I love a good, quick weeknight dinner. We’re talking a “just ran in the door from work or errand-running and my kid is screaming for food and it’s 6pm and I have nothing planned for dinner” kind of quick dinner. But being a culinary diva married to a nutritionist means that it also has to be over the top delicious and somewhat healthy too. Challenge accepted!
Having a few of these type of recipes on hand are crucial. In fact, I have such a passion for the last-minute dinner that I have about 20 freezer meals that I prepped before Canaan was born (over a year ago) still sitting in my deep freezer. We planned to use them for quick, no prep dinners, but haven’t needed them. Banish the frozen pizza, friend. You’ve got this!
Here are my requirements. They must be:
- Super quick to pull together (30 min or less).
- Use mostly pantry / fridge / freezer staples I’m likely to have on hand.
- Incorporate veggie, protein and healthy carb for a balanced meal.
- Be so flavorful and delicious that I’m actually excited to eat it. I would choose it even if I had more time to cook and prep (I’m not an eat-to-live kind of person).
Simply put: Quick. Yummy. Healthy.
This is a favorite. All the markings of comfort food: creamy, rich, flavor-packed. Packed with veggies: spaghetti squash, spinach and tomatoes. And these burst tomatoes, y’all. They’re important – they still have a bit of the freshness of raw tomatoes but the sweetness of cooked tomatoes. And they’re pretty. They’re just so pretty.
Want this meal to be even quicker? Tip: cook a few spaghetti squash over the weekend and store in a large food storage container in the fridge. Use that along with leftover meat or protein you already have on hand and this dinner comes together in about 20 minutes. Easy-peasy.
[cooked-recipe id=”1305″]
