Welcome back everyone!

It has been a crazy, hectic, restless week. We are officially back in school, and most importantly, we’re in back to school MODE. This essentially means that everything gets pushed to the weekend, dishes pile up constantly in the kitchen because we’re exhausted by the time we get home, and we’re falling asleep by 8:15 PM. This usually happens in the first few weeks until we finally find our groove again (and our caffeine fixes). Back to school mode is no joke, and neither is the monumental whirlwind of realizing that there are never enough hours in a day to finish everything you need to.

So what’s the hardest thing to do when you get home after a long day of work?…. cook. That’s the hardest thing for us to do the first couple weeks back because it’s just one thing on top of another it seems like. So this week on the blog, we’re giving ourselves a grace period, and finding dinners that are simple, fast, and (somewhat healthy)… like I said a grace period. 

We thought it was a great time to put some of these recipes up for you guys because we’re all struggling with the same thing! This time of year definitely kicks all of us into overdrive. Here are some recipes we’ve tried and found useful for those days where you really just don’t want to cook. If you have any other recipes or suggestions for some quick cooking that you love always feel free to message us at @theteacherteam! Enjoy-

For the days you need some #comfortfood

One pot chili: (recipe can be adjusted for dietary needs such as vegan/vegetarian/keto/glutenfree etc.)

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb. lean ground beef or ground turkey
• 1 large green pepper chopped
• 1 small onion chopped
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons chili powder or 1 package chili seasoning
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 can dark red kidney beans 
• 1 can black beans (or pinto)
• 1 20 oz. can diced tomatoes
• 1 small can tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon butter
• Optional: chilies
• 1 lime squeezed

Steps:

1. Brown meat with pepper, onion and garlic in a large pot 
2. When meat is browned add chili seasoning, and
3. Worcestershire sauce (any other seasonings you would like to add would be perfect at this time)
4. Stir diced tomatoes, tomatoes and chilies*, and both cans of beans
5. bring to a boil
6. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes OR if in crockpot it can simmer all day

For the #heartydays-

One pan potato and sausage: (recipe can be adjusted for dietary needs such as vegan/vegetarian/keto/gluten free etc.)

Ingredients:

• 5 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 large sweet orange pepper, sliced
• 1 large sweet red pepper, sliced
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 tablespoon olive oil (or 1 tablespoon butter) 
• 2 teaspoons paprika, salt & pepper to taste, ½ teaspoon of dried thyme
• 1 package (19 ounces) Italian sausage links (if vegetarian substitute in green beans  + mushrooms)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Place the potatoes, sweet peppers, shallot and garlic in a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Drizzle with oil. Spread seasonings on evenly; toss to coat. Add sausage to pan.
2. Bake, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in sausage reads 160° and vegetables are tender; time for 35 minutes. If desired, sprinkle parmesan cheese before serving.

For something #light&filling-

Shrimp n’ veggie mix:  (recipe can be adjusted for dietary needs such as vegan/vegetarian/keto/gluten free etc.) chicken, tofu, or mushrooms can be substituted as a base

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon butter + olive oil
• 2 pounds jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined (tails on)
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 2 cans of corn
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 2 large zucchini chopped
• 1 cup yellow tomatoes
• Salt & pepper, basil seasoning (or basil leaves)
• 1 lemon juiced 
• Parmesan cheese
• Optional *rice can be added as a side*

Steps:

1. Melt in butter and olive oil together in a large skillet over medium. Add shrimp and garlic/ 3 min. (remove the shrimp from the pan)
2. Increase the heat to high and add in zucchini/ for 1 min stir
3. Add all tomatoes, corn, lemon, and seasonings. Mix ingredients in with the zucchini
4. Throw the shrimp back in and stir everything in for 1 min. Add parmesan cheese and more lemon juice if needed.

We hope these recipes helped you out time saving wise, or gave you some inspiration to be creative within your own dishes! There may not be enough hours in a day but we all work with the time we do have! See you next week friends!

Happy cooking,

John & Carol #theteacherteam