I remember when my single mom used to come home from work and she’d barely have her shoes off before all three of us kids asked in unison, “what’s for dinner?”  Even at a young age, I could sense the stress my mom was under, working full time, keeping us in our house after my parent’s divorce and shuffling us around like a chauffeur to various sports and activities.  It’s no wonder that the minute she walked in the door, meal planning wasn’t her first priority.

30 some years later, the same stress impacts moms today.  I just talked to a mom the other day that embarrassingly told me she has fed her children from a vending machine more than once because they were stuck in the evening shuffle of activities.  There’s no question that meal planning takes some time and you have to build it into your schedule-both the planning and cooking.  But making that investment can help alleviate the stress, leave you more time to enjoy your children in the evenings and ensure everyone is eating meals that didn’t come from a drive through window or vending machine.

On Monday, November 7, 2011, I’ll be teaching a cooking class through St. Paul Community Education called Fast Suppers without Fast Food.  During the class we’ll be talking about meal planning tips and I’ll show you several recipes that are simple, yet creative and will ultimately keep you from turning to fast food for meals.

Here are the details:

Ingredients:

2 Refrigerated Pie Crusts (1 package)

4 No Name Steaks-Petite Cut (cooked and diced)

1 cup Frozen Mixed Grilled Peppers (defrosted and drained)

¼ cup Onion (minced)

1 cup Cheddar Jack cheese

1 Egg White

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450.

Lay out piecrust and cut each crust into 4 equal-size pie pieces (you will have 8 total pieces).  Set 4 of the pieces aside.  With the remaining pieces, layer on each piece: ½ cup diced steak, ¼ cup peppers, 1 TB onion and ¼ cup cheese.  Add 1 tsp of water to egg white and blend with a fork, then brush egg white wash around edges of piecrust.  Press remaining pieces on top of each pocket and seal by folding edges and pressing down with a fork.  Brush pocket with egg white wash.  Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 15 minutes.

Makes 4 pockets

Ingredients:

2 Refrigerated Pie Crusts (1 package)

1 cup mashed potatoes

1 cup mixed vegetables

1 cup Mozzarella cheese

4 No Name Steaks-Petite Cut (cooked and diced)

¼ cup Beef Gravy

1 Egg White

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450.

Lay out piecrust and cut each crust into 4 equal-size pie pieces (you will have 8 total pieces).  Set 4 of the pieces aside.  With the remaining pieces, layer on each piece: ¼ cup potatoes, ¼ cup vegetables, ¼ cup cheese, ½ cup diced steak and 1 TB gravy.  Add 1 tsp of water to egg white and blend with a fork, then brush egg white wash around edges of piecrust.  Press remaining pieces on top of each pocket and seal by folding edges and pressing down with a fork.  Brush pocket with egg white wash.  Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 15 minutes.

Makes 4 pockets

Ingredients:

2 Refrigerated Pie Crusts (1 package)

1 cup Frozen Spinach (defrosted and drained)

¼ cup Bacon (chopped)

¼ cup Blue Cheese Crumbles

4 No Name Steaks-Petite Cut (cooked and diced)

¼ cup Ranch Dressing

1 Egg White

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450.

Lay out piecrust and cut each crust into 4 equal-size pie pieces (you will have 8 total pieces).  Set 4 of the pieces aside.  With the remaining pieces, layer on each piece: ¼ cup spinach, 1 TB Bacon, 1 TB blue cheese, ½ cup diced steak and 1 TB ranch.  Add 1 tsp of water to egg white and blend with a fork, then brush egg white wash around edges of piecrust.  Press remaining pieces on top of each pocket and seal by folding edges and pressing down with a fork.  Brush pocket with egg white wash.  Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 15 minutes.

Makes 4 pockets