Weeknight Dinner Project

It’s 5:45 PM on a Wednesday night. You’ve just walked in the door, home from work or from picking up your kids from soccer practice. Now what?

Unless your spouse is in the kitchen making supper (or you have a fabulous personal chef…), chances are this is one of your least favorite parts of the day: having to pull together a quick dinner that everyone in the family will eat.

I started Rosaberry three years ago, and I’ve discovered that my clients most want help with straight-forward, healthful, yet delicious, weeknight meals. I’ve worked with people throughout the New York area, showing them tricks for roasting vegetables, practicing freezer-friendly meals, and discussing menu planning strategies – anything that would help them get dinner on the table with a minimum of stress.

And even though I am the *expert* let me quickly say that I am not immune to the frustrations of putting together a good weeknight dinner, night after night after night…. I could use some inspiration too.

So I’m happy to announce the Weeknight Dinner Project, a new series on my Rosaberry blog, Facebook page, and nascent Twitter account. The Weeknight Dinner Project will be a place for me to offer recipes and strategies, but more importantly, for you to share your weeknight dinner ideas, photos, and frustrations. I’ll be inviting guest bloggers to tell us how they get dinner on the table on the average Wednesday night.

For the most part I’m interested in how people manage fresh, healthy meals made out of whole foods (a minimum of processed foods). That’s not to say there’s not a place in life for takeout or frozen pizza (and you’ll see that sometimes that’s exactly what we eat). But for our families’ health and happiness, real food is the way to go.

So what’s on the menu for this week?

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7 Responses to Weeknight Dinner Project

  1. Heather says:

    Thank you, thank you! I look forward to reading your tips. Our family could certainly use some inspiration!

  2. Allison Graham says:

    Oh and Wednesday night is the killer for me. I usually try to have a stash of leftovers to get us through, but I would be grateful for some recipes and ideas that will help me actually cook something fast! Am excited to see how the project goes.

  3. I certainly could use some help with weeknight dinner. Looking forward to being inspired!

  4. Marjanna Helwig says:

    What a great topic! It is the most challenging part of cooking healthy for the family when there is a kid claiming starvation and junk food easy to graze on.
    First thing, I try to avoid having the junk food available. That way a “tide over” plate of healthy snacks like snap peas, an apple, a slice a cheese and maybe a few crackers thrown in will keep the kid happy until dinner is ready,
    Then I try to have a few nights worth of main courses available in the frig that I can go with the what sounds good at the moment, and based on how late it is for preparation time. As well I try to keep fresh fruits and vegies available, so I can make things on the spur of the moment.
    Perhaps not the most efficient and often not the most exciting of meals comes from this strategy, but at lease we stay away from the take out and the processed junk.
    Ideas for quick recipes that don’t take time in advance (ie. marinate for an hour) are always appreciated.

    • Jenna says:

      Marjanna – I love the idea of a “tide over” plate. These days, with Rosa being somewhat veggie averse, serving carrots pre-dinner is one of the best ways to get her to eat them. I should add more to the repertoire there.

  5. Brian says:

    Thrilling!

    Frozen pizza dough left to rise all day…slathered with olive oil, tomato paste with pressed garlic cloves, oregano, chiptole peppers, a couple achovies, pinch of salt…handful of basil and fresh parm… arugala…and if you must – mozz. 15 minutes and we’re eating.

    but that’s all i got…help me oh grt goddess of wk night dinners!

    • Jenna says:

      Yum! That sounds awesome Brian. I will definitely put that on my weeknight menu. Sounds kid-friendly too, maybe minus the chipotle.

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