Looking for easy meal suggestions for a larger group

[jkm8113]

Since it is just DH and I at home now, we don't do a whole lot of cooking, but in September we will have eight in our group, four young adults and four of us are the parents of the young adults, and we will have a nine night stay. Staying that long, we are going to want to prepare some meals in the villa as eating out will run into some big bucks. At this point we are driving down and taking food (prepared or just groceries) is definitely an option. So I am looking for some meal options that almost everyone enjoys.

Breakfast is definitely a given, with one or two eaten out.
Probably going to hit the Publix for lunch meats for a couple of lunches (including a picnic lunch for the pontoon rental day)
Some ADR's have been made, but we do have a couple of nights open that we would eat in the villa

So, again, looking for some simple, easy meals. Any suggestions of tried and true winners?

[denlo]

A large part of my family are Italian. And that means they enjoy big family meals, that include lasagna or Spaghetti (either can be made with meat or veggies with a salad and bread. You could even do it easy and buy frozen lasagna at the grocery store in Orlando. There's a Walmart and Target and the nearby the Publix off Hwy 192 and Sherbeth Rd near AKV.

I have a recipe for Chicken Enchiladas not spicy at all (which are really burritos because it calls for flour tortillas) that would be easy to fix in room. It uses cream of chicken soup and you can used canned white chicken instead of boiling the chicken. And all the ingredients can be a healthy choice option. Let me know if you want this recipe or the one below. You can make it up in advance and freeze or refrigerate it before you bake it. So when you return to the room you can just pop it in the oven while you clean up from the parks. And dinner will be ready. Add some beer or wine. Nice evening.

Another for Spinach Torte, which is a good vegetarian option or even a side for broiled chicken you pick up at grocery store.

My favorite is to order in pizza from either Pizza Hut or one of the flyers you get under your door each visit. Last June we ordered from Pizza Hut and they called me from the lobby and we paid and picked them up there as Disney will not allow direct delivery to the rooms. Probably at SSR and OKW it's not an issue. And then we carried the boxes back to the room. We had salad with it. Easy peasy!

There is another debate thread about who dines in the room during a trip and many have mentioned items that eat in the room. Here is the LINK.

[goindowntofla]

I like to do Boboli pizza shells with sauce (Don Pepino in the yellow can is the best), mozz cheese, of course and toppings - onions, garlic, pepperoni, olives, whole sliced tomatoes, basil, etc.

Easy and you can do a make your own, so it is less work for the cook - not many dishes either - and loved by all : )

[CFRivera]

Tacos is usually a favorite...quick and easy.

[jkm8113]

Taco night I think would go over well, and kind of had that in the back of my mind as a possibility.

I would love to be able to do lasagne one night, but have two that will not eat a marinara sauce which is just unthinkable in my opinion.

The chicken enchiladas sounds like a great possibility, too, and I would appreciate the recipe.

Thanks for the responses, and I am open to more suggestions if anyone else would like to jump in.

[Rozzie]

We did this for our Super bowl party and it was a huge hit. Baked Potato bar. Cheap, then get several trimmings and everyone can make what they like. I made a crock pot of rotel for a cheese sauce. I also had mushrooms, onions, peppers, cheese, spicy peppers, salsa, black beans and sour cream. You can do a big pan of meat in a skillet. (I did ground turkey with spices) Clean up was a breeze!

[jkm8113]

We did this for our Super bowl party and it was a huge hit. Baked Potato bar. Cheap, then get several trimmings and everyone can make what they like. I made a crock pot of rotel for a cheese sauce. I also had mushrooms, onions, peppers, cheese, spicy peppers, salsa, black beans and sour cream. You can do a big pan of meat in a skillet. (I did ground turkey with spices) Clean up was a breeze!

Oh, I definitely like that one, too. Like that one for myself at home, too.

[denlo]

Taco night I think would go over well, and kind of had that in the back of my mind as a possibility.

I would love to be able to do lasagne one night, but have two that will not eat a marinara sauce which is just unthinkable in my opinion.

The chicken enchiladas sounds like a great possibility, too, and I would appreciate the recipe.

Thanks for the responses, and I am open to more suggestions if anyone else would like to jump in.

I'll have to retype the recipe for the Chicken Enchiladas because my one I had on the hard drive seems to be missing thanks to Apple latest OS update. Maybe it's on the super flash drive. I'm moving slow today, but I'll get to it this afternoon.

[denlo]

Here's my recipe. Enjoy.

Chicken Enchiladasfrom denlo 03/10/12Makes 10 - 12 enchiladas

4 chicken breasts (or three 13 - 16 oz cans of Chicken Breasts with Water, drained)


Sauce: 2 - 4 oz. cans siced green chiles
2 cans cream of chicken soup (I use low fat or healthy choice)
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1 16 oz carton of sour cream (low fat or non fat works too)
Mix sauce ingredients together in a bowl.

10 -12 Flour tortillas, I use the large ones 10” in size
Sliced, Mozarella cheese to cover top (low fat is okay)


If using chicken breasts - boil for 1 hour, remove bones, liquid and skin. Broth from chicken can be saved for soups. If using canned chicken just drain. Chop chicken into small pieces.


Mix chicken with 1/2 of the sauce. Grease (spray with Pam) baking dish 13 X 9 inch pan. Heat tortillas in lightly greased pan or microwave for 30 seconds a few tortillas at a time in a paper towel so they are more pliable; fill with mixture and roll up like a burritos, ends folded in, and place side by side in baking dish. I usually have room to add a couple more on one side. So it would be 8 across side to side and two lengthwise.


Pour remaining sauce over top. Cover with sliced mozarella cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees 30-40 minutes (Don’t let brown or it may stick)


Serve with salsa to add some spice.


Can be prepared ahead and frozen for up to a week before baked or refrigerated for a day and baked that evening.

[goofyjames]

Have yet to "cook" anything but pancakes at the resort.. but the enchiladas sound yummy... maybe a little ROTEL to spice them up a bit!! (Being from Texas, a little spice is always good)