Kelli Foster

Bonus: It comes together in one pan.

It's so good I ate it straight from the pot.

It's the most comforting thing you'll make all week.

It cooks in less than 15 minutes.

Make this once, and it will be your new go-to.

Oh, and it's so easy to make.

Behold the single food that has revolutionized my weekly meal plan – shredded chicken! The very best thing about cooking up a batch of shredded chicken are all the possibilities it brings to mealtime. It can mean a week’s worth of dinners — everything from chicken tacos and chicken burritos to chicken salad are made more satisfying with shredded chicken. It’s an easy solution for make-ahead lunches and weeknight dinners the whole family will love.

I’m a firm believer that make-ahead dinners are one of the very best gifts you can give to your future self. Walking into the kitchen at the end of the day knowing that dinner is prepped, cooked, and just waiting to be reheated feels like a total treat. And not only that, but dinners like classic beef chili and slow cooker beef stew happen to taste even better a day, even two or three, after they’re made.

The moment we’ve waited all-year long for has finally returned: welcome to strawberry season! Endless tables at the market stacked high with those blue or green pint containers of sweet, fresh strawberries are a defining quality of delicious late spring and early summer. The first order of business at the start of the season is to savor fresh strawberries piece by piece, or maybe lightly macerated in sugar and spooned over some homemade whipped cream.

You can prep it in just 10 minutes.

As we inch closer and closer to spring, we’re dreaming of the warmer weather to come, and days spent outdoors. While we know that we might not be able to celebrate in all the ways that we normally would, we can still welcome the lighter, brighter days in smaller ways — perhaps by baking something so full of lemons and sunshine that you can’t help but feel a bit cheerier. Is there anything that screams spring more than lemon-y sweet treats?

It feels totally fancy, and is surprisingly easy.

It's my family's favorite dinner.

Just look at those layers!

Bonus: It's super easy.

Such a catch.

There are a lot of ways to cook up a hearty, comforting pot of beef stew, but if you ask me, absolutely nothing compares to Guinness beef stew. It also happens to be my favorite dinner to cook for St. Patrick’s Day. In this version, thick chunks of chuck roast are seared and then simmered low and slow in a Guinness-spiked sauce on the stovetop.

If you’re skeptical about cabbage, this is the recipe that will turn you into a believer. And if, like me, you already adore cabbage (and are always looking for cabbage recipe ideas), this simple side will deepen your love. Simply put, Southern-style fried cabbage will forever change the way you think about this basic cruciferous vegetable.

If there’s one thing harder than deciding what to make yourself for dinner, it’s coming up with easy dinner ideas for your family. You want to get something on the table that’s fairly quick to make and doesn’t require a lot of effort. And you also want a meal that the kids (and ideally the whole table!) will devour, while contending with food preferences that can ping-pong from week to week. And it can feel even trickier when you have a picky eater on your hands.

When it comes time to plan your Easter menu, a glazed ham or a big roast leg of lamb is the default. These dishes are classics for sure, but they’re far from the only options, especially if, like mine, your celebration will be on the small side this year. But what to make? Pork tenderloin or pork chops can be easily dressed up with a sauce or simple glaze.

Looks fancy, but it's so easy to make.

Easy and brilliant.

Just wait until you see how easy it is.

Corned beef and cabbage is the classic St. Patrick’s Day food that many of us make every year. Our slow cooker corned beef and cabbage is the absolute best and easiest version because it’s hands-off and fuss-free. Plus if you have leftovers, you can make corned beef hash for breakfast the following day!

It's basically grown-up buttered noodles.

Quick! What’s the first meal that comes to mind when you think of ground beef? For me it’s grilled burgers or crunchy tacos that I used to eat as a kid. But those two foods barely scratch the surface of all the different dinners you can cook up with some ground beef. Arm yourself with a pack of ground beef and the sky’s the limit when it comes to dinner possibilities.

There are some dinners that you just know are going to be automatic wins. Chili is absolutely one them. When chili night falls into your meal plan, you can expect a dinner that’s warming, hearty, and filling. Sure, a Dutch oven loaded with chili is certainly meal-worthy all on its own, especially when it’s packed with beans, meat, or a combination, but I always think having one simple side is the ticket to rounding out dinner. Serving chili with a side dish balances the table.

It's impossible to eat just one.

If you’re not already slotting steak into your meal plan once in a while, I’m here to encourage you to do just that, be it Valentine’s day, a date night at homesteak fajita saladsirloin steak sandwichWhether you fire up the grill or sear it in a skillet along with potatoes, getting steak on the table during the week is a totally doable affair. In fact, it can seem intimidating, but a really good steak dinner is a lot faster and easier to cook up than you might think.

Show me a platter of baked chicken wings slathered in sticky Buffalo sauce and I can take ’em or leave ’em. But show me a platter of ultra-crispy garlic Parmesan wings blanketed with a double-dose of punchy garlic, plenty of salty Parm, and some melted butter for good measure, and I’ll be first in line to pile them on my plate. Serve themwith ranch dressing or blue cheese dip, alongside carrot sticks and celery sticks for your next party.

One of the ingredients is in the soup aisle!

It's the most comforting thing you'll cook this winter.