30 Healthy, Easy Dinners in 30 Minutes to Make in January
Whether it's a cozy bowl of soup or a melty grilled cheese, these comforting dinner recipes are well-suited for January. These delicious dishes, which only take 30 minutes or less to prepare, will be sure to keep you warm throughout the chilly month. Recipes like our Cheesy Spinach-&-Artichoke Stuffed Spaghetti Squash and Mushroom French Dip are healthy and easy dinners you'll want to make all winter long.
Skillet Ravioli Lasagna
This easy inside-out ravioli lasagna is the ultimate weeknight comfort food—no layering or mixing bowls required. Feel free to swap in ground turkey for the beef. Look for fresh mozzarella balls (also called "pearls") in the specialty cheese section of your grocery store.
Creamy White Chili with Cream Cheese
This rich, yet healthy, white chicken chili recipe comes together in a flash thanks to quick-cooking chicken thighs and canned white beans. Mashing some of the beans acts as a fast thickener when your soups don't have a long time to simmer. Cream cheese adds the final bit of richness and a hint of sweet tang.
Cheesy Spinach-&-Artichoke Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
This spaghetti-squash-for-pasta swap reduces both carbs and calories by 75% for a delicious, creamy casserole you can feel good about eating. It's worth roasting the squash versus cooking it in the microwave if you have the time: The flavor gets sweeter and more intense.
Mushroom French Dip
Meaty portobello mushrooms have just the right amount of earthy, savory flavor and the perfect texture to replace beef in these vegetarian French dip sandwiches.
Sheet-Pan Maple-Mustard Pork Chops & Carrots
You need just one pan for this satisfying weeknight dinner. A sweet and savory maple-mustard glaze livens up baked pork chops, while the carrots are jazzed up with flavor-boosting and anti-inflammatory garlic, ginger and turmeric. Rainbow carrots add colorful pizazz, but regular orange carrots are a just-as-tasty substitute. Pork dries out easily—using an instant-read thermometer ensures the meat is cooked safely but still moist.
Adobo Chicken & Kale Enchiladas
Put out your favorite toppings for these quick and healthy layered enchiladas. We like cilantro, sour cream, guacamole and jalapeños.
Rotini with Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
This creamy pumpkin pasta sauce, spiked with fresh herbs and Parmesan cheese, is a great fall alternative to traditional tomato-based sauce. Here, we serve it with pasta, but it can also be used on pizza or as a dipping sauce alongside fresh-baked breadsticks.
Winter Greens Bowl
This one-pan meal packs in lots of plant-based protein and flavor thanks to beans and quinoa, while a creamy lemon-garlic dressing completes the dish.
Chicken Thighs with Couscous & Kale
One-pot meals, like this all-in-one chicken thigh, kale and Israeli couscous recipe, are perfect for nights when you want to keep cleanup to a minimum. Look for Israeli couscous—small pearl-shaped pasta made from semolina flour—near other Middle Eastern dry goods in well-stocked supermarkets or specialty foods stores.
Spinach-&-Artichoke-Dip Grilled Cheese
This spinach-and-artichoke-dip grilled cheese offers the classic ooey-gooey filling, packed with plenty of spinach and artichokes, between two slices of crispy toasted bread so you can ditch the dipping.
Chicken & White Bean Soup
Rotisserie chickens can really relieve the dinner-rush pressure—especially in this Italian-inspired soup that cries out for a piece of crusty bread and a glass of red wine.
25-Minute Sweet Potato & Bean Enchiladas
These quick sweet potato and bean enchiladas are diabetes-friendly thanks to egg wraps that are lower in carbs than traditional tortillas. The vegetarian filling is both sweet and savory, while the topping adds texture and freshness.
Chicken Cutlets with Creamy Spinach & Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Serve these saucy, ultra-quick chicken cutlets over your favorite pasta. This easy dinner recipe is sure to become a new weeknight favorite.
Kale & Chickpea Grain Bowls
Get this veggie-heavy bowl on your meal rotation for a healthy start to the new year. Filled with crispy carrots, chickpeas, kale and bulgur, and topped with a vibrant avocado dressing, it offers 50% of your daily dose of fiber, which is key for weight loss, energy and digestion. Make the full recipe on the weekend for satisfying lunches all week.
Veggie Grilled Cheese with Tomato Soup
Maya Feller, M.S., RD, CDN, of Brooklyn-based Maya Feller Nutrition, upgrades this popular budget-friendly combo. "Adding veggies to a classic sandwich—in this case, broccoli, zucchini and red bell pepper—boosts the nutrient density of the meal," she says.
Chhole (Chickpea Curry)
This healthy Indian recipe is a flavorful chickpea curry that you can make in just 20 minutes. Also called chana masala, this dish is a comforting and delicious dinner.
Skillet Lemon Chicken with Spinach
This simple, ultra-quick chicken dinner—packed with spinach and peppers—is delicious on its own or served over brown rice or your favorite pasta.
10-Minute Tuna Melt
This variation of a classic sandwich uses mayonnaise but not where you think! Mayo is brushed on the outside of the sandwich instead of butter to make the sandwich golden and crispy as it heats in a skillet. Plain Greek yogurt takes mayo's place in the salad—along with crunchy celery, roasted red bell peppers and scallions—for a satisfying lunch with less saturated fat.
Minestra Maritata (Italian Wedding Soup)
Forget the marble-size meatballs you find in many versions of this Italian Wedding Soup. In this easy recipe, they're full-size chicken meatballs, full-flavored and plenty filling. In addition, it's a soup that's packed with nutritious vegetables, including onion, carrots, celery, garlic and spinach. This soup is a great way to eat more vegetables for a varied and balanced diet.
Chicken Cutlets with Tomatoes & Olives
This saucy one-skillet chicken dish is full of tomatoes, spinach, olives and capers. Try Kalamata olives in place of the green Castelvetranos or a combination of both. Serve over whole-wheat egg noodles with a mixed green salad on the side.
Tofu & Vegetable Scramble
Feel free to customize this speedy tofu and vegetable scramble with your favorite combination of vegetables and spice. Try to use veggies that will all cook at the same rate, like peppers, green beans and sugar snap peas.
Mushroom Melts
This mushroom melt has both Gruyère and Swiss cheeses that work together with earthy mushrooms to create a delicious ooey-gooey vegetarian grilled cheese. Balsamic vinegar helps lighten the sandwich, and the thin slices of rye bread help keep the sodium in check.
Grain Bowl with Chickpeas & Cauliflower
This beautiful grain bowl is packed with healthy ingredients like quinoa, chickpeas, kale and cauliflower—all drizzled with a lemony tahini sauce. The fast one-bowl meal makes a satisfying weeknight dinner or packable work lunch. If you don't have za'atar, you can substitute with a 1/2 teaspoon each of ground cumin and coriander.
20-Minute Creamy Chicken Skillet with Italian Seasoning
Chicken cutlets cook quickly and are highlighted with a creamy sauce made with tomatoes, zucchini and Italian seasoning. This recipe will surely become a new weeknight favorite the whole family will love. Serve it with whole-wheat pasta or rice to make it a meal.
Mushroom & Tofu Stir-Fry
This tofu veggie stir-fry is quick and easy, making it a great go-to weeknight meal. Baked tofu has a firm, toothsome texture that crisps well in a hot pan. You can find it in flavors like teriyaki and sesame, both of which are delicious here. Or opt for a smoked version with the same texture and a more robust flavor. Serve over brown rice.
White Bean Soup with Pasta
We use mirepoix—a combination of onion, celery and carrots—to flavor this white bean soup. Keep a store-bought bag of the mixture in your freezer to ensure you always have some on hand without worrying about it going bad.
Creamy Garlic Skillet Chicken with Spinach
Quick-cooking chicken cutlets are coated in a garlic cream sauce, while spinach adds a boost of color and nutrition in this easy, one-skillet recipe. Serve over pasta or whole grains to soak up the delicious sauce.
Spinach & Artichoke Dip Pasta
If you've ever wanted to make a meal from warm spinach and artichoke dip, this creamy pasta is for you. And here's what's almost as good as the flavor of this comforting dish: the fact that this healthy dinner takes just 20 minutes to prepare.
25-Minute Chicken & Veggie Enchiladas
These chicken enchiladas are great for using up any veggies lingering in your fridge. Our chicken enchilada recipe calls for zucchini, squash and onion, but you could easily swap in spinach, onions or potatoes.
Sichuan Ramen Cup of Noodles with Cabbage & Tofu
The Sichuan province in the southwestern corner of China is known for its fiery dishes. Here, the richness of tahini tempers the spicy chile paste in this cup-of-noodles-style Mason jar soup recipe. You can grind the Sichuan peppercorns in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle—or crush them with the bottom of a heavy skillet.
Read the original article on Eating Well.
