Five Easy Meals

“What do you want for dinner?”

It’s such an innocent-sounding question, even a friendly-sounding one, but you and I both know it’s a loaded question. Are you asking me to try to guess what you’re in the mood for? Are you asking me to cook? Are you thinking of getting takeout? Who’s picking the spot? Who’s paying for the meal?

Oof.

For years Michael and I struggled to find our rhythm when it came to sorting out the last meal of the day, sometimes resulting in hurt feelings and hanger. We tried meal planning but found that the process sucked all the joy out of our one daily meal together (plus, it can be so draining – and don’t get me started on all of the grocery shopping!).

We tried searching for brand new meals to prepare together, inspired by our travels, but they often were too much effort after clocking out for the day. Picking a night of the week to dine out or get takeout gave us something to look forward to, but it still left six days of dinners unaccounted for.

But finally, we found our footing, largely thanks to several inexpensive and easy-to-prepare meals that we both love – and since I know we can’t be the only ones who find dinner a daunting task, I thought I’d share five of those meals with you today.

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These are the meals I turn to when I have no idea what to make, the ones I can make with my eyes closed. Sure, I could always throw a frozen pizza or burrito in the oven, but those never taste as good as I’d like. All of these meals are such staples in our household that I’m always sure to have the ingredients on hand at any time. Best of all? All of these recipes are vegetarian, but leave room for meat-eaters to add their own spin on it – and most can be prepared vegan.

[A quick note before we dive in: it's helpful to make sure you have a few long-lasting staples in your pantry, fridge, and freezer like hard cheeses, dried pasta, canned tomatoes, rice, potatoes, eggs, canned beans, stocks or broths, and a loaf of good sourdough (sliced and frozen right after purchasing for best quality). Every household eats differently, so your staples may look a bit different than ours.]

Let’s get cooking:

FIVE STAPLE MEALS

“Green Pasta”

This is what we’ve dubbed the pesto pasta we eat on a weekly basis. I’ve listed it first as it’s the most hands-off of the dishes here and only uses one pot (honestly – the most tedious part of this meal is waiting for the water to boil). My preferred pesto for this meal is Trader Joe’s Vegan Kale, Cashew & Basil Pesto, but just about any pesto will do. I also usually stick to a rigatoni or a penne because I’m a sucker for how the sauce gets in the grooves of the noodles. The trick is to cook the pasta 1-2 minutes shy of the time listed on the package and to leave some of the cooking water behind when draining – this gives the sauce a silkier texture. Stir in your pesto (if using the same kale pesto, one package is enough for one pound of pasta – you can always save half for next time if you’re only cooking for one or two), and doctor it up with anything your heart desires: I usually reach for a scoop of ricotta (cashew or dairy), nutritional yeast, flaky salt, and red pepper flakes.

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Kimchi Noodles

Out of all of these meals, this is the only one based on an actual recipe. This dish is a newer addition to our repertoire, now that we have access to more international stores in Charlotte than we did in Gainesville. It’s much easier for us to find ingredients like gochujang, udon noodles, and kimchi here – and they’re all found in this recipe! Like many recipes, I find myself tweaking things slightly to suit our tastes and to ease the amount of effort. In this case, I use a mix of half-butter and half-olive oil instead of all-butter; swap the chicken broth for vegetable broth; and omit the scallions, sesame seeds, and egg yolks. The spicy, tangy, chewy noodles belie how effortless this dish is to prepare – and like the pesto pasta, it can be made in just one pan.

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Grilled Cheese/Tomato Soup

Yes, it’s a rainy day staple – but in this grilled cheese/tomato soup combo, canned soup gets an easy glow-up thanks to a high-powered blender. It’s one of those meals I’ve learned to eyeball over the years, and a little less of one ingredient or a little more of another doesn’t really impact the final product too much.

It’s easy, too (well, like all of these meals!); once you push start on the blender, you get crankin’ on the grilled cheese, and it all finishes at the same time. To begin, you add one small can of tomatoes (whole peeled, diced, crushed, fire-roasted – all good here), one half of a can of white beans, one cup of vegetable stock, a clove of garlic, some salt and pepper, a pinch of red pepper flakes, and whatever dried herbs you like. Set it to the soup setting (or turn it on high, depending on your blender model), and blend until hot. As it’s blending, assemble your grilled cheese – I trust you know how to make one!

I like to keep a loaf of sourdough in the freezer (thawing slices as needed in the warmed pan or the toaster) and use up any hunks of cheese languishing in the drawer, and I’ll even use ricotta or cottage cheese if they’re about to expire. Just about the time your sandwich is golden brown, it’s time to cut power to the blender and serve. Swirl a little cream or olive oil in your soup if you’re feeling fancy.

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Anything Tart

Okay, so this easy dinner takes a little forethought, as you’ll need to thaw a sheet of puff pastry in advance. But it’s one of those meals where time does all the work. Thaw your puff pastry according to package directions (I like the all-butter version that Trader Joe’s sells in winter as it’s an economical option that lasts for a year, but Dufour is really the gold standard), roll it out and dock it, and then top as you’d like (see my Instagram stories above for a visual). It’s great with sweet or savory toppings, but for lunch or dinner, this meal is a great way to use up odds and ends in the kitchen. Pizza toppings are always a good idea, as are bitter greens and sweet winter squashes. My only advice is to avoid a significant amount of super watery ingredients as they’ll weigh down the puff pastry and make it gummy rather than flaky. Bake it for 35 minutes at 375ºF (but keep an eye on it during the last ten minutes of baking), and you’ll have a flaky, tasty handheld dinner.

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Sushi Wraps

Sometimes we make this meal as a wrap (or sushi burrito), and sometimes we’ll make it like that viral TikTok tortilla hack – but with nori. Either shape is delicious, and a choose-your-own-adventure meal is a wonderful weeknight meal shakeup. Simply provide everyone with 1-2 sheets of nori, and set fillings out in bowls. This is also a great meal-prep option as you can make a big batch of rice and prep all your veggies in one go. Just quickly assemble each morning before heading off to work, school, or to save the world. Your favorite maki ingredients are right at home here, but if you need suggestions, some of my go-to’s are carrots, avocado, cucumber, tofu, peppers, cream cheese, kimchi, and/or sriracha (oh, and seasoned rice!).

If you’re going TikTok trend, make a slit halfway to the middle and fill each corner with 1-2 toppings. Fold up-over-down, and you’ve got a little square. For wrap/burrito-style, spread a thin layer over the sheet of nori, leaving about an inch naked on one of the long sides. Add the rest of your toppings in thin rows across so you get a bit of each ingredient in every bite. Roll it up, and seal it with a bit of water (that’s why you left that nakey bit!). Don’t worry if it kind of falls apart, or if you feel like you’re making a mess as you eat – meals at home shouldn’t always be so serious.

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That’s a wrap on these five meals (pun very much intended)!

Do you find dinnertime a struggle? What are some of your go-to meals?