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Your family dinner week · a place to start

Five-Day Family Comfort Food Dinner Plan

A week of familiar dinners, with a different kind of cooking each evening. There is creamy chicken and rice, pork for buns, pesto macaroni, hot meatball subs and stuffed shells. Put the slower cooking and baking where your day has room, and keep the planned sides beside their dinners.

5 dinners · Household of 6 · Dinner only · 2 planned sides

Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet — serving inspiration
Illustrative serving idea.

Five substantial dinner menus for six people, with a mix of stove, oven, slow-cooker and sandwich preparations.

Dinner quantities and the combined grocery list are set for 6 people.

Review calendar dates, portions and pantry items before confirming.

Estimating…
Estimating…

5 dinners · 6 people per dinner

Your dinner schedule

Move days to suit your week. Each recipe below is portioned for the same household size.

  1. Day01

    Creamy chicken and rice

    Use a deep, oven-safe skillet with a 3-quart capacity.

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet — serving inspiration

    Main dinner

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

    • Scaled for 6
    • Prep 5 min
    • Cook 45 min
    • Total 50 min
    Ingredients for 6 people
    • 1 1/2 each Onion · Yellow onion, diced.
    • 3 tablespoons Butter
    • 1 lb Chicken breast · Approximately one boneless, skinless chicken breast; cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
    • 1 1/2 cups [uncooked] Rice · Long grain white rice, uncooked.
    • 3/4 tsp Dried thyme
    • 3/8 tsp Dried sage
    • 3/8 tsp Salt
    • To taste Freshly cracked pepper
    • 4 1/2 cups Chicken broth
    • 12 oz [frozen] Peas and carrots · Frozen; do not thaw.
    • 1/2 cup Heavy cream
    • 6 oz Cheddar · Shredded.
    Full recipe & method
  2. Day02

    Pulled-pork buns and coleslaw

    Place sliced onion in a slow cooker.

    Slow cooker pulled pork — serving inspiration

    Main dinner

    Slow cooker pulled pork

    • Scaled for 6
    Ingredients for 6 people
    • 3 lb Pork shoulder
    • 1 1/2 each Onion
    • 1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce
    • 3 teaspoons Paprika
    • 1 1/2 teaspoons Garlic powder
    • 6 each Sandwich buns
    Full recipe & method
    Deli coleslaw — serving inspiration

    Side dish

    Deli coleslaw

    • Scaled for 6
    Ingredients for 6 people
    • 2 1/4 lb Deli coleslaw
    Full recipe & method
  3. Day03

    Pesto macaroni and spinach

    Thaw the spinach in the microwave, squeeze out the excess water, and set it aside.

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach — serving inspiration

    Main dinner

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

    • Scaled for 6
    • Prep 15 min
    • Cook 15 min
    • Total 30 min
    Ingredients for 6 people
    • 2 cups Uncooked macaroni
    • 2 tablespoons Butter
    • 2 tablespoons All-purpose flour
    • 2 cups Whole milk
    • 1/2 cup Grated Parmesan
    • 4 tablespoons Basil pesto
    • 1/2 tsp Salt
    • To taste Freshly cracked pepper
    • 8 oz Frozen spinach · Original: 1/2 lb for six servings. Scaled exactly to four servings: 8 oz × 4/6 = 5 1/3 oz.
    Full recipe & method
  4. Day04

    Hot meatball subs

    Wash and dry lettuce, slice tomatoes and prepare the bread, rolls or tortillas.

    Meatball mozzarella subs — serving inspiration

    Main dinner

    Meatball mozzarella subs

    • Scaled for 6
    Ingredients for 6 people
    • 1 1/2 lb Frozen meatballs
    • 1 1/2 cups Marinara sauce
    • 1 1/2 cups Mozzarella
    • 6 each Sub rolls
    • 3/4 head Lettuce
    • 3 each Tomato
    • 3/8 cup Mayonnaise
    Full recipe & method
  5. Day05

    Stuffed shells and garlic chard

    Heat oven to 375°F.

    Cheese and spinach stuffed shells — serving inspiration

    Main dinner

    Cheese and spinach stuffed shells

    • Scaled for 6
    Ingredients for 6 people
    • 18 oz Jumbo pasta shells
    • 22 1/2 oz Ricotta
    • 6 cups Spinach
    • 2 1/4 cups Mozzarella
    • 36 oz Marinara sauce
    • 3/8 cup Parmesan
    Full recipe & method
    Garlic Butter Swiss Chard — serving inspiration

    Side dish

    Garlic Butter Swiss Chard

    • Scaled for 6
    • Prep 5 min
    • Cook 10 min
    • Total 15 min
    Ingredients for 6 people
    • 1 1/2 bunches Swiss chard
    • 1 1/2 teaspoons Olive oil
    • 3 cloves Garlic · Minced.
    • 1 1/2 tablespoons Butter
    • To taste Salt
    • To taste Black pepper
    Full recipe & method

One list for the schedule

Combined grocery list

Ingredient requirements for all 5 dinners, adjusted to 6 people per dinner.

Compatible measurements are combined. Different measurement types and amounts that need interpretation stay separate.

Check your pantry before shopping. These are ingredient amounts used by the plan; package sizes and what you already own can change what you need to buy.

Bread & bakery

  • 6 each Sandwich buns

    Slow cooker pulled pork

  • 6 each Sub rolls

    Meatball mozzarella subs

Dairy & eggs

  • 6.5 tbsp Butter

    3 uses · Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet · Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach · Garlic Butter Swiss Chard

  • 6 oz Cheddar

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • 0.5 cups Grated Parmesan

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

  • 0.5 cups Heavy cream

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • 3.75 cups Mozzarella

    2 uses · Meatball mozzarella subs · Cheese and spinach stuffed shells

  • 0.375 cups Parmesan

    Cheese and spinach stuffed shells

  • 22.5 oz Ricotta

    Cheese and spinach stuffed shells

  • 2 cups Whole milk

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

Frozen

  • 1.5 lb Frozen meatballs

    Meatball mozzarella subs

  • 8 oz Frozen spinach

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

Meat & seafood

  • 1 lb Chicken breast

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • 3 lb Pork shoulder

    Slow cooker pulled pork

Pantry & other

  • 2 tbsp All-purpose flour

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

  • 4 tbsp Basil pesto

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

  • 1.5 cups BBQ sauce

    Slow cooker pulled pork

  • To taste Black pepper

    Garlic Butter Swiss Chard

  • 4.5 cups Chicken broth

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • 2.25 lb Deli coleslaw

    Deli coleslaw

  • 0.375 tsp Dried sage

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • 0.75 tsp Dried thyme

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • To taste + To taste Freshly cracked pepper

    2 uses · Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet · Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

  • 1.5 tsp Garlic powder

    Slow cooker pulled pork

  • 18 oz Jumbo pasta shells

    Cheese and spinach stuffed shells

  • 1.5 cups + 36 oz Marinara sauce

    2 uses · Meatball mozzarella subs · Cheese and spinach stuffed shells

  • 0.375 cups Mayonnaise

    Meatball mozzarella subs

  • 1.5 tsp Olive oil

    Garlic Butter Swiss Chard

  • 3 tsp Paprika

    Slow cooker pulled pork

  • 1.5 cups [uncooked] Rice

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • 0.875 tsp + To taste Salt

    3 uses · Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet · Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach · Garlic Butter Swiss Chard

  • 2 cups Uncooked macaroni

    Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

Produce

  • 3 cloves Garlic

    Garlic Butter Swiss Chard

  • 0.75 heads Lettuce

    Meatball mozzarella subs

  • 3 each Onion

    2 uses · Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet · Slow cooker pulled pork

  • 12 oz [frozen] Peas and carrots

    Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet

  • 6 cups Spinach

    Cheese and spinach stuffed shells

  • 1.5 bunch Swiss chard

    Garlic Butter Swiss Chard

  • 3 each Tomato

    Meatball mozzarella subs

Review calendar dates, portions and pantry items before confirming.

A little planning before the week begins

Set yourself up for the week

A little look ahead 1

Choose a day for pulled pork that accommodates the recipe’s 8–10 hours on low or 5–6 hours on high. This is a same-day cooking schedule, not a make-ahead instruction.

A little look ahead 2

The chicken-and-rice method specifies a deep, oven-safe 3-quart skillet for its original four servings. For six, check that your equipment can hold the scaled recipe; do not overfill it.

A little look ahead 3

Squeeze water from the thawed spinach for pesto macaroni and from the wilted spinach for stuffed shells. Their preparation methods differ.

The grocery overlap to check first

Butter

Used on day 1, day 3, day 5. Check the amounts for those dinners together before buying more.

Freshly cracked pepper

Used on day 1, day 3. Check the amounts for those dinners together before buying more.

Marinara sauce

Used on day 4, day 5. Check the amounts for those dinners together before buying more.

Mozzarella

Used on day 4, day 5. Check the amounts for those dinners together before buying more.

Onion

Used on day 1, day 2. Check the amounts for those dinners together before buying more.

A few details for this menu

Use ingredients across dinners

Marinara and mozzarella are shared by meatball subs and stuffed shells. Parmesan is used in both pasta dinners.

Onion is used for the chicken-rice skillet and pulled pork. Keep frozen spinach for macaroni separate from the spinach specified for the shells.

Make the plan work for you

The creamy chicken-rice source permits half-and-half or canned coconut milk instead of heavy cream; cheddar remains, so that change alone does not make the recipe dairy-free.

The pesto-macaroni source permits other pesto flavors, including kale or sun-dried tomato pesto. Check the product ingredients for your dietary needs.

A couple of everyday questions

Can I move the dinners around?

Yes. Put the meals on the days that suit your week, and plan purchases or freezing around those dates. Moving the same dinner keeps its ingredient needs; changing the recipe changes the shopping list.

What does this plan cover?

There is one dinner for each of 5 days, planned for 6 people. Any named sides belong to their listed dinners. Add breakfast, lunch and snacks separately; extra leftover portions are not assumed.

If you save a cooked portion

Keep the storage details close.

Buy or safely thaw the pork and chicken for their planned cooking days; keep prepared coleslaw chilled until serving.

Chill cooked leftovers promptly in shallow containers; use within 3–4 days. Reheat cooked leftovers to 165°F.

USDA FSIS: Refrigeration and Food Safety · USDA FSIS: Chicken from Farm to Table · USDA FSIS: Leftovers and Food Safety · Budget Bytes: Creamy Chicken and Rice Skillet · Budget Bytes: Creamy Pesto Mac and Cheese with Spinach

Collections featuring recipes from this plan