When your day just doesn’t go as planned or you simply don’t feel like cooking up a storm, here are four super easy “real food” dinners that can be whipped up in 15 minutes or less. That’s faster than the pizza delivery man. And most of these meals are made from ingredients with a decent shelf life that don’t have to be defrosted or prepared in advance. So if you pick up some of the suggested “items to have on-hand” the next time you’re at the store then you’ll be all set the next time you suddenly need to whip up a super quick wholesome dinner. Please also feel free to share your easy and fast “real food” dinner ideas in the comments below.
- Spaghetti with Sautéed Onion/Veggies
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Items to have on-hand:
– Dry organic whole-grain noodles – Look for a 1 or 2-ingredient organic pasta product that contains something like “organic whole durum wheat flour” and maybe “water” (avoid “semolina” because that is the refined version of whole durum wheat)
– Jar of organic spaghetti sauce – Eden Organic “no salt added” spaghetti sauce recommended (pictured)
– Olive oil or butter – For sauteing the veggies
– Onion – I always try to have onions in the house…they have a fairly long shelf life and can be used in so many different recipes
– Fresh (or frozen) organic vegetables – Some veggies that would nicely complement this dish are zucchini, yellow squash, bell peppers, and mushrooms
– Optional items – Freshly grated parmesan cheese, fresh or dried herbs for added flavoring of the sauce
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Simple directions:
1. Boil pasta according to package directions. Once the water is boiling most noodles take 7 – 10 minutes.
2. While noodles are boiling dice about a quarter of an onion. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil (or butter) in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat and add the onions.
3. While the onions are cooking dice/chop the veggies and add them to the pan with the onions. Turn the heat up to medium and sauté until veggies soften, about 5 – 7 minutes. If you are using frozen veggies heat them up according to package directions or throw them in the pan to defrost/cook.
4. Once the veggies are tender pour the jar of spaghetti sauce into the pan. Spend a few minutes warming up the sauce and then taste test to see if it needs anything else (like salt, pepper, or herbs).
5. Drain the noodles and divvy them up. Pour the veggies/sauce over top and garnish with freshly grated parmesan cheese (if using).
– - Scrambled Eggs with Fruit (with Optional Greens and/or Sausage)
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Items to have on-hand:
– Eggs – I don’t know about you, but eggs are something I always try to have stocked since there are so many uses…also local, pastured and/or organic eggs are recommended.
– Organic Butter – For cooking the eggs
– Fresh or frozen organic fruit – Any fruit will work
– A whole-grain bread-like item – Anything could complete this meal including whole-wheat sandwich bread (to make toast), whole-grain crackers (like Ak-Mak, Triscuits, or Multiseed), or possibly some homemade whole-grain muffins or biscuits if you happen to have some around
– Optional items – Cheese, jelly (if making toast), kale or spinach, local pastured sausage
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Simple Directions:
1. If using the optional kale or spinach puree it in the blender along with the eggs. I usually figure two eggs per person. If you don’t have greens just crack open and scramble the eggs with a fork. Be sure to season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat a medium sized sauté pan over medium-low heat and add a generous pat of butter. Once the butter has melted pour in the eggs. Let them sit for a few minutes before you start to “scramble” them.
3. While the eggs are cooking make the sausage (if using) according to package directions and toast the bread and chop/wash the fruit. If the fruit is frozen run it under warm water to help it defrost (or blend with other ingredients to make a smoothie).
4. Once the eggs are done all the way through sprinkle cheese on top (if using). Serve with the fruit, toast/crackers, and optional sausage.
– - Whole-Wheat Organic Boxed Mac & Cheese with Frozen Peas and Optional Bacon/Hot Dogs (just for the kids…or for the whole family if you are really in a pinch!)
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Items to have on-hand:
– Annie’s whole-wheat organic boxed macaroni and cheese (1 – 2 boxes) – There is only ONE variety of Annie’s mac and cheese that even comes close to fitting the real food bill (pictured) so be sure to analyze the options closely!
– Organic frozen peas – There should only be 1-ingredient listed on the bag…avoid frozen veggies that come with sauces/flavorings
– Optional – Organic grass-fed bacon or hot dogs
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Simple Directions:
1. Boil and make the macaroni by following the directions on the box.
2. If using bacon/hot dogs cook according to package directions. When done cooking chop/dice the meat.
3. Once the macaroni is done and the cheese sauce has been mixed in add the frozen peas (no need to defrost them). The frozen peas will simultaneously thaw while they also cool off the macaroni. Mix in the chopped bacon/hot dogs (if using).
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- Pizza Toast (or Bagels) with a Side of Raw Veggies
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Items to have on-hand:
– Whole-wheat sandwich bread (or bagels)
– Jar of organic pizza/pasta sauce: Eden Organic brand recommended
– Organic cheese: A block of mozzarella is recommended and if unopened will stay fresh for several weeks in the fridge (Avoid the pre-grated stuff because it has a powdery anti-caking additive)
– Raw veggies: Carrots, celery, cucumbers or bell peppers would all be tasty quick side items
– Optional: Freshly grated parmesan cheese (for the pizza), hummus or homemade ranch dip for the veggies
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Simple Directions:
1. Slice the bread/bagels and spread a tablespoon or two of the pizza/pasta sauce on the top. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and heat in the oven (or toaster oven) just until the cheese melts and starts to turn brown.
2. While the pizza toast is cooking wash/slice veggies and make dip (if using). When the pizza comes out of the oven top with grated parmesan cheese (if using).
I made one of your weeknight quick dinners. Some whole wheat penne, Real butter, milk, freshly grated cheddar. Then I cooked a bag of frozen mixed vegetables, some extra peas, and mixed it in. I also added a can of diced tomatoes rotel, it does have more than 5 ingredients, (7total). There’s an organic version but still has 7 ingredients. Maybe buying just green chilies and just diced tomatoes? However, There is still citric acid and calcium chloride in the organic version. It seems if I split them up, I’m still getting the same ingredients just using two different cans to technically have 5 ingredients per item. I don’t think that’s the point. A little help here please? We love the little kick of the spicy tomatoes and chilies.
You’d be hard-pressed to find canned tomatoes without either calcium chloride or citric acid, especially citric acid. The former is a firming agent and the latter is a preservative. Your body makes citric acid on its own and it’s naturally occurring in many plants; it’s not scary. You can buy it in the store as “sour salt” and it’s used in canning, both home and commercial, to retain color and acidify what’s being canned. This is important to inhibit bacteria and not give you botulism. Calcium chloride is a salt and similarly is naturally occurring in things like limestone; it’s often used to either add salty flavor without increasing sodium content or as a way to make sure your canned foods don’t come out like mush. Either way, the amount added of either of these is really small and the amount in what you actually eat is even smaller.
Chemicals are not inherently scary. I don’t worry about the small amount of chemicals used to make my food safe to eat. I worry about cheap, petroleum-based synthetic additives used to cut corners in manufacturing and are the hallmarks of highly-processed foods. In with canned tomatoes, out with Cheez-Its.
Fried Rice, just cook up some brown rice, scramble an egg, mix it in with some frozen veggies, a little coconut oil and just a drop of soy sauce. Easy quick delicious.
I really love your blog. I recommend it almost weekly to help people stop eating processed food. Hot dogs? Really? Wow, that is the worst. Not eating them would be a “whole” lot better than advice to add them in just because your in a pinch. They are not even good in a desperate situation. Maybe if your hangry because you miss them so much and realize it terrible to eat them but you just have to get it out of your system for a year or so!
We used the Mac & Cheese idea tonight. My kids like to call it Mac & Cheese with Peas. The rhyming makes it taste better.
We have breakfast food a lot when we don’t have anything else ready. Especially working fulltime and not getting home until after 5pm. Whip up whole grain pancakes and now I have added a little cottage cheese and whatever berries we have on hand in the batter and it not only adds a little protein but taste great. Adding Greek yogurt to the batter is good too.
Awww, my mom used to make pizza toast a lot when we were kids. It was easy, yummy snack. But my mom didn’t use organic version of the ingredients..
For everyone anti-Annie’s, there are other organic mac n cheese brands to buy. There is one Ancient Harvest Quinoa mac n cheese that isn’t bad and is GF & organic. But, I don’t think having Annie’s mac n cheese out of a box and organic beef hot dogs every once in a while is going to kill anyone! Like someone else said, it sure beats ordering a pizza or going through a drive through. And even doing that every once in a while won’t kill you either! All in moderation-if you’re doing majority whole foods/organic, I wouldn’t worry about a splurge here and there. I understand in a perfect world it would be best to boycott all the companies that support GMO’s, but that would be way too limiting and not realistic at all for most families.
Have you tried Tolerant lentil pasta? It’s one ingrediant (lentils :-)) and my kids love it. Throw some pasta sauce and parmasean cheese ans it’s great for the whole family. While it’s expensive (8.99 a box!) my kids happily eat pasta (knowing its beans) and get a ton of protein. Would love to know your thoughts. Thanks!
Hi Elizabeth. I’ve not tried that one but have had several other bean pastas and love them! ~Amy
We do most of these meals regularly on school nights. Another really quick option is an indoor picnic. Usually includes hummus, some kind of nuts, carrots and/or pepper strips, break that can be torn and dipped in the hummus, whatever fruit we have (apples and grapes are the favorites), and cheese cubes. If I don’t have the right kinds of bread, I will pop some popcorn in the microwave using your lunch bag trick.
A couple of our easy meals are:
Frozen soup from our freezer, when we make chili, soups, etc. we usually make a big batch and freeze it for those crazy nights when we need fast food.
We also get quality “lunchmeats” from a local farmer and those can make quick and portable meals paired with some cheese, veggies, fruit, etc.
Shrimp–We get quality frozen shrimp and it takes minutes to run it under water and defrost, I lay it on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil, sea salt and pepper. Roast it for about 8 minutes. I mix up a quick cocktail sauce with organic ketchup or homemade ketchup and a bit of horseradish. Serve with steamed frozen vegetables and we can have dinner on the table in about 15 minutes.
Can you give some suggestions for ‘healthy’ hot dogs?
Hi Rebecca. Lisa sometimes buys Applegate Farms Organic. ~Amy
Are you kidding me with these recipes. These are 5th grade level recipes. Why even post these. These are below basic recipes. Mac n cheese with peas & hot dogs. Really?
The point, as indicated in the title, is that they are super quick dinners that are still wholesome. I think most of us have been in a position where we haven’t planned dinner and everyone is starving and you need to get food on the table. I love to have a good repertoire of ridiculously simple dinners using items I have on hand.
That cracked me with the Annie’s, that is the one I buy and I always put peas in it! It is my daughters favorite. I have been told that it was weird to put peas in it, so thank you for making me not the only one!
I recently discovered a pasta sauce from Mezzetta. It was made from imported tomatoes and seemed safe. Maybe it wasn’t organic. Is that a factor?
Hi Leah. It certainly doesn’t disqualify it as an option. :) It is up to you whether you choose organic or not. The only tomatoes to make the dirty dozen list this year were the cherry variety: http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/. Buying organic does promise certain levels of quality and no artificial colors or ingredients. ~Amy
Thanks so much for these tips. Truly easy dinners – yahoo! Another thing I keep on hand is a jar of pesto. Easy to add to pasta noodles or spread on pita with cheese for pesto pizza. Please keep the ideas coming!!
I’m confused as to why, when you’re promoting real food, you would recommend anyone eating hotdogs? Seems completely out of alignment with your message to me.
…also, hotdogs only happen on occasion in the Leake household. They are not a staple. ~Amy
Lots of butchers/farms who have grass-fed cows and pigs make their own hot dogs, or “Longaniza” as my local farm calls them. They may not be AS good as an intact slab of meat, but many times better and healthier than most store-bought hotdogs.
Instead of canned pizza sauce, I use organic crushed tomatoes and just add my own spices to taste. I can then freeze any leftovers and have pizza sauce handy at anytime. Plus, no added sweeteners or sugars.
An easy alternative to jarred pasta sauce and just as quick is a large can of crushed tomatoes. Add in some italian seasoning and you have pasta sauce without any additives and the best part – no heartburn. It tastes easy and fresh. Whatever jarred sauces I used to used my husband always complained of heartburn – not at all since I started using crushed tomatoes – if I want chunkier sauce I’ll throw in a can of diced tomatoes. Just make sure its the low/no sodium ones and no seasonings. We use this as a pizza sauce too.
Fantastic. This makes me feel less guilty for serving scrambled eggs and fruit for dinner (one of my kids favorite meal!). I make homemade whole wheat waffles in batches and freeze them, then defrost to serve with the eggs on “breakfast for dinner” night.
PS – Thanks for the guidance on the Annie’s!!! My little girl loves it but I was suspicious of the ingredients on several varieties.