Contrary to popular belief, the wine in the photo is not the dinner idea. Although, that will go quite nicely with any of the meals 😉 So if y’all know me, you know that I don’t love to cook #notdomestic But, quarantine has been putting my “cooking” skills to the test. I say cooking lightly because there are more dinner ideas vs. full-on recipes. So if you have other ways you’d rather spend your time besides cooking, you’re at the right place. Today I wanted to share a few quick and easy meals that we’ve been having on repeat. These are all saved under my “Easy Recipe” highlight on IG if you want to hear more about them and see some of them in action!

1. Enchiladas. A personal favorite. Who doesn’t like Mexican?! This one is super easy. All you need are tortillas, cheese, salsa, and whatever else you want to stuff them with. This is what we use/how we make them.
   -Low carb tortillas from Trader Joe’s (you can use any tortilla but I would use something more mid-size. The really small ones are too small for all the fillers and the large ones have too much bread).
   -Salsa (move using a salsa verde but any salsa will work).
   -Shredded cheese (any will work but we typically do mozzarella).
   -Protein (cook the meat ahead of time so you’re adding cooked meat to the tortillas–we’ve done chicken, carne asada, pork tenderloin, etc. you can just just dice the meat, or you can mix it up and make shredded meat in the crockpot/instapot beforehand. )
   -Beans (refried beans are a great option. Love using it as the base of the tortilla before adding other toppings).After all the enchiladas are rolled up, top with the salsa and extra cheese and then throw in the oven on 375 for 15ish minutes? Basically until they get crispy on the top! I like to put them on broil for the last couple minutes. I also like to make a larger batch of these and just eat them through the week for lunch or other dinners.
2. Protein + Carb + Greens. For this one, pick any protein, carb and then a green (title of this one is pretty self explanatory ;)) So for example, we did pork tenderloin, diced potatoes, and a salad. Can always mix this up by swapping out the protein, choosing another carb (rice, quinoa, pasta, etc) and another green (broccoli, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, etc).
3. Protein + Cheese Sandwich. This of this like a grilled cheese but with protein as an added bonus 😉 We will do this with BBQ chicken, pork tenderloin, carne asada, etc. Literally just add the protein, cheese of choice, and put the sandwich in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes so everything can melt and the bread can brown. Also feel free to add other toppings like onions, tomatoes, peppers, avocado, etc. We will usually add some kind of veggie as a side.
4. Acorn Squash Bowls. Think of this as a burrito bowl but the squash is your carb instead of rice. So grab any type of squash, cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Then throw in the oven at 375-400 for about an hour (or until squash is easy to piece with a fork). Then add your toppings! We typically do a protein (pulled chicken is deelish), beans, shredded cheese, avocado and salsa. Get creative!
5. Healthy Nachos. This is another personal favorite (feel like I’m sensing a theme here with the Mexican inspired dishes lol). And you’ll definitely want to see these on the IG highlight because they look GOOD. Just a few ingredients (and feel free to get creative with the toppings!)
   –Joseph’s Lavash Wraps. These wraps are low in fat and carbs and have a good amount of protein–so way healthier than chips! But, they literally taste like chips once you bake them.
   -Toppings: shredded cheese, beans, and a protein. We did mozzarella, ground beef, and pinto beans (use a leaner meat like ground turkey or chicken for an even healthier alternative).

   This is all on the IG highlight, but what you want to do it cut the tortillas into chip size rectangles. Throw them all in a big mixing bowl, and toss with a little olive oil and salt. Then get a big cooking sheet (we used two sheets, so the pieces weren’t laying on top of each other. we found that the wraps/chips get much crispier when they aren’t overlapping) and put it in the oven on 35o until they get browned/crispy. Once crispy (consistency should be like a tortilla chip), we added them all to one pan (at this point its fine for them to overlap some, like chips would if you ordered a platter of nachos), and add the toppings. Then throw it back in the oven for just a few more minutes so everything can melt. We cooked the meat ahead of time so all it had to do was warm up once in the oven. Serve with sour cream and avocado/guac if you’re feeling fancy!

6. Homemade Pizzas. When I say homemade, I mean store bought and you just add the ingredients LOL. We love buying pizza crust from Trader Joe’s, or you can buy actual pizza dough from any grocery store. And then I think it’s pretty self-explanatory 😉 Add the sauce, toppings, throw in the oven, pour yourself glass of wine, and that’s it!

Be sure to check back to the IG highlight for more inspo! But this is all I got for now 🙂 Hope this helps you get started with some ideas!! Anything you guys have been making on repeat? xxC