Domestically Challenged – Parenting Tips from Author Alana Morales

Happy Monday all and welcome to Menu Plan Monday!

This week I had a request to hit on some basic recipes for those of us who are a bit challenged in the kitchen. Since I can completely relate to this, I am happy to oblige.

When I first started this post, my intention was to just offer up some easy recipes that someone with basic cooking skills could conjure up one day without too much stress and mess.

Then I got to thinking.

What would really be helpful would be a list of things to cook so that when you went to menu plan, you could just look at your list and choose, knowing that if it was on the list, you could do it.

This was an AHA moment.

So, here’s a list of possibilities. All of the possibilities are ones that I have either tried or cooked personally, so I can vouch for all of them.

1. Mac and Cheese
2. Grilled Chicken
   • Grill with bbq sauce or marinate it for a fuller flavor.
3. Spaghetti
   • To add variety, make different types of noodles.
4. Ribs
   • These can be cooked in the crock pot, broiler or grill.
5. Turkey Burgers
6. Grilled Turkey Legs
7. Beef Stroganoff
8. Slow Cooker Chicken
9. Slow Cooker French Dip
10. Pot Roast
11. Baked Chicken
12. Chicken Parmesan
13. Albondagas
14. Tacos
15. Enchiladas
16. Tostadas
17. Taco Salad
18. Pork Chops
19. Sausage
20. Bratwurst
21. Red Beans and Rice
22. Fetticinni Alfredo
23. Chili
24. Fajitas
25. Stir Fry
26. Lasagna
27. Tuna Casserole
28. Enchilada Casserole
29. Eggplant Parmesan
30. Ham with Greens
31. Tostada Goop – sooooo yummy! Make extra and you can use it for enchiladas or tostadas or taco salad or…
32. Neat Sloppy Joes
33. Chicken Fried Rice – don’t use oil (I just use water) and save on the fat content.
34. Steak
35. Kabobs – super easy to make
36. Meatballs – add bbq sauce and let the kids eat with toothpicks for extra fun, providing no one gets poked in the eyeball
37. Meatloaf – we make ours with bbq sauce. And bacon. Can’t forget the bacon.
38. Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches
39. Sub sandwiches – use mini rolls and make them custom for everyone
40. Nachos

I have to admit, I was surprised that I was able to generate a list this long of things that I had personally cooked. Pretty cool, if you ask me. Most of what is listed here is something that can easily be cooked after coming home from work.

My suggestion with most of these is to make double and freeze it. Voila! You have a made ahead meal that you can just drop in the freezer.

So, what would be on your menu list? Leave it in the comments, or better yet, do your own post and I will edit this one to add your link!