I made these tonight and they were even a big hit with my pickiest eater :)

Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas - Allrecipes (http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Black-Bean-and-Corn-Quesadillas/Detail.aspx)



I made them a bit different by omitting the sugar, used the sweeter style freshlike corn, doubled the salsa, and added taco sauce instead of the chili peppers. They were really good and none of us missed the meat at all. We also put a bit of sour cream on the top and the kids were bummed that I didn't have enough tortillas for seconds



So, what are some of your quick and easy last minute meal ideas?

Scrambled eggs with a side of grits. Cheap, easy, and takes all of 10 minutes from start to finish.

eggs are my go to meal too.

My favorite is stir fry tho. I keep precooked stir fry chicken and pork in the freezer. total prep and cook: less than 15 minutes.

In a wok, high heat add:
2-3 T of oil
little bit of ginger (real or powder)
seasame seeds (only if you have them)
Garlic
Add meat (still frozen)
toss until thawed
Add 1/2 head shredded/chopped cabbage
Add any stray veggies that need to be used up.
once cabbage starts to wilt pour in enough teriyaki sauce to coat. soy sauce too if you like it.
remove from heat.
Serve over noodles. I prefer ramen noodles because they cook up in like 3 minutes.

Veggie soup with red lentils is one of my better last minute healthy yummy meals. But that assumes veggies in the house. I use onion, red lentils, zucchini, carrot or butternut squash, chopped parsley fresh oregano from the garden and lots of tomato paste. oh and potatoes. I swear this is easy especially if you dont' use butternut squash~lol!

Also stir fry noodles with bok choy, onion or garlic, water chestnuts, grated carrots and any leafy greens I have...and ponzu sauce.stir fry the veggies and then add the boiled noodles. I keep frozen ice cubes of chopped fresh ginger in my freezer to add at the beginning. the kids love this. they get to eat long messy noodles and slurp them up.

cheese toast and sliced fruit...LMBO!

green salad, bread dipped in olive oil and chopped garlic and grated beets with balsamic vinegar.

beans and rice with salsa and if lucky avocado ...if not lucky then yogurt. canned beans sometimes...frozen homemade other times. but very easy to pressure cook black beans during the day for dinner and add a pot of rice at the end of the day.

I keep frozen home made soup in the freezer in mason jars. I don't keep frozen bread though.

pasta with chopped sauteed veggies of choice. or red sauce and parm cheese.

couscous with whatever seasonings you like...add raisins, corriander, cumin, pepper salt chopped almonds. eat with anything...cooked veggies, sliced cold chicken.

split pea soup with bread.

Ok..I am drawing a blank. I am in a serious food rut.

Eggs for dinner are popular here too. ;) We certainly have plenty of them!

My other staple quickie is a tortilla pizza. We always keep shredded cheese and jars of pizza sauce on hand. We use two large restaurant style tortillas with a sprinkling of cheese in between them. Heat oven to 500 F with a baking stone. Top tortillas with sauce, cheese (mix of mozz and cheddar is best but you can also just do mozz) and any toppings you like. Use cornmeal and a cookie sheet to slide the pizza onto the hot stone. Bake 5-7 minutes, take out w/cookie sheet, let cool a bit, slice - yumma!

I try to keep a few pantry meals especially for the days that dh works all day and is gone. These are quick and easy but not necessarily cheap/thrifty

black beans and yellow rice, I used canned black beans and just add seasoning

spaghetti with bread, I keep a jar of spaghetti sauce in the pantry and then if I have fresh veggies I doctor it and serve with garlic bread

my kids love cheese tacos, just flour tortillas with shredded cheese melted inside

cheese tortillini tossed with olive oil and a little salt or pesto