I’m going to let you in on a little secret: I don’t love to cook.  But since good nutrition is important, cooking is necessary.  My solution is to be picky about building my recipe selection.  I choose easy real food recipes for yummy meals.

Easy, because I know I don’t want to wrestled with complicated, fussy, or time-consuming recipes.  (This is not to say that I never do anything more involved, but our main repertoire of everyday recipes are on the simpler side.)

Real food, because if it isn’t nourishing, it’s kind of a waste of effort.

And yummy, because it doesn’t matter how nutritious something is; if no one will eat it, it doesn’t nourish us!

This rules out a lot of recipes, but it ensures that the ones we keep actually get used.  Not all of our favorites are here on Titus 2 Homemaker, but we do have a selection to share.

Family Favorite Yummy Meals

These are among our most often-prepared main dishes.  (Along with a couple of not-quite-real-food recipes now that the middle kids are learning to cook.)  A few of these were family favorites until I had to go gluten-free, but have fallen by the wayside since.

• Tuna Penne Pasta – I know the name is redundant, but this is what my kids call it.  It’s pretty easy to make; kids can make it themselves if they can use the can opener and the stove.  It’s a good last-minute or pantry meal, because it’s made with mostly canned goods.  And if you use GF pasta, it’s gluten-free.  (Serves 4)
• Beefy Cheesy Pasta – This is another meal that can be easy and last-minute, if you brown the beef ahead of time, which is the way we usually do it.  (We brown the beef in bulk then freeze it in 1/2- or 1-lb. portions.)  The kids can make this one, too, and it can be gluten-free if you use GF noodles and a GF soy sauce.  (Serves 4)
• Pizza – My family adapted this decades ago from a recipe on Reading Rainbow.  As you can probably imagine, it’s pretty simple as pizza goes.  It’s great for a family pizza night or a birthday party.
• Easy Chicken Soup – This easy soup is yet another meal that’s a great last-minute option if you plan ahead.  I cook and shred chicken, and freeze it in 1-cup portions.  I also freeze broth, and I chop up carrots to store.  If all of those are in the freezer, then you can just toss everything into the pot and heat it up.  (Serves 4)

  (Need food storage?  There’s a Chicken Soup in a Jar option, too, using freeze-dried ingredients.)

• Rosemary Baked Chicken – I know I can’t be the only one who forgets to thaw meat for dinner!  This one is nice because, if necessary, you can cook it from frozen.  It’s gluten-free & AIP-friendly.  (Make what you need; serves 1 or 4 or whatever you need.)
• Salmon Patties – A little more involved (and messy) than most of the other meals on this list, salmon patties (some people call them “salmon cakes”) are still pretty easy.  They’re not very filling, though, so be sure your side dishes are substantive.  Can be gluten-free if you use gluten-free crumbs, or omit the crumbs.  (Serves 4)
• Lentils & Rice – Lentils & rice is another easy pantry meal.  It’s gluten-free and can easily be adjusted to be vegan.  The kids can make it, and it works well with food storage.  (Serves 4)
• Chili – Warm comfort food!  This chili relies on a homemade mix (recipe included).  If the meat is pre-cooked and frozen, it’s pretty quick and easy; the kids can make it.  If you omit the meat, it’s a viable food storage or pantry meal.  The recipe has a regular and a gluten-free option.  (Serves 4)

We have other real food recipes that are family favorites that need to be shared, so stay tuned for more to be added over time!

More Real Food Recipes

Some of our recipes are my personal favorites (but not meals the whole family chooses routinely), or single-serving meals I prepare when I can’t eat what everyone else is having (due to food sensitivities).

• Not-Mac & Cheese – This iteration of the classic comfort food uses cauliflower in place of the pasta.  It doesn’t taste cauliflower-y, and is surprisingly satisfying.  It’s gluten-free.  (Serves 4)
• Beefy Cauliflower One-Dish Meal – Another recipe that relies on cauliflower for its bulk, we created this one on the fly one day.  It’s gluten-free, and will be AIP-compliant if you omit the paprika.  (Serves 4-6)
• Easy Beef & Carrots – This is an AIP-friendly meal made for one person, in a skillet.  If you have a large enough skillet, you can probably multiply it easily, but with an average skillet that might be tricky.  (Serves 1)
• Caramelized Garlic Chicken – Just prep the chicken and pop it in the oven; most of the cooking time for this is hands-off.  It’s gluten-free and AIP-friendly.  (Serves 6)
• Turkey Divan – Make Turkey Divan with either deli turkey slices or leftover turkey.  This meal is heavily hands-on, but doesn’t require a long cooking time. (Serves 4)

  (Have a lot of turkey leftovers?  <– Click that link for a lot more ideas to put them to use.)

Still More Real Food Recipes

These recipes are guest posts or recipes we make only occasionally.  They’re still yummy meals, but they aren’t among our uppermost picks.

• Roasted Chicken & Potatoes – Roast a whole chicken with this recipe.  Gluten-free.  (Serves 4-6)
• Easy Lamb Roast – We’re not big lamb fans (and lamb can be pricey), but lamb is fitting for Passover.  This recipe is AIP-friendly and made in a slow cooker.  (Serves 8-10; easy to halve)
• 4 salmon recipes – The salmon recipes in this guest post are a mixed bag.  At least one recipe on the page is AIP-friendly and a couple are gluten-free.  (Serve 4)
• Gyros – The meat filling and tzatziki for these gyros have a lot of ingredients but not a ton of steps.  They’re made with whole foods, but then placed on storebought bread, so the “real foodness” of the finished product will depend on whether you use the listed bread or something else.  These are gluten-free with the suggested bread.  (Serves 4)
• 25-minute Chicken & Noodles – This pasta dish is pretty simple, but has a bit of a twist: it’s cooked in the sauce.  You might be able to substitute gluten-free noodles, but you’d need to do some experimenting with the exact amount of liquid and the timing for your specific pasta.  (Serves 4)
• Tuna-Cheddar Chowder – This soup is a pantry meal, relying on ingredients in the pantry and fridge, with no advance preparation.  Can be made gluten-free.  (Serves 4)

Not Quite Meals

Meatballs don’t quite qualify as a meal, but I wanted to be sure to include them because they form the heart of a number of recipes.  We use precooked frozen meatballs for yummy meals like BBQ Meatballs, Meatball Subs, and Swedish Meatballs.

Start with the recipe for our original freezer meatballs or the adapted gluten-free freezer meatballs.  (The gluten-free version is also free from nightshades so, while it isn’t quite AIP-compliant, it will be a viable reintroduction food for many people.)

Small Meals/Lunch

The recipes in this category aren’t quite what most people think of as “meals” or “main dishes,” but can provide the base of a “snackish meal” (as my kids call it).

• Sausage-Cheese Balls – These are an excellent grab-and-go option, so if the kids need to eat while waiting for a sibling to finish dance class or something, consider these.
• Jazzed-Up Egg Salad – Egg salad on a bed of lettuce can form a full — albeit small — meal.  This version makes the egg salad a little more interesting.

Almost Real Food

Sometimes “easy” trumps “perfect” and you need something that’s mostly healthy, even if it’s only second-best.

• IP Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Rice – With only 5 ingredients, and made in the InstantPot, this is easy and fairly quick, especially if you have the chicken already cooked and in the freezer.  My kids make this.  All of the ingredients are real foods except the sauce.  A jarred Ragu sauce proves to be (surprisingly) a healthier option than canned cheese soup.  (Serves 4-6)