Quick, easy hallmarks of ‘One-Pot Dinners’

“The Big Book of One-Pot Dinners”

By Betty Crocker (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $19.99)

Quick look: Whether it’s a skillet, saucepan, casserole dish or Dutch oven, home cooks will only need one pot to prepare these hearty, easy-to-make dinners.

What’s inside: More than 200 recipes and 100 color photos fill the 336 pages of this soft-cover cookbook. Recipes are organized into six chapters: casseroles, pot pies, oven-roasted dinners, stovetop dishes, slow-cooker choices and soup, salads and chilis. Look for lots of chicken: Parmesan Chicken, Broccoli-Cheese Chicken and Rice Skillet, Spring Chicken Sauté, Chicken and Orzo Supper, Chicken with Pan-Roasted Cauliflower and Orzo, Easy Chicken with Tomatoes and Spinach, Cheesy Chicken Skillet Dinner, Coq au Vin and more.

Icons let home cooks quickly know if recipes are good for groups or servings have 300 or fewer calories. Sometimes, tips for healthy twists or time savers are included, too. Heirloom recipes appear alongside modern takes on old favorites like Italian Sausage Lasagna, Chicken Pot Pie, Down-Home Pork Stew and Family-Favorite Chili.

Most dishes are distinctly American, but some feature regional or ethnic influences. There’s Country French Chicken and Rice, Italian Three-Bean and Sausage Casserole, Greek Spanakopita Pie, Thai Ramen Shrimp and Veggies, and Colombian Beef and Sweet Potato Stew. Other dishes include ragouts, soups, stews, sautés and frittatas. Most are fairly traditional. But a few – like Honey-Sriracha Chicken Foil Packet, for example – feature trendy flavor combinations. Look for pasta and potato bakes, lasagna, moussaka and several takes on enchiladas, even “one-pot” dishes that might not immediately come to mind, like a crostata or a puff pastry tart.

What’s not: There’s nothing fussy, fancy, super-sophisticated or intimidating about these family-friendly recipes, many of which feature frozen or canned vegetables and prepackaged seasonings, mixes and other foods from General Mills brands like Progresso, Old El Paso and Bisquick.

Easy Chicken with Tomatoes and Spinach

From “The Big Book of One-Pot Dinners” by Betty Crocker

1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup dry white wine or water

2 medium plum (Roma) tomatoes, sliced (about 1 cup)

6 ounces fresh baby spinach leaves (about 3 1/2 cups)

In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken with garlic, oregano, seasoned salt and pepper. Add chicken to skillet; cook 15 to 20 minutes, turning once, until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut and temperature reaches 165 degrees.

Stir wine into skillet. Top chicken with tomato slices. Cover; cook 2 to 3 minutes or until tomatoes are thoroughly heated.

Add spinach. Cover; cook 2 to 3 minutes longer or until spinach is wilted.

Yield: 4 servings

Country Chicken and Pasta Bake

From “The Big Book of One-Pot Dinners” by Betty Crocker

2 cups uncooked radiator pasta

3 cups cubed cooked chicken

2 (12-ounce) jars chicken gravy

1 pound frozen broccoli, carrots and cauliflower

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup herb-seasoned stuffing crumbs

2 tablespoons butter, melted

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package, using minimum cooking time. In ungreased 2 ½-quart casserole, mix pasta and remaining ingredients except stuffing and butter. Cover and bake 20 minutes. Uncover, stir. In small bowl, mix stuffing and butter; sprinkle over top of casserole. Bake uncovered about 10 minutes longer or until hot and topping is brown.

Yield: 6 servings

Slow-Cooker Old-World Corned Beef and Vegetables

From “The Big Book of One-Pot Dinners” by Betty Crocker

2 1/2 pounds medium new potatoes

2 cups baby carrots

1 cup frozen small whole onions, thawed

3 to 3 1/2 pounds corned beef brisket

1 small head cabbage, cut into 6 wedges (optional)

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons cold water

Spray 4- to 6-quart slow-cooker with cooking spray. Mix potatoes, carrots and onions in cooker. Thoroughly rinse corned beef; discard seasoning packet. Place beef on vegetables; sprinkle with pepper. Mix ½ cup water and Worcestershire sauce; pour over beef. Add cabbage, if desired. Cover, cook on low setting 8 to 9 hours. Remove beef and vegetables from slow cooker; cover to keep warm. Pour juices from slow cooker into 1-quart saucepan; heat to boiling. In small bowl, mix cornstarch and cold water until smooth; stir into juices. Cook, stirring constantly, until sauce has thickened. Serve sauce with beef and vegetables.

Yield: 10 servings