Casserole Type Dinner Ideas

I boil up a bag of those chicken leg quarters from Walmart. The whole bag, 10 lbs, is usually less than $5.

I boil then skin and all until they are done. Then de-bone them. I toss the bones and the skin back in the boiling water to cook a bit more, making a good chicken broth. I strain the broth through a hand towel then refrigerate the broth. The next morning I scoop off the fat then freeze the broth in the size zip loc baggie I will need. Like for chicken and noodles or chicken and dumplings I will need at least a gallon bag of broth. But for stuff like just plain cooking that needs a bit of chicken broth I only need a pint or quart. I have some of all different kinds of sizes.

Then I chunk up the chicken and put it zip lock freezer bags too. When I get home late I can toll a bag of chicken pieces in the pot with the right size bag of broth and get it boiling while I get my shoes off, change clothes and wash up. But the time I get back in the kitchen it's time to tear up a roll of biscuits to make chicken and dumplings or add in some frozen Reamus Egg Noodles to make chicken and noodles. When I make those sometimes I will add a small can of cream of chicken soup to make the dish more creamy.

By the time I am ready to sit down for a couple of minutes I have thrown together a planned out mean that is hot and ready.

I make a homemade marinara sauce and I keep 2 quarts in the fridge all the time.

I keep a lot of pasta varieties on hand for the marinara including hand stuffed shells, mannicotti that I keep frozen.

Homemade chicken pot pie.

Chicken divan

Salmon in foil can be prepared a day ahead.

I'm not a big crock pot user. My pot roast is on top of the stove and tended too all day.

I do pulled pork in the crock pot and that's tasty.

If you want a recipe, let me know .

**Husband's Delight**

10 oz egg noodles
1.5 lb ground beef
1 (14.4 oz) can of peeled & diced tomatoes w/ juice
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp white sugar
1.5 cup sour cream
3 oz cream cheese
1/2 onion chopped
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Cook noodles and drain.
In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef. Add the tomatoes w/ juice, add salt, sugar, and simmer for 15 min. In a separate large bowl combine: sour cream, cream cheese, onion, and mix well. Now add in the noodles and the meat mixture. Blend well.
In a 9x13 inch baking dish, dump the contents of the mixed bowl and sprinkle with cheese.
Bake 25 minutes.

**SHEPHERD'S PIE**

1 1/2 to 2 pounds ground beef
1 med onion chopped
1 pkg. frozen mixed vegetables**
1 box instant mashed potatoes (sorry, I use the real thing)
2 packets powdered brown gravy mix
salt, pepper, garlic powder (to taste)
paprika

Brown ground beef, onion, salt, pepper & garlic powder and drain fat. Prepare instant mashed potatoes enough to cover a 13 x 9 pan. Place ground beef mixture in a 13 x 9 baking pan. Spread entire package of frozen mixed vegetables on top of beef. Prepare two gravy mix according to instructions and pour over beef and vegetables. Spread mashed potatoes over top and press down evenly with a spatula. Sprinkle lightly with paprika. Bake in 350 degree oven for approx one hour or until bubbling. **(do not thaw)(or any veggies)

**Pizza Casserole**

2 cups un-cooked egg noodles
1 pound lean ground beef garlic salt
1 cup sliced pepperoni
16 oz pizza sauce
4 tablespoons milk
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350º degrees F. Cook noodles according to package directions. In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, brown the ground beef with the garlic. Drain excess fat. Stir in the noodles, pepperoni, pizza sauce and milk, and mix well. Pour this mixture into a 2-quart casserole dish. Bake for 20 minutes, top with the cheese, then bake for 5 to 10 more minutes.

**Hamburger Casserole**

1-1/2 lbs ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 small can tomato sauce
1 cup sour cream
1 (3-oz) cream cheese
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 lb fine noodles, cooked and drained

Sauté onion and ground beef. Blend tomato sauce, sour cream, cream cheese, and mushroom soup in a blender. In a large casserole dish layer half the noodles, half the meat mixture, and half the sour cream mixture. Repeat layers and top with grated cheese. Bake at 350º F for 30 minutes.

**Southwestern Chicken**

2 cans (15-1/4 oz) whole kernel corn
1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed
1 jar (16 oz) chunky salsa, divided
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 cup (4 oz) shredded cheddar cheese

Combine the corn, black beans and 1/2 cup of salsa in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Top with chicken; pour the remaining salsa over chicken. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 7-8 hours or until meat juices run clear. Sprinkle with cheese; cover until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.

**Pork (or lamb) Chops with Fruit Stuffing**

6 boneless pork loin chops(1/2” thick)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 package (6 oz) herb stuffing mix
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 medium tart apple, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup dried cherries or cranberries
2/3 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup chopped onion

In a large skillet, brown pork chops in oil on both sides. In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Place half of the stuffing mixture in a 3-qt. slow cooker. Top with pork and remaining stuffing mixture. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 160°.

How about taking left over chicken from another meal, shredding it, adding taco seasonings, sauted peppers and onions and some shredded cheddar, and black beans. Mix it all together. Take tortilla shells add scoop of mixture and roll tortilla. Pop in freezer and then bake for 15 minutes at 350 whenever needed. You could really tweek the recipe to whatever your family likes. It's a filling meal, we call em' taco roll ups. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Lots of recipes for crock pot foods can be found online. Most of them can be put in the freezer when they are done cooking. We do a lot of chili's in our house. Red bean beef chili and white bean chicken chili are the usual.

How about a big pot of chicken noodle soup. Just add the noodles or rice before serving, so they don't get soggy and bloated.

There's a yummy chicken stuffing casserole that you are supposed to make a day in advance so the flavors can combine, it's really good. If you want the recipe message me and I'll forward it to you.

Since you asked for casseroles, here are a few that you can make in advance...Will your family eat tuna noodle casserole? Baked mac and cheese. Lasagna. (Don't bake the lasagna until your ready to serve it, otherwise it'll dry out.) Baked ziti.

You can google any type of casserole for a good recipe. You can also google certain ingredients and get recipes for just those ingredients.

Here's a couple of other ideas to make cooking dinner quick and easy...

I like to buy ground beef 5-10 lbs at a time, and cook it up... then I freeze it in dinner size portions... about 1 lb in a ziplock bag. That way, all I have to do is grab a bag of ground beef out of the freezer, thaw it, and I'm on my way to quick spaghetti, chili, hamburger soup, casseroles, sloppy joes, whatever calls for loose cooked ground beef. Of course, it wouldn't work if you needed hamburger patties or meatballs, but it does help some.

I also will cook up (boil up) a chicken or two, strip the meat off, and bag it in 2 C amounts, and then put in the freezer...... very handy for chicken casserole dishes, like enchiladas, King Ranch Casserole, pasta salad, stuff like that.

It does help that I have a chest freezer, and have places I can store stuff like that...... and right now, it is plumb full of stuff!

Lasagne, Enchilada casserole, and meatloaf (not a casserole..but same concept as to what you are seeking).

You got some good ideas already. I was going to suggest a few casseroles that I sometimes do on my cooking days. "Cooking Day" to me is either a day on the weekend when my husband can take the kids out for some "man time" and I can be free to cook several meals at once. It's nothing for me to have one thing in the crockpot, one thing in oven, and one or two things on the stove at this time. I really did well at this when I was in 3rd trimester of my pregnancy and was preparing meals so I wouldn't have to cook for my family or guests after my baby was born...
King Ranch Casserole:
cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, 2 C chicken broth, 1 can (undrained) rotel tomatoes, 3 C cooked, shredded or cut up chicken, some chopped onion, 1 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp minced garlic, shredded cheddar cheese, and either some corn chips or corn tortillas: Preheat to 350, combine chicken, soups, rotels, onion, chili, and garlic together in a bowl. Spray the casserole dish for easier cleanup. Make a layer of chips, then a layer of the chicken/soup mix, then a layer of shredded cheese. Repeat this layering, bake for 30-45 minutes (until cheese is melted and hot).

Chicken and Rice Casserole:
Seasoned chicken, cut up...1/2 stick butter, 2 C raw white rice, 1 can of cream of chicken, 1 can of cream of celery, 1/2 bellpepper (chopped), 2 stalks of celery (chopped), 1 or 2 green onions (chopped), 1 C water, a can of undrained rotels: Preheat oven to 375, melt butter in the casserole dish. Mix rice, soups, chopped seasoning, and water in a bowl. When well mixed, pour into dish with melted butter. Place chicken on top of the rice, sprinkle shredded cheese on top, cover with foil, and bake until done (not sure, it's either 60 or 90 minutes---you'll know because there won't be any liquid left).

Any version of chicken, cheese, or beef enchilada is good. Tuna noodle casserole (we eat this with egg noodles, my mom makes it with mac 'n cheese which sounds gross but it was actually good). Ziti, lasagna, etc are good. Meatloaf or mexican meatloaf are good options. Make meatballs and add sauce, and you can refrigerate or freeze it in a gallon ziploc bag that you lay flat, so it freezes flat like an "envelope". Speaking of that, when I was preparing for the baby I also did chicken tortilla soup in the slow cooker and froze it (once cooled) in big ziplocs that were labeled and dated, I made chicken and sausage gumbo, homemade chili, taco soup, chicken noodle soup (minus the noodles), minestrone, those all freeze well. I made "files" of soup stuff like that to save room in the freezer. Super easy to just lay it down in the fridge when you wake up in the morning, and then pour into a pot to heat when you are ready to eat in the evening. The King Ranch casserole is delicious and is fine in the fridge a couple days, but I didn't like it when I froze it....the chips were weird when I thawed it, so it's a great dish but one that should be eaten in a couple days, not frozen.
On a super busy day when I don't have time to mess around in the kitchen, my family LOVES taco soup and it only takes like 30 minutes from start to finish to make that. Brown and drain a pound of ground beef with chopped onion, then put in a pot with a can of undrained corn, 2 cans of ranch style beans, 1 can of undrained rotels, 1 can of undrained tomatoes (not rotels-you want one of each), stir and heat it up, serve with some shredded cheese and corn chips. My husband would eat that any day, and 2 weeks ago (last time I made it) my 5 year old asked if I would "teach my skills" before I go to heaven (he wanted to know how to cook it). It takes 30 minutes to cook, and can be reheated without any problems for a lunch or dinner the next day also.
If you have access to Blue Runner Creole Style Red Beans (must be Blue Runner) then you can make red beans and rice by can that would rival anyone's homemade long version of the dish. That brand name has the texture down PERFECT. Slice a pound of sausage, brown with onion and some Louisiana hot sauce, put in 2 cans of Blue Runner beans, I like to add a can of undrained rotels to it, and that is really good. I cook brown rice (45 minute cook time) instead of white rice (20 minute cook time), but either your kids can get the rice started before you get home, or you could cook the rice the night before if you really need to eat "by" 5pm.
Another thing that is not a casserole or slow cooker but is a great short cut for a good dish: l often buy a package that is about 2lbs for sausage. I'll cook one dish (red beans/rice, or gumbo, or whatever) one week, and have the extra pound still in the fridge to make a meal for the next week. Slice about a pound of sausage, cook with a chopped bell pepper (or red), a chopped onion, some shrimp, and Louisiana hot sauce. Cook it down, and in a separate pot make a batch of saffron rice. You can get a large pack of mahatma saffron rice for like $1.20...when the rice is done, stir it into the meat/veg, add a can of DRAINED rotels, and it's a short cut, bastardized version of paella (but really tasty for a fast week day meal....you can save "the real thing" for a weekend). That takes about 10 minutes to prep (slice veg and sausage, rinse and de-shell 1/2 pound of shrimp), 25 minutes to bring water to a boil and cook the rice (the meat mix can cook once you have the water going for the rice and will be done in less than 20 minutes).

I'm not sure how you can do this if you get off work at 4pm and the kids have to eat by 5pm. Most frozen meals need to bake at least an hour, unless you are setting it out to thaw, but even then, its usually more than 30 minutes to cook.

I have some meals that are freezer to crockpot and are easy to assemble. I have them all in a word doc so if you, or anyone else wants them, just PM me your email address and I'll send it to you.

Also, just google "freezer meals" and lots of recipes come up. Good luck!

That is the routine that we are on during the school year. We get home at 3:45ish, and I want everyone fed by 5:00. On Sundays, we grill boneless/skinless chicken for the week. We also make a soup and a pasta for the week. We use these for lunches.

During the week, it varies. About once a month I will make a pot of pinto beans on Sunday, and then I'm set for the week. I'll mash the beans, and we'll have tostadas (beans/cheese on flat shell), nachos, burritos, fajitas (with the grilled chicken from Sunday), and chicken enchiladas with rice and beans.

We eat a lot of whole grain pasta and brown rice. I add whatever sounds good. Sometimes I add chicken (again from Sunday). We've found good tomato and also fettuccine sauces in the Target brand that have very little sugar and taste good, so I use those a lot. I also grow my own herbs, so sometimes I'll just add a little butter and herbs.

Chicken tetrazini and regular old spaghetti are also favorites around here. I also do crock pot chicken from time to time and serve it with mashed potatoes and corn.

Oh, Monday is ALWAYS cereal night, and we go out on Wednesdays.

Good luck! Life is so much easier when we eat early. :)

King Ranch Casserole

Broccoli Cheese casserole

Enchiladas

We make a casserole called Gourmet casserole. made with soups, wild rive, cheese and breakfast sausage.. makes a ton and freezes great. I will send you the recipe.

We also grill a lot during the weekends and week. We grill way more than we need and freeze the extras for future meals.

Things we grill and then freeze - Sausages, hot dogs, hamburger patties, pork chops, meatloaf, Chicken parts, chicken breasts, Fajitas

Frozen pizzas can be grilled and taste great.

Shell pasta, brocolli, diced ham, cream of brocolli soup, topped with cheddar cheese.
Hamburger, rice, diced green peppers, tomato soup, top with cheddar cheese.
Scalloped potatoes with diced ham mixed in.
Lasagna.

One of my favorites when I need a quick meal.

Add your favorite meats/veggies to 4-5 jars of pasta sauce. I brown some ground turkey with onion and garlic. You can use whatever meat your family likes. Then I add the 5 jars of sauce. To that I add 1 chopped green, red, yellow, and orange bell pepper and mushrooms.

This makes a ton of pasta sauce. You don't have to worry about the veggie b/c it's all in there. Portion them off in meal sizes for your family and freeze. It tastes just as good heated up as fresh. Make a whole grain pasta and you have a very healthy meal in no time.

We eat this about once a week.

We also just like sandwiches. Get some yummy bread rolls, your fav lunch meats, add the tomato, lettuce, pre-cooked bacon if you like that. You can make a pasta salad in advance or just have fruit or chips. That's pretty quick and if you put the veggies on the sandwich or have fruit for a side, you are good to go.

I am a big fan of casseroles to freeze and a lot of the recipes i like to utilize are listed by others below. In addition, I'd like to add the following non-casserole ideas for you that are also quick and easy to prep the night before:

1) Cold dinner/picnic: sliced salami, sliced cheese, trisquits, cherry tomatoes, and cookies from the store
2) pasta: get refrigerated cheese whole wheat tortellini from target, add 1/2 jar of pre made spaghetti sauce and microwave 1 bag of the frozen broccoli w/cheese sauce from target. Cook the tortellini, at same time cook the broccoli and when both are done mix them with the jarred sauce for a good dinner
3) breakfast for dinner: sausage casserole: 1 box croutons poured into a pyrex glass pan sprayer with pam. Fry 2 lbs jimmy dean sausage, drain and add to croutons. Top with about 1/2 bag shredded cheddars. Top with 6 beaten eggs + 2/3 cup milk. Refrig overnight. When ready to cook, set oven to 350. Get casserole out of oven. Mix 1/3 cup milk with 1 can cream of mushroom soup. Spread across casserole. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes.
4) tacos: buy a rotisserie chicken. Shred it. Make tacos with tortilla, pre made pico, corn, and cheese and salsa.
5) same but with a can of beans instead of the chicken.

good luck

Check on www.bettycrocker.com for "emergency" dinner recipes. You can make a ton of different meals using bisquick and different meats, veggies and spices so that you don't end up with the same ol' thing all the time. They are quick and halfway healthy. Also, have you considered getting a pressure cooker? The new electronic ones are safe (not like grandma's) and you can cook food (frozen or not) quickly - it takes 1/3 of the oven cooking time if not frozen.

peas
pearl onions
diced up ham (pre cooked saves time)
biscuit and gravy sauce (sausage flavor is good)
Nuke the frozen veggies, stir in ham, then stir in prepared sauce.
This will re-heat fine in a microwave.
If you have it in a oven safe casserole, you can top it with a pie crust, bake till golden brown and wha-la, it's a pot pie.

Frozen mixed vegetables and diced chicken breast will work, too.

Lasagna

Shepherd's pie

Taco casserole

Enchiladas