I've also gone to www.foodnetwork.com as well as www.epicurious.com. I've also signed up for a recipe a week from www.CancerProject.org. It is a prevention/survival website that offers really great vegan recipes. Very tasty and easy to make.

I like to eat so by default, I do alot of cooking. So I have many basics in my pantry and refrigerator. I usually come home from the store with something like kale, or another unusual food item, or I have something in the fridge that I need to use up. I have never been disappointed with these websites. It's important to be adventurous---if you don't like a recipe, you don't ever have to make it again---and have an open mind trying new recipes.

Good luck and Have FUN. D.