Easy Back- to-School Dinners

Hi, resident Mom here. Looking for Easy Back-to-School Dinners and a way to get your meal planning back on track? OH GOOD. Buckle up, buttercup. I’ve got you covered!

Here’s my background: my son is currently a junior in high school (gasp!). I’ve been momming for 17 years, and I know that it takes me a good month or two to find my groove again after the Summer. September feels like fresh notebooks, new pens, and new beginnings. I’ve left us a roadmap with all the easy dinner ideas you need to get through the first two months of school.

The key to surviving the school year is to make things easy. Build yourself a rotation and experiment with different iterations of the dishes. Build an arsenal to refer to. Speaking of…I created a binder system to keep track of my meals. Here’s a video and everything that’s included in my Meal Prep Pack!

You can also create a template for yourself of fixed dinner menus to make life easy.

Or use my template (it’s included in the meal prep pack)

Ok, let’s get you thinking about dinners.

Cracklin’ Chicken

My son’s FAVORITE chicken dish. He gets excited when he finds out we’re having this for dinner. This one is good because it takes about 8 minutes per side. Think of all of the things you can distract yourself with while you wait for the chicken to crisp up.

Lemon Chicken

My mom made this one a lot during my childhood. The way my house smells while making this BRINGS ME BACK. There’s some onion chopping up front, but most of this dinner is just oven time.

Sol Food Chicken

I can make this one in my sleep! It’s a great one to prep ahead too. I love how the leftovers work well in salads the next day.

Spanish Garlic Shrimp

This is one of my Mom’s faves. She actually made it a lot for company. I loved it with rice and her green salad.

Burger Salad

I almost always have the ingredients for a burger salad. We buy ground beef in bulk, so I have some portioned out in the freezer. Tots or fries in the freezer. Romaine is always in the weekly rotation. Arugula for me, please. My boys get bread. I get a salad.

Thai Beef with Basil

This is why I grow Thai Basil in my yard. Regular basil works fine. I only grow Thai Basil because I don’t want an extra grocery store trip.

Vegetable Tempura

Here’s the thing about frying foods: you’ve got to be quick, and you’ve got to be prepared. Sure, there’s some cleanup involved, but look at you! You didn’t let that produce die in the back of your fridge!

Broccoli Beef

If you’re craving Chinese food but you’ve got broccoli in the fridge that needs a place to go…

Thai Basil Tofu

This is a good meal prep situation for a vegetarian. I would have more tofu in my rotation, but I live with guys who would much rather I make Thai Basil Beef.

Buddha Bowls

Put your meal prep to work! These bowls of goodness can be whipped together in an instant. It’s also a good option for picky eaters. They can put whatever they want in their bowl.

Handroll Sushi Night

Trader Joe’s has frozen shrimp tempura that I use for this! Use your air-fryer and leftover rice! Everyone chooses their adventure here.

Baked Spaghetti

You don’t have to go all out and bake this spaghetti, but you might win some hearts and minds with that melted cheese crust. He loves meaty marinara, though, so that’s cool!

Spaghetti Pie

Have leftover spaghetti? MAKE A PIE! It’s incredibly hardy and super satisfying to CUT INTO.

Lasagna Cups

Make a batch of these and store some in the freezer. Got an air fryer? Reheat them in that. The edges will get so crispy.

Instant Pot Jalapeno Mac + Cheese

Let this recipe be your gateway drug into the Instant Pot mac + cheese world.

10 Ways to Enhance Annie’s Mac + Cheese

Speaking of mac… I figured out a bunch of flavor profiles that will enhance a regular box of mac & cheese if you need some inspiration on that front.

Mushroom Pupusas

The batter/dough lasts a few days in the fridge, so you can just portion them out and make them on the fly. Also, they freeze well, too. I totally forgot that these are an option. This is our reminder.