Six Quick and Easy Dinner Menus

#1: Shrimp and pasta dinner

This quick dinner features Shrimp Fusilli with Sweet-Pea Pesto, garlic bread and a simple dessert. Frozen seafood is the rushed cook's friend-here, peeled and deveined shrimp let you skip the prep work. Peas, garlic, mint, butter and vinegar form the pesto. For dessert, a build-it-yourself ice cream sundae bar can be elegant or simple, depending on your topping choices.

#2: Fish taco dinner

Another fast meal: Tilapia Tacos with Chipotle Cream, Spanish rice, Mexican hot chocolate and purchased sugar cookies. Break spiced white tilapia into pieces for tacos and top with a creamy chipotle sauce.

Frozen tilapia is easy to work with; it's already skinned and boned. Rub with seasonings, and it's ready for the skillet. Rice mix from a box is an easy side dish. Another option: Pick up some side dishes at your supermarket's deli and get cookies from the bakery department.

#3: Off-The-Shelf Chili Meal

This quick and easy meal includes Chicken Salsa Chili with assorted toppers and Mocha Chocolate Mousse. While the chili bubbles away, mix together the simple mousse (next). Chill it until you're ready for dessert.

Mousse in minutes

This delicious mousse is a snap to mix together. You can layer it over fresh fruit and top with your choice of miniature chocolate pieces, chocolate sprinkles or chocolate-covered espresso beans.

#4: Salmon Dinner

A cooking school in Chicago suggested this menu: Oven-Roasted Salmon, fresh fruit and Chocolate Panini. Just four ingredients go into the salmon main dish. Pepper and a salt blend season the ready-to-cook salmon fillets. Use packaged broccoli slaw or cabbage slaw from the market's produce section and fruit from the salad bar for an easy, yet nutritious, meal. Serve with a melty chocolate dessert panini (next).

Warm and gooey Chocolate Panini

Assemble the panini dessert while the salmon roasts. Just before serving, toast the sweet sandwich until the chocolate filling is warm and gooey.

#5: Rigatoni Dinner

This menu features One-Dish Rigatoni, Italian bread and Pear Caramel with Ice Cream. Split up the prep time for this pasta meal by making the 30-minute main dish first; then heat the dessert (next) before serving.

Pear Caramel with Ice Cream

Scoop the ice cream and freeze while the pears cook in their sugary syrup.

#6: Simple Steak Dinner

The meat lovers in your family will especially appreciate this meal: Cracked-Pepper Steak with Yogurt-Lime Sauce (recipe at link above), Lemon Couscous, cooked vegetables and dessert coffee. A sprinkling of pepper adds a boost to already flavor-packed flank steak. A cool yogurt topper tames the peppery heat.