For some families, both parents have to work full-time in order to pay bills. This typically brings about tension when it comes to how to do everything: work, drive the kids, do washing, tidy your home and cook dinner. There's just not enough time in the day without wearing yourself out. And as a result, how can you achieve everything you have to do if you collapse from tiredness each day? One efficient technique moms found to save time is to use their slowcooker, air fryer or instant pot, a second idea is to use quick and simple strategies to fix dinner.

You can easily buy boxed meals and put them together every day, but after awhile that becomes not just boring, but bad for your health. Fast food is ok for a now and then treat, but can become too expensive and also the after effects may not be good for growing families. You can locate easy dinner recipes that give you what you're needing and that picky eaters will love. Below are some fast and simple dinner tips you're certain to find helpful:
​
1. Plan your dinners. That appears complicated for some worn-out people, yet in the long run it can save you time and money. Plan a week's amount of dinners to be certain you are completely ready to get the meal started without driving yourself crazy every day. Knowing specifically what you're preparing and what you'll need from the super market may prevent you from getting food you probably do not need.

2. Store produce as soon as you bring it home. As you've most likely seen on food cooking shows, preparing your produce after you've brought it home could save you time during the week, and keep your fruit and vegetables crisp longer. How often have you thrown away produce simply because you didn't maintain it appropriately inside the refrigerator? This tip too, could help you save some bucks.

3. Cook on a weekend for the several weeks. If you are making food the family adores, then you should generate enough for a couple of weeks. It isn't really too difficult to make 2 lasagnas as well. Basically double what you're making and then freeze a few.

4. Take advantage of your slowcooker, air fryer or instant pot. People have found how much less complicated life can be with these amazing small appliances. Your home remains cooler in the summer, so don't hesitate to make use of them year round. There are recipes for just about anything these days.

You can find solutions to help make your busy lives easier and possibly help the bank balance as well. The evening meal is also the ultimate way to bond your household and chat about the day. So, don't spend what is quality time toiling in the kitchen, make use of quick and easy dinner tactics to make home-made family dishes.

The daily dilemma: What to cook for dinner. After years of cooking for my family, I can honestly say that there have been times when I lost my creative will in the dinner department. When I had a picky four-year-old to consider in the equation, the dilemma increased to almost disaster size. He had a list of about 5 items that he'd eat and would not vary easily. In other words, I had a rather difficult time finding easy to prepare meals that would satisfy the whole family. What to do, what to do?

For most busy families, time is the enemy. They simply don't have enough time to prepare anything more than something pre-packaged from a box. I've been there, done that, and I can also say that it gets old, is unhealthy and eventually someone in the family will start to complain anyway. The question here is: Is there a way to combine healthy eating with convenience

Why of course there is! Making better meal planning a priority does not have to cause groans from the cook. There are new methods of meal preparation and easy to fix staples available these days that can make you say 'ahhh'. In fact, getting the kids involved in the kitchen has become another novel way of getting picky eaters to actually put something other than PBJs in their sweet little mouths. My own little guy found a recipe in one of the cute kid cookbooks I bought him and with his help we made dinner and he 'ate it!' Wow, I'm a believer.

So, what are some easy recipes for better family meals? Here are a couple of recipes that I've made in the past that were hits with everyone in the family from grumpy dad to doubting daughter and picky pint-size pouter:

Pepperoni Pizza Quesadillas
8 - 10 inch flour tortillas
2 ½ cups cheddar cheese (I just buy the 10 oz pre-shredded)
1 cup salsa (I tend to go with mild since it's a meal for the whole family)
½ cup chopped green olives, drained
1 package of sliced pepperoni
​
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place 2 tortillas on a cookie sheet and top each with cheddar cheese. Put another tortilla on top of each cheese covered tortilla and bake for 5 minutes. Take out of oven and press down on tortillas with a spatula. Top with salsa, olives, some more cheese and pepperoni. Put back in oven and cook for 5 minutes more or until the edges are brown and crispy and the cheese is melted on top. This is great with a garden salad.

C.J.'s Little Meat Loaves
1 egg
1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 cup oatmeal
1 onion, grated (I use onion flakes to save time, tastes great)
1/3 cup ketchup
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
Extra ketchup for the tops

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly spray 8 muffin cups with cooking spray. Combine ground meat, oatmeal, onion, egg, ketchup, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper in a bowl; mix well with your hands or a spoon. Divide the meat mixture into 8 balls and put each into a muffin cup; press down lightly. Put more ketchup on the tops of each little meat loaf. Bake for 30 minutes or until no longer pink inside. Transfer to paper towel covered plate to drain and then serve with mashed potatoes, green beans and carrots...yum!

These recipes have gone over great in my house, and I bet they'll be devoured well in yours too. Making family meal preparation and family meal time a priority will encourage children to develop healthy eating habits - an important key to good health as adults. By making meal time less stressful you can focus on the joys of spending time together instead of the hassles of preparing meals. Every member of the family can enjoy dinner time again.

Plan your weekly family meals with my convenient planner and family recipe books: