5 Easy Dinners for Busy School Nights

Y’allllll. This week is wild.

Orientation. Co-op. Birthday party. Piano. Youth group. All good things! But whew. I need to work on my afternoon stamina before we add basketball and theater back into the mix sooner rather than later.

We’re still figuring out the rhythm of this new school year and while our mornings are feeling pretty solid, the afternoons? Yeah… they’re taking a little more adjusting. It’s just a challenge when every one of them is different. I know you understand.

And everyone still needs to eat and I want to feed my people well, which, of course, means dinner needs to be EASY. But also good.

Not necessarily 15-minute easy (though I’ll happily take that when I can get it), but familiar, dependable, everybody-will-eat-it kind of easy. The meals I don’t have to think too hard about and can either prep earlier in the day or throw together without staring blankly into the fridge at 5:30.

So I thought I’d share what we’ve actually been eating lately. Nothing groundbreaking here, just five tried-and-true dinners that work really well for this busy back-to-school season of life. Hoping they can inspire you to not reinvent the wheel either, but still eat well!

Mom’s Spaghetti Sauce

Starting with possibly the most obvious comfort food answer: spaghetti.

My mom’s spaghetti sauce is one of those recipes I’ve made approximately one million times at this point and I never get tired of it. It’s hearty and flavorful and, perhaps most importantly during a busy week, I can make the sauce earlier in the day.

Then when dinner rolls around, I just boil some noodles, warm the sauce, and call it good.

Sometimes I’ll make a salad. Sometimes I’ll warm up garlic bread. Sometimes everyone just gets a giant bowl of spaghetti and nobody complains. It also makes enough for leftovers, which is basically gifting your future self dinner and freezes so well into 2 cup Souper Cubes.

Get my Mom’s Spaghetti Sauce recipe here.

One Pan Lemon Chicken and Orzo

I love a one-pan dinner. LOVE.

And this lemon chicken and orzo has become one of my favorites because it feels like a real, complete dinner without requiring a kitchen full of dirty dishes. Plus, it’s H’s new favorite, which means it’s up their competing heartily with Shepherd’s Pie and Taco Bowls.

You get the chicken, the creamy orzo, the bright lemon flavor… it’s just so good. And even though my brain is already moving toward fall, it’s still very much summer temperatures around here, so the lemon keeps this one feeling fresh enough for August.

I usually serve it as-is or add something green on the side if I have it. And the fact that everything cooks in one pan? Bless.

Get my One Pan Lemon Chicken and Orzo recipe here.

Sausage, White Bean, and Kale Soup

Yes, I know it’s August.

Yes, I’m already making soup.

I can’t help myself. Partially because it’s easy and all in one pot (see above), but also because it has so much flavor and goes so well with hearty rolls (which K loves).

This sausage, white bean, and kale soup is such a good transition meal because it’s cozy without feeling like full-on January food. It’s hearty from the sausage and beans, has plenty of kale mixed in, and requires very little effort.

This is another great one to make earlier in the day because it reheats beautifully. In fact, like most soups, I think it might be even better after it sits for a bit.

Get my Sausage, White Bean, and Kale Soup recipe here.

Coconut Lime Chicken

This coconut lime chicken is one of those recipes I forget about for a while, make again, and immediately wonder why I don’t make it more often.

It’s crispy and slightly sweet from the coconut and just different enough from regular chicken to make dinner feel a little more fun. Not that anyone complains about another taco rice bowl, but sometimes it’s nice to switch it up.

I usually pair it with rice (noticing a pattern? We <3 rice bowls) and broccoli or another easy vegetable and dinner is done. This is also one that everyone in my family actually likes, which automatically earns it extra points during a busy week.

Get my Coconut Lime Chicken recipe here.

BBQ Chicken Rice Bowls

Oh, look at that… another bowl. But they truly do make life easier because you can serve it as a bowl, altogether, or as components for younger kids, or in a tortilla for those that prefer.

These BBQ chicken rice bowls have been especially good for busy evenings because I can make almost everything ahead of time. Cook the chicken (in the slow cooker). Make the rice. Chop whatever toppings we want. Stick it all in the fridge.

Then everyone can build their own bowl when they’re ready to eat.

I usually put out some combination of corn, avocado, black beans, cheese, tomatoes, green onions, extra BBQ sauce… whatever we have and whatever sounds good. It’s less of a recipe and more of an assembly situation, which is exactly the kind of dinner energy I need right now.

Get my BBQ Chicken Rice Bowls recipe here.

And there you have it! Nothing fancy. Just five dinners that are getting us fed during this very full season.

I really do love this time of year. I like having places to go and watching the girls get back into the things they enjoy. I like the return of some structure and routine. I even like seeing our family calendar start to fill back up.

But I also know myself well enough to know that if I don’t have some kind of dinner plan, 4:30 PM Brittany is going to be very annoyed with 8:00 AM Brittany for not thinking ahead. So these are the kinds of meals I’m leaning on right now: familiar, filling, wholesome, and easy enough to fit into real life.

Now help me out—what’s your go-to dinner on a crazy school night? Bonus points if I can make it earlier in the day!