Our schedule has changed drastically around the dinner hour several nights a week. We’re going to be coming and going a lot, and I am DETERMINED to avoid the convenience of the drive-thru as much as possible. When you’ve moved to the land of opportunity, where there is a different drive-thru on every other corner, this is one tall order to meet. Basically, I have two nights a week where I need to be able to prepare dinner, leave home for about 75 minutes, then come home and eat because we have to leave again in just under an hour for the next activity. This presents a planning and an execution challenge. One night in the last few weeks Andy was home, so that day he actually prepared dinner while we were gone, but mostly, he won’t be home, so the creative juices need to flow.
Last night’s dinner was a good idea. I prepared taco fixings ahead of time and then put them all in the fridge while we were gone. The meat then needed just three minutes in the microwave to warm up while everything else was retrieved and milk glasses were filled. Salads also seem to fit the bill, but with 52 weeks in a year, twice a week, that’s 104 quick meals I need to come up with- salad and tacos will get old really quick.
A few weeks ago, I asked the kids what they would like for dinner. Abigail asked for Subway, Zander asked for spaghetti and meatballs, and that morphed into the idea to make homemade meatball subs. Talk about a great idea!
I started with this recipe for basic Meatballs. I doubled it though, and instead of baking them, I browned them on the stovetop. I just didn’t want to turn on the oven and heat the whole house up. I browned them in batches, and they went from the stove to the crockpot. Once they were all done, I poured in one jar of marinara and about 1/2 a cup of water. I set the crock to low, grated some mozzarella and set that in the fridge, and then we went and did our running around. When we walked in the door, all we had to do was split some rolls and add some meatballs to the bread. A quick sprinkle of cheese finished it off, and we ate the hoagies with some chips and fresh fruit. It was quick, it was easy, and it was very delicious.
The best part was that by doubling the meatballs and making twice as many, I was able to take the leftover meatballs and put them in the freezer for another day. Either to be seen again as a meatball sandwich, or used for a spaghetti and meatball dinner. The meatball sandwiches were a great idea, and will be seen again on our quick dinner nights.
