Weeknight Meal Planner: Week of April 3rd

Just a hint of char on the asparagus adds fantastic complexity to this simple 5-ingredient spring salad. A soft boiled egg adds protein and richness to this Meatless Monday meal. If you'd like an additional side, we love the idea of crispy roasted potatoes. Make them how you like them, or use the suggestion below. 

Comfort food traditionally takes hours to prepare.. but not in this case. Use jarred Alfredo sauce and pesto sauce, as well as a rotisserie chicken to make dinner in a flash. If you have leftover chicken, freeze it and save it to make a recipe like this, again. 

Create a satisfying meat sauce by cooking Italian sausage, peppers, sweet onions and garlic, then add a quality jarred spaghetti sauce, such as Barilla or Classico. You'll have low-and-slow cooked flavor in weeknight timing. 

Here, pesto acts as a binder, helping the crispy panko topping stick to the chicken. Serve with seam-in-a-bag green beans tossed with lemon rind for a full, beautiful meal in no time at all. 

Naan breads are the secret to instant flatbreads (no rolling or baking of dough required). Look for whole-grain naan, such as Stonefire, and treat as you would a prepared pizza crust. Ta-da! Dinner is halfway done. Broccoli spears, Broccolini, or even green beans would also work if you can't find or do not prefer broccoli rabe. 

Poke cake meets pound cake in this must-make spring dessert. A perfectly moist, dense vanilla pound cake (with a delightful hint of almond) is filled with a fresh strawberry filling—adding to the cake's tender crumb and providing the perfect fruity sweet-tart flavor balance.