Simple and Quick Family Meal Ideas: Recipes I Use Every Week!
Hello friends! Today I wanted to share a few meals we eat in a week to give you ideas to try with your own family!
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If you are a subscriber and have been following along for a while on my blog, YouTube or Instagram, you know how much I love to cook. Making home cooked meals for my husband and boys from fresh, delicious ingredients is something I look forward to each day.
To give you as many ideas as I could, I am going to be sharing some ideas in the YouTube video above, and different ideas below in this post!
I know as moms, we can have busy weeknights with the kids, and making a weeknight dinner can often end in stress. With moms in mind, I am sharing easy dinner recipes with simple ingredients that are sure to be future comfort foods for your family! If you’re tired of making a casserole recipe every night, hopefully this post can inspire you haha
If you took a moment to watch the video, you will see I do not normally follow recipes haha, but I tried to explain each meal the best I could for you. If you take notes I am sure you can come up with your own delicious versions to try!
My inbox is always filled with recipe requests, so in this post, I am sharing some of my absolute favorite meal ideas, oven roasted chicken (which is also in the YouTube video), corn and black bean soup, beef stew, corn and lobster chowder and gluten free meatloaf!
I have shared all of these recipes in the past on my blog, but wanted to compile them here for a quick and easy reference. If you want to read more specifics about any of these, be sure to read the original blog posts!
Meals We Eat in a Week – Oven Roasted Chicken
This delicious sheet pan chicken recipe could not be more simple and is packed with flavor! I make this often and the sides can be changed up each time you make it! The boys love chicken thighs, and my favorite part is the chicken breast. I like to pair it with roasted green beans, broccoli or a fresh salad. Mashed potatoes would also make an excellent side.
Normally, we pair our oven roasted chicken with roasted vegetables which you can see in the YouTube video above, but like I said, the sides can be anything your family would prefer! You can also shred this chicken and make tacos, sandwiches or even a stir-fry!
Oven Roasted Whole Chicken with Crispy Herbed Skin
This delicious, oven roasted chicken has an herby, crispy skin yet the meat is still juicy and mouth watering every time I make it!
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp Himalayan pink salt
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 425
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Remove giblets from the chicken cavity
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Pat dry chicken with paper towels
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Place chicken, breast side down, into a 9×13 dish
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Brush chicken with coconut oil, seasonings and fresh herbs
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Flip chicken (breast side up) and repeat
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Place chicken in the oven for about 1 hour or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees
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Allow chicken to rest 10-15 minutes
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Serve and enjoy!
Meals We Eat in a Week – Corn and Black Bean Soup
My family and I love soups. I love to put together ingredients we have and try different recipes and although there is nothing like a warm bowl of soup in the wintertime, we eat soup all year long!
This delicious corn and black bean soup is both dairy and gluten free and is so simple to make! I love to pair the tender chicken, corn and beans with tortilla chips and fresh avocado!
Tasty Corn and Black Bean Soup with Coconut Milk
This tasty corn and black bean soup with coconut milk is one of my go-to soup recipes during the winter. You can make it with or without chicken for a satisfying meal that’s easy to whip up in less than 15 minutes!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
- 1/2 onion chopped
- 1 bell pepper chopped
- 1 14 oz can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 10 oz bag of frozen corn
- 2 cups shredded chicken
- 2 15 oz cans full fat coconut milk
Instructions
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Chop onion and peppers
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Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to your pot and cook your chopped onions and peppers over medium heat for 3-5 minutes.
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Once your onion and peppers are cooked through, add 1 can of drained and rinsed black beans and 1 10 oz bag of frozen corn.
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Stir over medium heat until your corn is thawed, then add the the shredded chicken.
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Add 1/2 teaspoon of curry and 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, as well as 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 of pepper. Stir to combine.
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Add both cans of coconut milk and stir until the milk has dissolved and the soup is creamy.
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This soup is delicious with tortilla chips crushed on top! If you can tolerate dairy, we love shredding Colby or Cheddar cheese over the top as well! Enjoy!
Meals We Eat in a Week – Beef Stew
One of my favorite meals growing up was beef stew! My mom often made it with venison, but either version was always a delicious treat we looked forward to!
I decided to figure out a way to make her stew recipe even easier – using an Instant Pot! This worked so well, and is a perfect hearty roast and veggies that pairs with cornbread, biscuits or any other homemade bread! Plus, cleanup was so easy in this one-pot meal!
No Fuss Instant Pot Beef Stew
I call this recipe “no fuss” because that’s exactly what it is…no extras, no fancy ingredients. Just your basic, perfect, delicious beef stew – the kind I grew up eating on Sundays!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs Beef Stew Meat
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Pepper
- 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
- 3 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 large Onion chopped
- 1 16 oz Bag Baby Carrots
- 1 lb Potatoes cubed
- 6 cups Beef Broth
- 1/4 cup Corn Starch
- 2 tablespoons Cold Water
Instructions
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Add the olive oil to your instant pot and turn on the saute function. Once your oil is hot, add the meat along with the salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
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Brown the meat on all sides.
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Once your meat is browned, add your potatoes, onion, carrots and garlic.
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Pour in your beef broth and stir, making sure you scrape up any bits from the bottom of the pot.
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Close the lid on your instant pot and set the steam release valve to "sealing".
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Cook on high pressure for 35 minutes, then allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes.
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After your 10 minute natural release, move the valve from "sealing" to "venting" and wait for the float valve to drop.
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Dissolve the cornstarch in water and whisk into the soup while it's hot.
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Enjoy!
Meals We Eat in a Week – Corn and Lobster Chowder
This is another gluten and dairy free soup that is so delicious and easy to make. My family loves any and all types of seafood, so this lobster chowder is always a favorite!
Once again, simply pair any type of bread with it, we personally love homemade cheddar biscuits!
Gluten Free Dairy Free Corn and Lobster Chowder
This gluten free, dairy free chowder is the perfect meal for chilly night. It’s rich and creamy and so satisfying that you would never know it’s missing dairy!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 3/4 cup chopped celery
- 3 cups frozen corn
- 4 tbsp gluten free flour
- 4 cups gluten free chicken broth
- 1 lb red potatoes chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 lb lobster or crab meat
- 2 cans unsweetened coconut milk
- 2 tbsp chopped green pepper
Instructions
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Heat olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in onion and celery, cover and reduce heat. Cook 6 minutes until softened.
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Add corn. Cover and cook 5 minutes longer. Stir in flour, cook stirring 1 minute.
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Add broth, potatoes, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Bring to boil, reduce hear, cover and simmer 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
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Stir in lobster (or crab) meat, coconut milk and green pepper. Simmer 5 minutes more.
Meals We Eat in a Week – Gluten Free Meatloaf
The last but definitely not least meal I am sharing is this gluten free meatloaf. This delicious recipe is another one from my mom that we all loved so much growing up.
The meatloaf comes out perfectly each time, and the sauce recipe on the top is seriously amazing! Even if you aren’t a meatloaf fan, I promise if you try this, it may be a game changer for you!
Simply Amazing Gluten Free Meatloaf
This gluten free meatloaf is so simple but oh so delicious. It may be lacking gluten, but this recipe is definitely not lacking flavor!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup gluten free oats
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp course ground mustard
- 2 tbsp gluten free Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp minced onion
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Sauce
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tbsp barbecue sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
Instructions
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Whisk the egg, ketchup, mustards, oats, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and minced onion together in a mixing bowl with a fork.
Add the ground beef and use your fork to incorporate. Be careful not to overwork, mixing too much can result in tough meatloaf.
Using your hands, form the mixture into a loaf and place on a cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for 50 min.
While the meatloaf is in the oven, mix the sauce ingredients together.
Remove meatloaf from the oven, skim off the fat, and pour sauce over the top.
Bake for 10 more minutes or until meat reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
Well friends, I hope some of the meals we eat in a week have been an inspiration to you! Don’t forget to watch the YouTube video linked above for even more ideas! I share skillet sausage pizza with tomato sauce, grilled pork chops, creamy chicken and rice soup, and pasta noodles with meatballs! If you try any, I would love to read about them in the comments!
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These recipes look amazing! I love getting ideas for family dinner. Thank you for sharing!
I am so happy they were a help to you, thank you Erin!
Thanks for the inspiration! I’m gluten and dairy free too so can’t wait to try these! Xoxo Katie
Thanks so much. Just watched your video about chicken tortilla soup. Bought the ingredients. Would love the recipe. God bless you.
Sharon Unger
Hello Sharon! The recipe is in the description of the YouTube video 🙂