7 Quick and Easy Recipes for New Moms
One-Pan Lasagna
Who doesn’t love a good, hearty lasagna? Don’t worry. This one isn’t going to completely ruin your resolution to eat healthy. It has plenty of veggies like spinach, carrots and onions so you’ll be helping your, um, digestion and getting a full serving of the green and orange stuff. With one pan, no intricate layering to do (like with most other lasagnas) and less than 25 minutes to cook, you’re going to be glad you skipped that nap to make it.
Chicken With Goat Cheese and Basil
This delicious (but non-complex) dish of chicken stuffed with goat cheese comes from famed chef Ina Garten but you can totally make it at home if you can just get baby to chill in her swing for a bit. New-mom diet perk: a lot of protein! Add veggies like spinach, peppers or onions into the goat cheese stuffing for more greens. Serve with some brown rice or couscous and you’ve got a dish that’s gourmet and healthy.
Vegetarian Gumbo
So maybe you can’t get away for Mardi Gras right now, but you can still enjoy some Cajun flavors with this vegetarian gumbo recipe. If you don’t have a slow cooker, this is the time to invest in one — all you have to do is throw in the ingredients, turn it on and let it cook for a couple hours — leaving you time to tackle that mountain of laundry, play with baby or (finally!) take a nap.
Yangchow Fried Rice
Who needs salty takeout when you can make fried rice at home? You can tailor this recipe to your own tastes — if you’re vegetarian you can take out the chicken and ham and add more veggies. Make it even easier by cooking the rice when you have free time on the weekend (or guilting your partner into doing it) and then storing it in the fridge. Your weeknight prep will go even faster.
Greek Salad With Warm Pita Crisps
Step away from the gyros! This dish is Greek-inspired without the guilt of something covered in tzatziki sauce. Go even healthier by using whole-wheat pitas for the chips. This dish will take you just 10 minutes (total — we swear!) because you can prep the veggies while you’re waiting for the chips to bake. For extra protein, add some grilled chicken to the salad.
Chicken Tacos
Buying in bulk should be your strategy right now — as long as you’re going to use up whatever it is you’re storing. This is the perfect recipe to make with some leftover chicken. Just heat it up with some beans and rich, grilled peppers and onions for extra nutrition and you and your partner can pretend that you’re vacationing South of the Border even if you’re really in your kitchen wearing spit-up stained clothes.
Pizza Bianca
Why do you have Domino’s on speed dial when making a homemade pizza isn’t tough (especially if you’ve got some ready-made pizza dough) and makes your house smell like an Italian grandma’s? (Oh, yeah, and DIYing is cheaper too.) To make this white pizza, just layer olive oil, cheese and your favorite toppings on the dough and bake for 30 minutes. Yum!
