After a long day at work, the last thing you want to do is make a complicated diner. I really like dinners that I can make in under an hour. One of my favorites to make is buffalo chicken roll-ups. This dish is great with mac and cheese, green beans, Rice-a-Roni, or garlic bread.
Tag: Quick and Easy Dinners
8 Romantic Dinner Ideas Perfect for Valentine’s Day
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Valentine’s Day will be here before you know it. If you normally go out for Valentine’s Day, but this year you aren’t really feeling the crowds why not make a special dinner for your loved one at home. Or better yet, cook the meal together! This is a list of my favorite 8 romantic dinner ideas that will be perfect for Valentine’s Day.
Ribeye Steak and Shrimp with Parmesan Sauce
Surf and turf is the perfect Valentine’s Day meal and this meal is no exception. The ribeye and shrimp can either be grilled outside or cooked in a frying pan (like this one) on the stove. The parmesan sauce is savory and adds a great flavor to the meal. My favorite part about this meal is that it can be made in less than 45 minutes. You can check out the recipe here.
Chicken Parmesan
One of my fiancé’s favorite meals is chicken parmesan. It was one of
Bang Bang Chicken
So this is a meal I make a lot, but it would also be a great Valentine’s Day dinner. This meal is savory and slightly spicy. If you are feeling really adventurous, you can replace the chicken with shrimp. It also only use a handful of dishes, so there isn’t much cleanup. You can find our recipe for Bang Bang Chicken here.
Shrimp Scampi
If you are looking for a quick seafood meal to make for Valentine’s Day, then you should make shrimp scampi. This is a Red Lobster shrimp scampi recipe. You can serve the scampi with linguine and a glass of chardonnay. I normally use stemless wine glasses like these so I don’t break the glass when I am washing it. I was anti-stemless wine glasses when my fiancé first bought a set, but now I’m a convert!
Chicken Cordon Bleu
One meal I made several times in college was chicken cordon bleu. I made it several times to thank a couple of my friends for being my test audience when I was practicing for presentations. Public speaking is something that I struggle with, so I would have to practice several times. I felt listening to me talk about removing residuals from scrap used for steelmaking deserved a nice dinner.
Chicken cordon bleu is the perfect Valentine’s Day dinner because it looks fancy and difficult to make. Even though it looks like it was difficult to make, it is fairly simple. You can find the recipe here.
Pecan Crusted Salmon
Maybe you and your loved one are trying to eat healthier this year. If so, this pecan crusted salmon will be perfect for your Valentine’s Day dinner. It uses pecans as the crust, so it is low carb and perfect for the keto diet. The recipe is also very easy and quick to make. So you will spend less time in the kitchen preparing this meal, and so you can spend more time with your loved one.
Brownie Truffle-Stuffed Brownies
Ok, so I know that this isn’t really a meal recipe, but it is perfect for Valentine’s Day. These strawberries could be made with any of the previously mentioned meals as dessert with a glass of champagne. And since it is made of strawberries, they can be considered healthy, right?
Dominos
So according to my fiancé’s, this is the perfect Valentine’s Day dinner and I have to agree. One of the first years we were dating, we ordered Dominos for Valentine’s Day and watched the newest season of House of Cards (I think it was season 3). What’s great about ordering Dominos is you don’t have to cook, clean, or leave your house!
What are your plans for this Valentine’s Day?
<3 Jamie
Quick and Easy Recipe – Bang Bang Chicken Pasta
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Jump to RecipeSo I don’t know about you, but I am exhausted and starving when I get home from work. The last thing I want to do when I get home is to spend an hour or so to make a meal that my boyfriend and I will eat in about 5-10 minutes. Also, do you have the constant struggle in your home about what to eat? I know that this is a big deal for me. I like a little variety when it comes to food, whereas my boyfriend loves what he calls “bowl meals” and would be perfectly happy eating the same thing every day. He calls a meal a “bowl meal” when it only uses a bowl. He likes “bowl meals” because he can eat it anywhere from the table to the couch to the bar. This meal is perfect for me because it is quick, easy, makes only a handful of dishes, is something different, and we typically eat it out of a bowl!
So you likely have many of the ingredients for this meal in your pantry already. Here is a list of ingredients you will need to make this meal:
- 1 lb of chicken breast
- 1 cup chicken stock
- Olive oil
- 1 box (8 oz) cream cheese
- Garlic
- Spaghetti noodles (I use whole wheat spaghetti to make it a little healthier, but you can use normal spaghetti noodles).
- 1/4 cup sweet Thai chili sauce (I really like this one from Food Network)
- Black pepper (to taste)
- Salt (to taste)
- Paprika (to taste)
- Cilantro
- Cumin (to taste)
- Sriracha Sauce
Step 1) Cut the chicken breast into cubes. After cutting the chicken breasts into cubes, you will put the cubes into a skillet with olive oil.
Step 2) Cook the chicken cubes on medium-high heat. Sprinkle paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper as you would like.
Step 3) While the chicken is cooking, you will mince 3 cloves of garlic. I mince garlic with my green Pampered Chef Chef’s Knife, but you can also use a garlic press.
Step 4) Once the chicken is cooked, you will add the minced garlic to the skillet. You will saute the chicken and garlic for about a minute.
Step 5) Add the 1 cup of chicken stock to the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low and put a lid on the skillet. The chicken stock will reduce slightly.
Step 6) While the chicken stock is reducing, you will boil water for the spaghetti. You will want to put a little salt in the water as you boil it. In the words of Alex Guarnaschelli from the Food Network “If it’s in a pot, you need to add salt”.
Step 7) Once the water starts to boil, add the spaghetti noodles. You will cook the spaghetti until it is al dente (about 8 minutes). I have an induction stove top, so water boils really quickly.
Step 8) Drain the water from the pasta. After draining the water, you will move the pot back to the stove where you will add the chicken, garlic, and chicken stock from the skillet into the pot. Followed by the cream cheese and 1/4 cup of sweet Thai chili sauce.
Step 9) Stir the contents of the pot until a sauce is formed and evenly coating the pasta.
Step 10) Add sriracha sauce to taste. I like to make a spiral in the pot. After adding the sriracha sauce, you will stir it one more time.
Step 11) After stirring the sriracha sauce in, all you need to do is sprinkle a little of cilantro on the pasta.
After you add the cilantro, the meal is ready to eat! Like I said, I like this meal because it is a little different from the meals I normally make and my boyfriend likes the meal because it is a “Bowl Meal”. Last time I made this meal, I enjoyed it while watching an episode of The Ranch with my boyfriend. I hope you enjoy this meal just as much as I do!
Quick and Easy Bang Bang Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 Lb Chicken Breast
- 1 Cup Chicken Sotck
- Olive Olil
- 3 cloves garlic
- 16 oz Spaghetti Noodles (I like to use whole wheat)
- 1/4 Cup Sweet Thai Chili Sauce
- 1 8 oz box Cream Cheese (I like to use reduce fat)
- 3 Tbsp Sriracha Sauce (You can add more or less to taste)
- Black Pepper To taste
- Salt To taste
- Paprika To taste
- Cumin To taste
- Cilantro For topping
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts into cubes. After cutting the chicken breasts into cubes, you will put the cubes in a skillet with olive oil.
- Cook the chicken cubes on medium-high heat. Season with paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper to taste.
- While the chicken is cooking, mince 3 close of garlic. You can also use a garlic press.
- Boil water for the spaghetti. You will need to add a little salt to the pot.
- Once the chicken is cooked, you will add the minced garlic to the skillet. You will saute the chicken and garlic for about a minute.
- Add the chicken stock to the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low and put a lid on the skillet. The chicken stock will reduce some.
- While the chicken stock is reducing, the water should begin to boil. Cook the spaghetti noodles until it is al dente (about 8 minutes).
- Drain the water from the pasta. Put the pasta back into the pot after draining and add the chicken/garlic/chicekn stock from the skillet into the pot.
- Add the cream cheese and 1/2 cut of sweet Thai chili sauces. Cubing the cream cheese can help it melt faster.
- Stir the contents of the pot until the cream cheese melts and a sauce is formed. You want to evenly coat the pasta and chicken.
- Stir in the sriracha sauce to taste. Top the pasta with cilantro.