My 5 Go-To Dinner Recipes

Earlier in the year, I wrote up a post listing 21 things you could learn in 2017–because I wanted to spend the year learning and improving…I still do, and am. In that post, I mentioned learning five no-fail recipes that you can pull when you have company to impress, need dinner in a flash, or don’t want to think too much. So I wanted to give you my 5 go-to dinner recipes that are easy and fun to make. And I’ve never had any complaints when I serve them.

But why even have go-to recipes when I can just look online? Great question! I find it’s nice to have an arsenal of recipes you’re confident in for a variety of reasons. The first being it’s just time saving when you don’t have to research. I also find you usually have the ingredients on hand when it comes to your go-tos, and if you don’t, you know exactly what you need and where they are located at the grocery store. And the third reason is: you never know when company will drop by, and you may need to whip something up without thinking. That’s when your 5 go-to recipes will come in handy. Now some of my recipes are slow cooker meals, so those aren’t the ones I’d use on a whim, but you know what I mean.

1. White Fish + Mango Salsa

What You Need

For Fish:

• 4 tilapia fillets
• Olive oil
• Old Bay seasoning, optional
• Salt and pepper

For Salsa:

• 1 mango, diced
• 1/4 c. red bell pepper, diced
• 2 tbsp. finely diced red onion
• 2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/2-1 jalepeno pepper, finely diced
• Juice of 1 lime

What You Do

For Salsa:

Mix ingredients into appropriately sized bowl, and set aside.

For Fish: 

1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. Place fish on tray and lightly coat with olive oil.
3. Sprinkle Old Bay seasoning onto fish. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the fish is flakey.
5. Top with salsa. Serve with jasmine rice and shelled edamame.

2. Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup

What You Need

• 1-2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 3-4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2-4 celery stalks, chopped
• 1-2 fresh rosemary sprigs (or 1 tbsp. dried rosemary)
• 1-2 bay leaves
• 6 c. vegetable or chicken stock
• 1 c. water
• salt and pepper to taste
• Pasta of your choice (I use 1 box of Ancient Harvest Quinoa pasta)

What You Do

1. In your crockpot, add chicken breasts to the bottom and top with celery, carrots, rosemary, and bay leaves.
2. Add in vegetable stock, water, and season with salt and pepper.
3. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
4. In the last 15 minutes or so, boil some water on the stove, and cook your pasta. I do this separately, because I have found that most gluten free pastas get really heavy and dumpling like when added to the crockpot, and I don’t like that. So I cook them separately, but you can add the pasta to the slow cooker as well.

3. Slow Cooker Pot Roast

What You Need

• Boneless chuck roast
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• About 1/2 tsp. salt
• About 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 medium onion (I use red, but yellow would work too), chopped
• 4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1″ pieces
• 2-3 stalks of celery, cut into 1″ pieces
• About 4 potatoes, cut into 1″ pieces (I use red or dutch potatoes)
• 1 1/4 c. beef broth
• 2/3 c. red wine
• 3-4 sprigs thyme and 3-4 sprigs rosemary tied into bundle with kitchen twine
• 2 bay leaves

What You Do

1. In large cast iron pan, heat olive oil over medium high heat.
2. Dry meat with paper towel. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sear for 3-4 minutes on each side to form a crust. Transfer to slow cooker.
3. Add carrots, celery, onion,  beef broth, red wine, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves.
4. Salt and pepper to taste.
5. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
6. During the last 2 hours, add potatoes.

4. Greek Inspired Chicken with Lemon + Oregano and Roasted Potatoes

What You Need

• 1-2 lbs. roasting chicken, cut into pieces or boneless chicken breast (you decide–I usually use boneless)
• 2tsp. lemon zest
• 1/4 c. lemon juice (about 3 lemons)
• 1 tbsp. dried oregano
• 3/4 c. olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, grated
• 1/2 lb. red potatoes, cut into chunks
• salt & pepper

What You Do

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Grab roasting pan large enough to fit chicken and potatoes–if you don’t have a large enough pan, use two smaller pans. Coat lightly with olive oil.
2. Add chopped potatoes to pan, drizzle with olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about 25 minutes.
3. Prepare chicken–rinse and dry chicken, set aside while preparing marinade.
4. For marinade, combine olive oil, oregano, garlic, and lemon, zesting the lemon before juice them. Whisk to emulsify.
5. When potatoes have cooked for 25 minutes, add chicken to pan, and pour marinade over chicken and potatoes. Mix to coat evenly. Generously season with salt and pepper.
6. Roast for about 45 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken. Chicken will be done when juice runs clear.

5. Chicken Milanese with Apple Salad

What You Need

For Chicken:

• 4 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 1/2 c. panko breadcrumbs
• 1 c. all purpose flour
• 3 large eggs
• Olive oil

For Salad:

• Spinach or arugula
• 1 tbsp. minced shallots
• 1 Granny Smith apples
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 1/4 c. lemon juice
• 2 tbsp. dijon mustard, optional (I don’t use it usually, but it will thicken the dressing a bit)
• 1/3 c. Parmesan cheese, optional (I don’t use it at all, because I’m a freak who doesn’t like cheese)

What You Do

For Salad:

1. In medium bowl, whisk together olive oil, shallots, lemon juice, honey, and mustard.
2. Season with salt and pepper. Set dressing aside.
3. Slice apples into matchstick sized pieces, then add apples, spinach, and Parmesan cheese to large bowl.
4. Toss with dressing, and place in fridge while the chicken is prepared.

For Chicken: 

1. Clean and thoroughly dry chicken pieces, and place in between two pieces of parchment paper. Using the back of a pan or meat mallet, pound chicken until pieces are about 1/4 in. thick.
2. Set up the breading station–filling the first shallow dish with flour, the second with whisked eggs, and the third with panko. Season all with salt and pepper.
3. Make sure chicken is dry, and place each in the flour, then egg, then panko, making sure it adheres to the egg.
4. Line a baking sheet with paper towels, and heat one or two sautee pans with oil. We want it hot. Test the temperature by dipping a corner of the chicken into the oil–if it sizzles, we’re good. Once hot, place each chicken piece into the oil and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until outside is golden brown.
5. Transfer cooked chicken to towel lined baking sheet, and immediately season with salt and pepper.
6. Serve by placing salad atop the chicken, and enjoy.