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Weekly Family Meal Plan » 20 Easy Weeknight Dinners For Families Recipes

20 Easy Weeknight Dinners For Families Recipes

Created by Amy Engberson Leave a Comment

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Easy Weeknight Dinners for Families are the only way most families survive because who has time for more than that! Here are 20 easy recipes with few ingredients that will help you get dinner on the table in a flash, and will get you two thumbs up from your family!

hawaiian pizza on flatbread topped with pineapple, chicken, and Parmesan cheese with a textual graphic overlay. Little Dairy on the Prairie

It doesn’t matter what time of the year it is life always seems to be crazy busy. For some reason, I always trick myself into believing it’s going to slow down as soon as this one more thing finished. And then life just stays busy!

Sometimes I’m stuck in the tractor and need a quick and easy dinner recipe to feed my family that I can pull together in about 5 minutes. If I’m not in the fields I’m usually cooped up in my office and wish I was in a tractor instead. Or there are the days when I’m running my kids from one activity to the next.

Either way, my family literally survives on really easy weeknight dinners. They have to be quick and with few ingredients!

Today I’m sharing 20 of the best easy family dinner recipes with you so you can get dinner on the table in a flash!

Quick and Easy Sandwich Recipes

It just doesn’t get any easier than hot sandwiches, wraps, ham and cheese calzones, and skillet quesadillas for dinner. All of these are easy dinner recipes with few ingredients. I’ve included an easy breakfast recipe too because breakfast for dinner is always a good idea!

baked ham and cheese slider on a black plate
Hot Ham and Cheese Sandwiches
Everyone loves ham and cheese and it only gets better in these cute little hot ham and cheese sandwiches! There's layers of gooey cheese and deli ham plus the most irresistible buttery poppy seed topping slathered all over the tops of the rolls!
Check out this recipe
A stack of turkey and cheese panini's cut in half
Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Turkey Panini
An easy grilled sandwich recipe made easy and flavorful with sun-dried tomato pesto.
Check out this recipe
a stack of golden brown quesadillas with melted cheese
Ham and Cheese Breakfast Quesadilla
Ham and Cheese Breakfast Quesadilla are loaded with diced ham, hard boiled eggs, and plenty of gooey chees! This is a hearty on the go breakfast for super busy mornings!
Check out this recipe
a baked calzone stuffed with ground beef and cheese on a green plate
Taco Cal-zones
A quick and easy weeknight dinner idea using refrigerated pizza dough, taco ground beef filling, and cheese! It’s a super kid-friendly meal idea!
Check out this recipe
Toasted bread with melted cheese and bread.
Dill Pickle Grilled Cheese Sandwich
There are grilled cheese sandwiches and then there are Dill Pickle Grilled Cheese Sandwiches! There are so many reasons to loved this dilled pickle version; it is out of this world gooey and amazing on the inside, the buttery parmesan and dill seasoning crust is spot on, and then you get addicting dill pickles inside which means you can say you ate your veggies today! You just can’t go wrong with that!
Check out this recipe

Quick Side Dishes to serve with Easy Weeknight Dinners for Families

Simple Side Dishes are a big part of planning meals, but sometimes they take so much time to throw together. These easy side dishes recipes are great choices for any meal!

a baking dish with cheesy hasbrowns topped with golden brown cornflakes crumbs
EASY CHEESY HASH BROWN POTATOES
These six ingredient Easy Cheesy Hash Brown Potatoes take just 10 minutes to prepare and are destined to become your favorite side dish!
Check out this recipe
a bread bowl filled with creamy spinach dip surrounded by cucumbers, carrots, peppers, and radishes
Knorr Spinach Dip Recipe In A Bread Bowl
This Knorr Spinach Dip Recipe is a cinch to throw together and a proven winner. Bring this cool creamy classic to your next gathering and you will be an instant potluck hero!
Check out this recipe
a plate with squares of jello and a child's hand taking a piece
NANA’S FINGER JELLO
Nana’s Finger Jello is possibly the easiest – and ask my menagerie, the most delicious! – thing to come out of my kitchen. Any dessert that takes just five minutes and three ingredients to prepare is a winner in my book.

Check out this recipe
a white dish with layers of refried beans, melted cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, and sliced green onions
Hot Bean & Cheese Dip
Hot Bean & Cheese Dip – A quick oven-baked dip made with cream cheese, chili beans, salsa, and melty cheese!
Check out this recipe
Buttery Garlic & Bacon Peas
Check out this recipe

Main Dish Ideas for Easy Weeknight Dinners for Families

These super simple and easy main dish recipes are made with chicken or beef. Some of them are easy stove top recipes, quick microwave recipes, fast pressure cooker chicken recipe, and even a no cook main dish salad!

Shredded Beef and Bean Burrito topped with cheese, tomatoes, cilantro, and sour cream
Quick Shredded Beef Burritos
Quick Shredded Beef Burritos – a super easy recipe made with leftover shredded roast beef, a can of beans, a few seasonings and plenty of cheese! Microwave, bake, slow cook, or freeze them for later! 
Check out this recipe
a black bowl with mac and cheese topped with chopped parsley
Creamy Mac and Cheese Recipe
After years of searching, I finally found the best creamy mac and cheese recipe around. Super cheddary, rich, and easily made on the stove top in under 30 minutes; This is going to be making many more appearances on our family table.
Check out this recipe
a white skillet with meatballs in red tomato sauce topped with parsley
EASY BAKED MEATBALLS
These Easy Baked Meatballs come together in just 10 minutes and then are baked to perfection in the oven. No oil splatters or manning a frying pan required!
Check out this recipe
square pizza with pineapple and parmesan cheese
Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Pizza
Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Pizza is a quick and easy meal that thw whole family will go crazy for! It has barbecue sauce, sweet pineapple, grilled chicken, and plenty of cheese! I used a flatbread crust because it's so fast!
Check out this recipe
a black bowl with lettuce, olives, tomatoes, and salami
Pizza Salad
Skip ordering pizza because Pizza Salad is the best of the salad bar and your favorite pizza all in one healthy and delicious salad bowl! You can prep everything ahead of time, just store them in different containers and combine them before serving! Add your ranch dressing or this vinegarette and Pizza night is ready!
Check out this recipe
birds eye view of three shredded chicken tacos with lime wedges and cilantro
Pressure Cooker Lime Verde Chicken
Pressure Cooker Lime Verde Chicken is a five ingredient recipe that only takes about 20 minutes to make! This ultra tender chicken is a versatile recipe that can be used to make chicken tacos, burritos, enchiladas, salads, nachos, and more! 
Check out this recipe

Easy No Bake Dessert Recipes

Even easy family dinners aren’t complete without simple desserts! These no bake dessert recipes are so easy to throw together and will make any meal feel special!

a plate with yogurt banana split topped with granola and diced apples
Cinnamon Apple Breakfast Banana Splits
This healthy recipe can be served for breakfast or dessert! The kids will feel spoiled!
Check out this recipe
a stack of peanut butter no bake bake cookies, a jar of milk, the top cookie has a bite taken out of it
Classic Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies
Classic No Bake Cookies are a simple and super popular dessert, yet not all Classic Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies are created equal! This recipe gives you cookies every single time! They are easy to make, but you have to be sure to boil the mixture for only one minute!
Chocolate Banana Cream Pie No Bake
Chocolate Banana Cream Pie
Chocolate Banana Cream pie is pretty much one of the best things that ever happened! It’s a mashup of banana cream pie, cheesecake, and chocolate pudding all in one luscious dessert! You want this in your life, and it’s so easy you can have it with very little effort!
Check out this recipe
chocolate chip cookie ice box cake on a square white plate and a jar of milk with stacks of chocolate chip cookies
No Bake Chocolate Chip Cookies and Cream Icebox Cake
No Bake Chocolate Chip Cookies and Cream Icebox Cake only has four ingredients and takes about 5-10 minutes to assemble. Be sure to make it ahead because it needs a few hours to hang out in the fridge! You can easily adapt the recipe to make a huge pan or a single serving!
Check out this recipe
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about amy

About Amy Engberson

I live on a dairy with my husband and three boys. Although we are in the business of raising cattle, we really are in the business of raising boys. I am passionate about catching up with each other at meal times. My love language is food. And I hope that my men feel the love in every bite. Read more...

Filed Under: Weekly Family Meal Plan Tagged With: easy recipes

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Hi I’m Amy! Welcome to my stinky farm life where my days are filled with chasing kids and cows! It’s all about simply delicious food around here! If you leave my house hungry…it’s your own fault! Read More..

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