Quick Summer Dinner (or any day you are in a hurry)!

I know it is a little early for this post but for some reason, it is already hot here in VA.  My son was great all day with our adventure and then after he woke up from his nap, asked to ride his bike.  We just bought a helmet last weekend so he was ready to roll (figuratively because he isn't great at the peddling).  He put on his helmet and hit the road with Daddy.  I stayed behind to fold the load of laundry as quickly as possible so that I could get outside and see my little one on his tricycle for his very first time!!!  He was adorable and I took a million pictures of him riding around our street.  Anyway, with more days like this to come with the weather getting better, I thought I would post my easy dinner solution when the playtime gets longer and dinner needs to be on the table quickly when you finally make it in the house.  I have a few helpful hints for all families to enjoy the nice weather and still have a healthy dinner.

1.  Cut and Marinate Chicken Ahead and freeze.  I pick out what kind we are having and then the night before I take it out to defrost in the fridge (this one is soy ginger as noted on my menu plan).  It is great because it isn't just boring chicken and then dinner is ready made with flavor.  Helpful hint:  Make sure the grill is filled or else you are cooking it inside.... or that you know how to use it because I am grill challenged!!
2.  Make ahead rice.  I made a big pot of brown rice over a weekend and then bagged up serving size portions in bags to pile in the freezer.  The great part is that you can make different flavors or brown rice which takes more time and have it as needed.  Depending on your freezer, it takes a few minutes to cook straight from frozen.  I normally open the zip top a little bit and microwave for 1 minute at a time (smooshing the bag to stir the rice around in between).  It takes at least 3-4 minutes.

3.  Bag of frozen veggies, especially something that is an extra treat like edamame because you can eat it with your hands, even if the rest of the meal isn't ready yet :)  Mom looks like she planned it as an appetizer instead of just that she was starving!!

Best part is that the inside work doesn't take pots and pans or heat up the house and you use the grill so there is very little clean up!  I love a night when all the dishes go into the dishwasher and I don't have to do any other clean up :)  I hope that you follow the plan at least once and see how easy a home cooked meal can be for your family too!!!  Hope you got out to enjoy the nice weather too :)

This was my son saying "Look mom, I put my feet on the pedals!"  Not the best example but I thought it was funny!!!