While a lot of restaurants are open, we’re still staying home as much as possible. We still do takeout a couple of times on the weekends to support our local favorites, but right now, we’re eating a lot of home cooking. I’m cooking (or re-heating) meals twice a day. And with work and a 6-year-old at home, it’s admittedly not easy. In fact, I thought I’d do a lot more cooking with my son during these stay-at-home months, but I often feel like the most important thing is to just get the meal done.
I’m sharing a few of our current and past faves in case you need to add a few new meal options to your own rotation.
Roast Chicken – This staple was in our rotation anyway, but when my local grocery store started limiting packaged chicken purchases, I discovered that I could still buy a whole chicken on top of that limit. My son loves this chicken, and my husband loves the chicken fat-flavored potatoes and carrots that cook in the pan with the chicken. I follow this method from Bon Appetit. And I use Herbs de Provence for flavor.
Carnitas from Gimme Some Oven – I don’t even bother with crisping them (me = lazy), and they’re still delicious. My son loves them, and I love that when I make a 3-pound roast, we get about 3 meals out of it!
Instant Pot BBQ Pulled Pork from Gimme Some Oven – I made this for the first time yesterday for lunch, and hubby and I loved it, so it will be making a return for sure.
Marinated Grilled Chicken – We call it “Mommy Chicken,” and it’s a top request from both hubby and the boy. It’s better when you can marinate it overnight, but sometimes I only have 10 minutes to give it, and everyone still loves it.
Homemade Pizzas – These have been fun for my son to help with. Plus, everyone gets their own toppings. I buy pre-made sauce (Rao’s pizza sauce is my fave) and ready-to-go flatbread. (Someday, we’ll make our own crust, but seriously, right now, speed is the name of the game, people.)
Chrissy Teigen’s Buttery Chicken Adobo – I made this so much that I think my son is bored with it. But it’s soooo good. (We sub in dairy-free butter.)
Green Chile Chicken – Super easy, and my kiddo loves it. All I do is put chicken breasts in a glass baking dish and dump a jar of salsa verde on them and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees. We serve over rice with a salad on the side. If not for my son’s dairy allergy, I’d probably throw some cheddar cheese on there too!
And for Dessert
I recently made these Peanut Butter Molten Cakes, and OMG, soooo good.