A Dozen Dinner Ideas ~ November

Welcome to the LWD blog feature – “A Dozen Dinner Ideas“. We can all use some dinner inspiration occasionally, right? I love seeing what others are serving their families so I thought I’d return the favor. Once a month I share a dozen meals we’ve had lately and I hope you’ll get an idea or two.

 

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A DOZEN DINNERS

 

This month’s “dozen dinners” are mostly family favorites and nothing terribly complicated. After the holidays I’d like to try more new recipes but for now, I’m keeping it simple. 

 

• stir fried veggies and pineapple
• lo mein noodles
• crunchy noodles on top

This has become a favorite. I buy a bag of fresh stir fry veggies and cook them in the wok with garlic, stir fry or teriyaki sauce, and add a can of drained pineapple and a can of drained chicken. I usually serve it over rice but this time I made noodles instead. 

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• spaghetti
• peas
• garlic cheese toast
• side salad

Easy dinner! I heat up a jar of spaghetti sauce to which I’ve added some Italian seasoning blend from a local Italian restaurant. The guys like it with meatballs but I didn’t have any this night. 

What is your favorite jarred pasta sauce? I’ve been buying Classico Caramelized Onion and Roasted Garlic lately. According to this taste test:

What’s the best marinara sauce?

Rao’s is the clear winner. However, it’s over $10 a jar at my supermarket whereas Classico is $3.99. 

 

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• casserole from leftover spaghetti sauce, elbow macaroni, cheese
• peas
• broccoli
• side salad

This is something my mom used to make when I was a kid. I use the leftover spaghetti sauce from the night before, mix it with cooked elbow macaroni, top with cheese and bake until hot and bubbly. 

 

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• bell pepper stuffed with black beans/corn/tomatoes, topped with cheese
• rice
• roasted Brussels sprouts
• salad

I made the filling for these by sautéing some diced onion in a bit of olive oil then adding a drained can of black beans, drained can of corn and a can of diced tomatoes. I season it well with chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, and cumin. I stuff the par-boiled peppers with this mixture and bake about 20 minutes. Top with cheese and return to oven until cheese melts. 

Stuffed Bell Peppers

 

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• BBQ chicken breast
• baked potato
• veggies

I love a meal with minimal cleanup, especially on a Friday night. I baked the potatoes until just starting to soften then put the chicken breasts in the oven on a foil-lined sheet pan. The veggies were steamed in the microwave. 

 

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• homemade soup topped with grated cheese
• crackers

This was some soup I had made from frozen cauliflower and carrots then froze. At least I think that’s what this one was. Ha! The picture was on my phone but when I looked back at my to-do list for that day all I had written for dinner was “soup”. In any case, I do know we all liked it and finished it off. This was a Saturday night. I don’t generally plan a start-from-scratch dinner on Saturdays. We either have leftovers, takeout or something simple to throw together like homemade soup. 

 

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• stir fried veggies, canned chicken and pineapple
• stir fried rice
• wontons

Another stir fry. This one was served with Rice-a-Roni Stir Fried Rice and frozen wontons.

 

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• Lentil Tacos
• homemade guacamole & chips
• homemade coleslaw

Taco Tuesday! This night I also made homemade coleslaw and homemade guacamole. Nothing makes my guys quite as happy as tacos. A couple of years into the pandemic I actually figured out how many corn tortillas I had fried for tacos since Covid started. As I recall it was nearly 900. We are probably getting close to 2000 now. The world may be crazy but at least we have tacos. 

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• turkey chili topped with sour cream, cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes
• cornbread

I like to look ahead at the weather when planning meals. When I saw a cool and rainy day ahead, I planned to make chili. I browned some ground turkey and diced onion in a bit of olive oil. When cooked through I added a package of Williams brand chili seasoning which I had in the pantry, along with a can of mild chili beans and a can of tomato sauce. I simmered it about 30-40 minutes and served topped with sour cream, grated sharp cheddar and diced fresh tomatoes. I also made a pan of Jiffy cornbread. Simple but it really hit the spot on a rainy night. 

 

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• salmon
• roasted veggies – red potatoes, carrots, yellow bell peppers, onions

I usually buy plain salmon but this was all they had when I shopped that week. It was frozen and pre-seasoned. It was pretty tasty. I also roasted a big sheet pan of vegetables. I was going to make a salad, too, but nobody was all that interested. 

This is the salmon I bought:

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• sausage links
• fried eggs
• English muffins
• orange juice

My guys love “breakfast for dinner” which I had not made in a long time. I fried the eggs in the same skillet in which I had cooked the sausage, hence the browned appearance. It might not be pretty but it tasted good! 

 

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• Curried Chickpeas (I added yellow squash and red bell pepper), topped with plain yogurt and raisins
• rice
• toasted pita bread
• chilled canned apricots

This has become one of my favorite meals to make from pantry staples. I try to keep cans of chickpeas, diced tomatoes with green chilis, and coconut milk on hand to make this. I normally serve it with naan bread but since I couldn’t find any I substituted pita bread. I recently bought a case of apricot halves in light syrup and I thought they sounded good with curry. I prefer fresh fruits for the most part but also like to keep some canned on hand through the winter. I bought a case from Amazon:

 

And that wraps up A Dozen Dinners for November! 

In case you missed it, here is last month’s post:

A Dozen Dinners ~ October

 

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