Happy Friday Reader!

Thanksgiving week is full of planning, shopping, cooking and baking, but weeknight dinners don't need to add to the chaos.

You and your family can still enjoy delicious homemade meals without adding extra stress.

Whether you need something quick and easy or you need to spend less, but invest a little more time, there's something for everyone.

You're gonna make it through prep week and enjoy your Thanksgiving! And I'll show you how with easy recipes that deliver on real family-pleasing goodness.

​Chicken Casserole (Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole)

A crescent dough crust, tender-crisp broccoli, and a creamy chicken filling (made with rotisserie or pre-cooked chicken) are the base of this comforting dish.

It's topped with cheese and crispy French-fried onions to create a family favorite that bakes in about 30 minutes.

Leftovers reheat well in the microwave, so it's a natural choice when your week will be busy and you need something delicious AND simple.

Get the Easy Recipe: Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole (Chicken Casserole)

Tacos

Tacos lend themselves to quick, easy and economical meal prep.

They use up leftovers or proteins you can cook ahead and use for multiple meals.

Start with these Mexican-inspired meat recipes to create taco dinners or prepped ingredients that anyone can turn into a meal in a hurry.

• ​Easy Ground Beef Taco Meat Recipe Make a big batch at the beginning of the week to use in taco salads, enchiladas, quesadillas and more. Try it in these simple recipes:
  • ​Easy Ground Beef Tacos (Soft Tacos)​
  • ​Easy Taco Bowls with Taco Potatoes​
  • ​Bisquick Taco Pie, a Budget-friendly, ​Kid-friendly, Easy Recipe​
  • Sub it for the chicken in a Crunchwrap Supreme.

• ​Mexican Shredded Beef, Slow Cooker Simple​
  • ​Mexican Street Tacos Recipe with Shredded Beef​
  • Serve the shredded beef over Mexican Rice. Top with queso and your favorite taco toppings.
  • Substitute shredded beef for the ground beef in Beef Enchilada Casserole Recipe.​
  • Sub it for ground beef in these Easy Soft Tacos.

• ​Easy Southwest Chicken Recipe (or Rotisserie Chicken) I make thiseasy slow cooker recipe at the beginning of the week and use it in dinners throughout the week. It makes great taco salads or taco bowls using Mexican Rice or Taco Potatoes, too. Be sure to try it in:
  • ​Chicken Street Tacos​
  • ​Chicken Crunchwrap Supreme​
  • ​Creamy Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas​

​Chicken Tetrazzini, Easy One-Pan Casserole Recipe​

This vintage Chicken Tetrazzini recipe is updated to one-pan weeknight delicious. Grab a rotisserie chicken and make a dinner everyone will love! It's simple Chicken and Pasta smothered in creamy, cheesy sauce that bursts with familiar Italian flavors. Serve it with a House Salad, Air Fryer Green Beans or a Spinach Salad with Apple Cider Vinaigrette for an affordably delicious weeknight dinner.

Get the Easy Recipe: Chicken Tetrazzini​

Meatloaf

Meatloaf is easy to put together and the leftovers can be easily reheated. Serve it cold or pan-fried in sandwiches.

Turn leftovers into sliders with onion, cheese and BBQ sauce or use them to make a Hot Meatloaf Sandwich like my Hot Beef Sandwich. Just sub the meatloaf for the roast.

Meatloaf is generally inexpensive to make and quick and easy to prep, so it's a good option for a busy week.

If you want a true set-it-and-forget-it meal, my slow cooker version cooks sweet potatoes right alongside the meatloaf—so dinner is ready when you are.

You'll love both hearty and comforting meatloaf variations:

• ​Lipton Onion Soup Meatloaf Recipe, a 5-Ingredient Wonder​
• ​Stove Top Stuffing Meatloaf: a Favorite Slow Cooker Meatloaf Recipe​

Hot Sandwiches

Hot sandwiches made with leftovers or pre-prepped ingredients are budget-friendly and perfect for grab-and-go dinners during hectic weeks.

Here are some of our favorite hot sandwiches that are easy to make ahead and store in the fridge for quick meals all week.

• ​Best Homemade Sloppy Joes Recipe | Quick, Easy and Delicious​
• ​Perfect Pulled Pork: 2 Ingredient Easy​

Even though the days are busy and the kitchen is a revolving door of ingredients and to-do lists, you are gonna do great!

With a few well-planned meals in your back pocket, weeknight dinner doesn’t have to be one more thing to worry about this week. I hope some of these recipes will be just what you need.

Cheering you on as you head into Thanksgiving! You've got this, Friend, and I'm always here to answer a question or offer some inspiration.

Enjoy your week, share great food with the people you love most, and I hope someone else does your dishes! Hugs!

P.S. Next week, we're going to look ahead to holiday baking and some of my favorite Christmas cookie recipes!

What's For Dinner?

This is the part of the newsletter where I share recipe ideas from some of my best blogging friends and myself to inspire you with what's for dinner at our houses this week. That gives you seven days' worth of new recipes to inspire you for your own delicious meal plan. Enjoy!

• ​Apple and Brie Stuffed Chicken from Laura at Little House Big Alaska
• ​Sheet Pan Maple Dijon Salmon and Vegetables from Gen at Two Cloves Kitchen
• ​Baked Ham with Cranberry Glaze from Glenda​
• ​Leek Soup without Potatoes from Rupali at Caramel and Spice
• ​Chicken and Hashbrown Casserole from Sue at Sula and Spice
• ​Ham and Cheese Sliders with Aioli from Lori at A Reinvented Mom
• ​Slow Cooker Red Lentil Stew from Kristin at Dizzy Busy and Hungry

Tools to Make Easy Homemade Meals During Thanksgiving Prep Week

These are Amazon and Walmart affiliate links to some of my tools for making easy meals at home. I may earn commissions on qualifying purchases. You can read my affiliate disclosures here.

• ​Crock Pot - This is one of three slow cookers I use on a regular basis. Yes, three. lol I mean what does a girl do when she is making Crock Pot Potato Soup, delectable Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts and Slow Cooker Beef Stew all at the same time? lol This beauty is an 8-qt. giant that can handle anything I throw at her. And she was cheap, as crock pots go.

• Pyrex Mixing Bowls I use these daily. Of course, they're great for stirring together the ingredients for a recipe. But they're also perfect for storing leftovers and serving dishes like this scrumptious Broccoli Cauliflower Salad. Another great feature is that they come with lids, so leftovers can easily go straight to the fridge. For potlucks, I can toss together a quick salad, snap on the lid and go.

• My Deep Dish 9x13 Ceramic Baking Pan is perfect for casseroles, Tuna Casserole with Cream of Mushroom Soup, cakes and more.​

• ​12 qt. Stainless Steel Stock Pot with Lid - This is my soup, stew and chili go-to pot. And it's the one I reach for when making mashed potatoes for a gathering. Plenty of room for making large batches.

• ​18x13 Half-Sheet Rimmed Baking Sheets: I have six of these cookie sheets and I bought them 13 years ago. I LOVE them! They are stainless steel professional grade sheets that are warp resistant. I use them for cookies, brownies, sheet pan dinners and baking bacon. They're an essential tool in my kitchen.​

• I absolutely love these Oven-Safe Cooling Racks. Obviously they're great for cooling hot things on the counter. But these also fit inside the baking sheets I listed, above. I love being able to roast things in the oven with that little bit of hot air being able to circulate even to the bottom of what I'm cooking.

Visit my Amazon Storefront to explore more of the tools and ingredients I love cooking with at home.