yay pie!

Inevitably that question comes up in my early evening. The trick is to be the first one to ask it, then the onus is on the other person to devise a plan, unless of course they made last night’s dinner at which case they usually punt and then what?

I was reading on The Daily Tiffin the other day about people’s top 5 go-to meals from all parts of the globe and I noticed that a few of my staples turn up on everyone else’s lists. Like spaghetti, practically everyone relies on spaghetti! We can dress it up with ragu or a homemade cream sauce (my current favorite involves sauteed mushrooms, carmelized onions, and roma tomatoes), plain-d-plain marinara, or even-more-plain butter and parmesan, but when all else fails, there’s always spaghetti.

It got me to thinking about my list of go-to meals (nothin’ fancy) and how every once in a while I have an epiphany about one to add to the list (waldorf salad!) but what I don’t have is an actual *list* Which would of course be the prerequisite to meal-planning, which would of course lead to having an instant answer to the age-old question, “So, what’re we doing for dinner?” Then I only have to deal with “nah, I don’t feel like Waldorf salad tonight…”

So here’s my list, in the order it pops out of my head:

• Spaghetti
• Tacos (soft or hard, or both with cheese in between)
• Chile con Carne (with cornbread or saltines)
• Chicken Korma with Rice
• Grilled BBQ or Teriyaki Chicken on massive Tossed Salad (we make a mean tossed salad ’round here…)
• Taco Salad
• Szechuan Beef and Green Beans (I need to post the recipe for this, it’s sooooo good!)
• Homemade Pizza (and yes, I do resort to the pre-made crusts, I suck and I also never have any yeast…but this is the greatest way to get rid of leftovers!)
• Crepes with Jam or Syrup
• Waffles
• German Pancakes (the family recipe is actually called Pancocka, which cracks me up…)
• Grilled Cheese and Soup
• Baked Parmesan Chicken with Rice and Veggie
• Slow-Cooker Roast and Mashed Potatoes (this is a weekend one and Teo usually takes care of the roast and gravy, I do the potatoes and veggie)
• Gail’s Chicken Enchiladas (you have to beg me for the recipe for this one, it’s a family secret. Or maybe I’ll post it, because it’s by far one of my favorite recipes)
• Cheesesteaks
• Burgers and Sausages
• Goulash (slow-cooker is the easiest)
• Paprika Chicken
• BBQ Ham or Turkey sandwiches
• Sloppy Joes
• Guacamole and Chips (what, that’s not a well-balanced meal?)
• Monkeys Brains (though common in Cantonese cuisine, are not often found in Pittsburgh…teehee, for some reason that line has been bouncing around my brain lately…and a Crown of Awesomeness if you know that movie by heart like I do)

This is making me hungry. And making me wonder what we’re going to have for dinner tonight…I wish I’d started thawing some meat yesterday…*sigh*

How about you? What’re your favorite 5 (or more) go-to meals for those tired weeknights? Please share, I’m always looking for new dishes to try!