Erika and Char were provided compensation for the purpose of this review, but all opinions are our own.
With kids back in school, making weeknight meals easy, fast, and nutritious is a top priority. Feeding our families with wholesome meals that don’t break the bank and are packed with the nutrients and vitamins they need for their growing bodies is also a must. And who doesn’t love throwing a side dish in the microwave or on a sheet pan with your protein to get the job done fast? Yes, please!
Thanks to new sides and dishes from Birds Eye, Birds Eye Veggie Made™, Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggie Made™, or Birds Eye OvenRoasters™ Sheet Pan Vegetables, which are made from veggies, you can with more options and ease. We were excited to give them a try -- the only hard part we had was deciding which side we wanted!
Italian Sausage with Broccoli and “Pasta”
Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
- ½ onion, sliced and chopped
- 1 Tablespoon chopped garlic
- 5 Italian Sausages - sliced ½ inch thick
- 2 Bags of Birds Eye Veggie Made™ Penne with Cheddar Cheese Sauce
- 1 Bag of Birds Eye Steamfresh Broccoli
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
- In a skillet, heat oil on medium to medium-high heat
- Saute garlic and onion until soft
- Add sausage to skillet and cook through
- In the microwave, prepare broccoli according to package directions (5 minutes)
- Remove broccoli and set aside, place “pasta” in microwave according to directions
- Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix together
- Salt and pepper to taste
Let's talk shrimp, shall we?
And let's double those veggies while we are at it!
Hey, if they don’t know it’s not pasta it’s still pasta, right? We love foods that play two roles -- and the kind that gives us the opportunity to double the veggies without the kids even figuring it out -- bonus! (snarky giggle)
This recipe replaces the traditional pasta with Birds Eye Veggie Made™ Pasta Spaghetti Style Marinara - making it packed with veggies. Serve with a side salad and there’s your double whammy of veg!
Shrimp “Scampi”
Ingredients:
- Extra virgin olive oil spray
- 1 Pound shrimp
- 1 Tablespoon chopped garlic
- Salt and pepper to taste
- A handful of fresh basil chopped
- Birds Eye Veggie Made™ Pasta Spaghetti Style Marinara
Directions:
- Spray a skillet with oil and heat on medium to medium-high
- Add shrimp
- Add garlic, and salt and pepper to taste
- Saute for about 10 minutes, moving it around until the shrimp is cooked through
- Microwave Birds Eye Veggie Made™ Pasta Spaghetti Style Marinara as directed
- Add all ingredients to a bowl, toss lightly, and top with basil
Prepare your proteins on Sunday and have dinner ready to go all week long.
You can prepare your meals ahead of time for the whole week and with Birds Eye Veggie Made™ sides, your weeknight dinners will be a cinch! Frozen sides that heat up in less than 10 minutes means dinner in no time. The entire Birds Eye lineup contains no artificial preservatives, colors, or flavors. They are flash-frozen within hours of harvest, locking in their nutrients and preserving the quality of the vegetables, just as they were when they were freshly picked.
Make-Ahead Chicken Dinners
(and OH so many sides to choose from recipe)
Ingredients:
- 3 Pounds of chicken breasts
- Salt and pepper
Directions:
- Slice chicken breast in half to cut cooking time
- Bake chicken in the oven until cooked through
- Cool chicken and divide into 3 bags
- Refrigerate and use within 3 days
Now you have 3 nights of chicken just waiting for the perfect side. Choose any Birds Eye Veggie Made™, Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggie Made™, or Birds Eye OvenRoasters™ Sheet Pan Vegetables and dinner is served up in less than 10 minutes!
But what about the other two nights? Behold salmon:
Salmon is another great protein to cook up once and serve two or three different ways for dinner on those busy nights. It goes with almost any side, and as a matter of fact, we had a hard time choosing which Birds Eye Veggie Made™ product to use! Which side would you pick?
Lemon Pepper Salmon
Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons ghee (or you can use avocado oil or other high heat oil)
- 2-3 Pounds fresh salmon
- 2 Tablespoons lemon pepper seasoning
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees
- Heat ghee in a large cast-iron skillet over medium to medium-high heat
- Sprinkle seasoning over the flesh side of salmon
- Place salmon flesh side down in pan and sear for 1-2 minutes until a crust starts to form and then flip over (it should flip easily when it's ready) so it is skin side down
- Put salmon in the oven and roast for 8-10 minutes (depending on how thick your salmon is)
- Pull out of the oven to rest
- Cook your favorite Birds Eye Veggie Made™ side (we used Fettuccine with Garlic Herb Sauce) in the microwave according to directions and serve with salmon
Refrigerate any leftovers and use within two days. If you are prepping all of your proteins on Sunday, throw a few bags in the freezer and pull out the night before to thaw in the refrigerator for the next day's meal.
Easy pea-sy! (pun intended)
We hope you enjoy these dinner ideas made even more simple by our friends at Birds Eye. Easy dinners make for happy moms -- are we right? Enjoy!
