Friday Night Dinners

You might think calling for takeout is easy, but these recipes are actually easier. Kick off the weekend with meals your family will love and you won't mind making — it's that simple.

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Photo By: Armando Rafael

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Photo By: Armando Rafael

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Photo By: Antonis Achilleos

Photo By: Armando Rafael

Southwest Quesadilla with Cilantro-Lime Sour Cream

Easily up your failsafe quesadilla game with this 5-star recipe. Sauteed peppers, onions and corn meld with creamy refried beans and melty cheese for irresistible golden-brown wedges. Dip 'em into the cool sour cream sauce, spiked with lime, to balance the heat of the pepper Jack cheese.

Get the Recipe: Southwest Quesadilla with Cilantro-Lime Sour Cream

Sloppy Joes

You've worked all week; the last thing you need to do tonight is "work" in the kitchen. Behold 5-star sloppy joes that come together in one skillet. Brown the meat, then throw in the rest of the ingredients. No one will ever know this hearty meal required such little effort.

Get the Recipe: Sloppy Joes

Chicken Parm Pizza

When chicken Parm meets pizza, it's a match made in heaven. Store-bought pizza dough helps this dinner come together in under 40 minutes (quicker than you can get delivery). Invite the kids into the kitchen to shape the dough and top the pies for a family-friendly feast from start to finish.

Get the Recipe: Chicken Parm Pizza

Stuffed Turkey Burgers

These three-ingredient burgers will have you surprising everyone at the table. Not only will you have the burgers on the table in 20 super fast minutes, but they're also hiding a tasty secret: sweet roasted red peppers and melty mozzarella.

Get the Recipe: Stuffed Turkey Burgers

Shrimp Scampi

Follow Ree's lead and spice things up in the kitchen tonight. She gives her buttery and garlicky shrimp scampi an unexpected dose of flavor with hot sauce — and she does it all in 16 minutes.

Get the Recipe: Shrimp Scampi

Sausage and Peppers Sheet Pan Dinner

Armed with one trusty sheet pan, you can throw together a classic dish of sausage and peppers without much effort at all. Everything roasts on the same pan, which means you can sit back and relax while the oven does all the work.

Get the Recipe: Sausage and Peppers Sheet Pan Dinner

15-Minute Shrimp Tacos with Spicy Chipotle Slaw

When it comes to serving a dinner that's guaranteed to please everyone at the table, a make-your-own bar is the way to go. In this case, we're talking tacos. Use prepared chipotle mayonnaise, precut coleslaw mix and canned beans — ultimate timesavers.

Get the Recipe: 15-Minute Shrimp Tacos with Spicy Chipotle Slaw

Smoked Gouda and Roasted Red Pepper Grilled Cheese

To make a perfect grilled cheese, you simply cannot use any ol' cheese you find in the fridge. Pair smoked Gouda with deli Muenster for unmatched flavor and the greatest cheese pull potential.

Get the Recipe: Smoked Gouda and Roasted Red Pepper Grilled Cheese

Beef and Black Bean Sliders

Stretch a protein (and your dollar) with these flavorful sliders. Adding black beans to the ground beef means you can easily feed four and use only a half-pound of meat. And, thanks to their size, the mini burgers cook up in just a few minutes.

Get the Recipe: Beef and Black Bean Sliders

2-Ingredient Pizza Dough

Truly anyone can make this beyond-simple dough. Mix together self-rising flour and Greek yogurt, then knead and roll out. Voila! You have homemade pizza dough ready for your favorite toppings.

Get the Recipe: Two-Ingredient Pizza Dough

Cold Peanut Soba Noodles with Chicken

Grab a rotisserie chicken on the way home and have a full meal — protein, starch and veggies — on the table in just 25 minutes. Cooking the frozen shelled edamame along with the noodles saves you from washing an extra pot, and the little soybeans add a nice pop of texture and color to the finished dish.

Get the Recipe: Cold Peanut Soba With Chicken

15-Minute Indian Curry with Chicken and Peas

We believe there's a good reason "curry" rhymes with "hurry." Chicken tenders need only a few minutes to cook in a flavorful sauce spiced with garam masala and curry powder. Serve it with store-bought naan or over fragrant basmati rice.

Get the Recipe: 15-Minute Curry with Chicken and Peas

Chile-Rubbed Steak with Creamed Corn

A quick spice blend of chili powder, sugar, salt and pepper goes a long way in flavoring flank steak. Pair the meat with this stovetop creamed corn — made simply with frozen corn, an onion, chopped peppers and evaporated milk — for an impressive looking (and tasting) meal that'll set you back only 35 minutes.

Get the Recipe: Chile-Rubbed Steak with Creamed Corn

Quick Shells and Cheese

That kid-favorite boxed mac and cheese has nothing on this 16-minute recipe from Ree Drummond. Get her secret to making the creamiest cheese sauce, then amaze your little ones. Just be prepared: The kids will ask for this again and again.

Get the Recipe: Quick Shells and Cheese

15-Minute Grilled Skirt Steak with Pesto Butter

Skirt steak, a super flavorful and quick-cooking cut of beef, is the star of this 15-minute dinner. Topped with a two-ingredient pesto butter and served with grilled asparagus, this dish is doable on even the busiest weeknight.

Get the Recipe: 15-Minute Grilled Skirt Steak with Pesto Butter

15-Minute Broiled Salmon and Broccoli

This easy sheet pan dinner comes together in practically no time thanks to an oft-forgotten workhorse of the kitchen: the broiler. Its high heat creates perfectly charred broccoli florets and cooks the salmon quickly. And don't worry about the fish overcooking — the creamy Dijon sauce ensures sure that won't happen.

Get the Recipe: 15-Minute Broiled Salmon and Broccoli