main dish

Rich and decadent meets quick, cheap, and easy in this creamy Spaghetti Carbonara.  I have a controversial opinion, I think spaghetti carbonara is like the fried rice of Italian food. It’s cheap and filling. It’s super quick and easy. And it just takes a handful of ingredients to make it amazing. Today I’m sharing one of my favorite versions of this classic pasta dish. It’s not a traditional spaghetti carbonara, but it is tasty and more importantly, it has easily…

If you’re looking for an easy weeknight dinner that will feed your whole family, have I got a winner for you.  French Onion Smothered Pork Chops are so easy to make with only 4 ingredients and are ready in under one hour.  We like to eat these creamy baked pork chops with mashed potatoes and green beans for a simple weeknight meal. This might sound weird, but people that I know give me food, specifically random ingredients, all the time.…

Southwestern Egg Roll Bake has all the taste of Southwestern Egg Rolls with a fraction of the work! This easy main dish casserole is a play on one of my favorite appetizers.  I love egg rolls of about any variety, but I don’t really like making them at home. It’s time consuming and messy and greasy. Basically any time I make something that’s individually fried it’s a labor of love towards whoever I’m cooking for.  My Southwestern Egg Roll Bake…

Chicken Zucchini Casserole is the perfect hearty weeknight dinner and a great way to sneak in more veggies. Chicken, vegetables and stuffing are tossed with a creamy homemade sauce and then baked in the oven. This Chicken Zucchini Casserole is a one pan wonder! It’s easy to make. Creamy and hearty without relying on canned cream of chicken soup. And it’s chock full of vegetables, which makes this casserole healthier for you and easier on your budget. Do you have…

Tender and juicy classic oven roasted chicken couldn’t be more easy or economical! This is one quintessential recipe you’ll come back to time and time again. I remember being a newlywed, a novice cook, and being completely intimidated by the idea of cooking a whole chicken. Tucking wings? Trussing legs? Carving? It was just too far outside my comfort zone. It wasn’t until years later when I became more conscious of stretching our budget and stretching my time that I…

Creamy, cheesy, and a little bit spicy, this Cajun Sausage Alfredo covers all the bases.   Cajun Sausage Alfredo is a cheap weeknight dinner. It’s quick and easy to make. It only takes about 15 minutes, doesn’t take a ton of fancy ingredients, and it tastes amazing! Finding that combination of cheap, easy, and delicious is hard to do. But this easy pasta dish hits all 3 criteria and that’s why it’s is in the regular rotation at my house.…

Calico beans. Cowboy beans. Baked beans with beef and bacon. These deliciously easy beans go by many names, but they’re all basically the same thing, a variety of colorful beans slow simmered in a sweet and tangy sauce with ground beef and bacon. As a food blogger, a lot of people ask me questions about food in real life. Things like, what side dishes go well with this main dish? What’s something good to make for a crowd? What’s a…

Cheese Tater Tot casserole is an easy make ahead weeknight meal. A hearty beef and bean chili base is topped with gooey melted cheddar cheese and finished with crispy tater tots. Today I’ve got an easy everyday recipe for you made with ground beef! Because we get our beef directly from the butcher, it comes in 2lb packages. So I tend to brown both pounds at once and then make two main dish recipes, one for that day and then…

Don’t let anyone tell you that soup can’t be a meal. This tortellini soup is so hearty and filling. With robust Italian sausage, loads of veggies and savory cheese tortellini, this soup packs a lot of flavor! Serve it up with a side of garlic bread baked in foil and you’ve got a one pot wonder of a meal that comes together in 40 minutes. Guess who’s got two thumbs and is excited that the weather is starting to get…

Rich and creamy, cheesy and hearty, this broccoli cheese soup is one of my tried and true favorite soup recipes. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I just have to take a break from the baking and the sweets! Last week I worked and worked on dessert recipes trying to decide what to make for a local charity auction and dinner. If you are a member of my baker’s group on Facebook (Let me pause here to say you…