Dinners Lately {A Three Things Thursday post}

Chicken tenderloins, red bell peppers, cabbage and cilantro.

What do these things have in common? They are all ingredients for a healthy pad Thai,  and they all currently sit in my fridge ... waiting to be made into pad Thai.

I was hoping to make the recipe for lunch this week or maybe a dinner but, yeah. I just haven't gotten there. Mark has started coaching track again, and my group fitness schedule has been heavy with folks going on vacation. Dinners have been easy, easy, easy – often consisting of a lean protein, starch and vegetable. They lack the inspiration and flavor of the meals I pin on Pinterest, and the ones I'd love to tell people I make.

But they work. So here's a look at what we've been eating lately.

1. Tilapia, couscous and sauteed spinach. If thawed in the fridge, the fish takes 7 or so minutes to cook and the couscous 10. I can cook the spinach in the same pan as I did the fish in the 3 minutes we're waiting on the couscous. Bonus: It's pretty affordable. I bought a family-size bag of fish, and it's lasted us three weeks.

Variation: I did get saucy this week – literally – and put pesto on the fish and baked it for 15 minutes at 425 degrees. It was delicious. I also had some asparagus on the pan, too, which was a nice treat for me. I'm the only one in the house who eats it so I don't often get it.

2. Chicken Broccoli Rice casserole. This dish is one of those I almost hate to admit that I make because it uses OMG canned condensed soup. But it's so easy and the boys devour it. I often prepare this (or tuna casserole) on Tuesdays when I have class.

Variation: In the summer and it's in season, I'll grate zucchini and combine it with the rice. Neither Mark nor Miles will eat zucchini on its own but they don't seem to mind it when I add it to the casserole.

3. Tacos. Who doesn't love Mexican food? Oh, wait. My friend H. Anyway, taco night is an almost weekly occurrence. The filling doesn't take long to make nor does the Spanish rice the boys love, and it's easy for me to lighten up for me. Miles isn't great with eating meat so I can open up a can of black beans and season them lightly, and he's got a good protein (and I have another topping for my salad).

Variation: Just make a dang quesa-dilla! I used to make these all.the.time and serve them with chicken tortilla soup but soup isn't the best with wee ones. Hello, mess! But, they still like quesadillas so if I get the meat made in the morning, I will throw it between a couple tortillas with cheese and pretend I did something awesome.

What are your super easy go-to dinners?