Amazing Meals From The Pantry #6

 

This time of year as the weather warms and my schedule tends to get busier I gravitate a lot toward lighter meals and ones that are easy to prepare.  I’m still trying to make a Sunday dinner with leftovers that will fill in through the week and lots of good salad meals and lighter options in between.

 

I began with one of my favorite Sunday dinners these days.  Meat loaf, baked potato and steamed vegetables.  I cooked it all in my slow cooker so I didn’t have to turn on the oven and heat up the house.  I enjoyed this meal three times that week and had enough to make a meal to tuck into the freezer for the next time I need a quick and easy dinner.

 

Salmon is one of those items I enjoy, especially in the summer.  I pan grilled a fillet and topped it with some tomato basil pesto and a little bit of cheese for an Italian flair.  Served alongside a fresh green salad it was perfect.

 

Pork chops along with a side of vegetable laden egg fried rice made for a quick and easy meal.  I made enough for two so I could enjoy leftovers a couple days later.  It was delicious!

 

Waxing a bit nostalgic I took two hotdogs that had been hanging around for a while in my freezer and sliced them up.  After pan frying them in a bit of bacon grease I added two beaten eggs and some salt and pepper to make a quick and tasty scramble.  This was one of my mother’s go-tos whenever she needed to get dinner on the table super quick and I really enjoyed this after a busy day myself.  Something I may make more often in the future I think.  Wanting to use up a bit of leftover cheese I sprinkled it on top, something my mom never did, and I don’t think I will do that again.  I think it is better without it.

 

Sautéed shrimp in a bit of butter and pesto was perfect with frozen asparagus I had put up a couple months ago.  It was a great way to use shrimp from the freezer and leftover pesto sauce in the fridge.  This is another one of my summer favorites.  Again, super easy and quick to prepare, healthy and nutritious too!

 

I made a quick Sunday brunch for myself one day by cooking up some bacon and using a blueberry pancake from the freezer where I keep a stack of pancakes just for this purpose.  I cooked up extra bacon for other recipes, such as to add to a salad, and then topped up my grease jar with the rendered fat that was left in the pan.  I use this bacon grease to cook meats and vegetables as well as to make fried rice and refried beans.  It adds amazing flavor.

 

What are some of your summer faves that have been gracing your table lately?