DadMeal: Chicken et cetera

What you need: Boneless chicken breasts, shake 'n bake, instant mashed potatoes, random canned veggie

Prep time: 20 Minutes

How to:        

1. Chicken should be defrosted. Throw it in the fridge the night before or on the counter the morning before. (Or nuke it...defrost setting)
   
2. Preheat oven to 400F.
   
3. Put Shake 'n Bake in Shake 'n Bake bag.
   
4. Chicken in bag...one piece at a time.
5. Shake. (vigorously)
   
6. Bake. (twenty minutes)
   

At the ten minute mark:

1. Potatoes, per instructions on box.
   
2. Veggies in pot, low heat.
   

When you're done, take the time to make it look really nice on the plate. Presentation is everything with the comfort food.

This is a good one because you end up with a meal that looks like your Mom used to make. If you have an apron, wear it. You'll feel as foxy as June Cleaver and your lady will realize what a stud she's got…all secure enough to wear an apron and domestic enough to bread chicken (technically).

DadMeal: Cheese Ravioli with Garlic Bread

What you need: Frozen ravioli, jarred spaghetti sauce, box of texas toast

(if you don't like things that are frozen, jarred, or boxed, stop reading right now, fancypants.)

Prep time: 20 minutes

How to:

1. Get your water boiling. Use a big pot.
   
2. Dump your sauce into a small pot on low heat. Stir it whenever you feel like you haven't done something in a while.
   
3. Dump frozen ravioli into boiling water. It will splash and hurt.
   
4. Set timer for whatever ravioli bag says, probably about 16 minutes. Stir ravioli occasionally.
   
5. Preheat toaster oven to whatever toast box says, probably about 425F. For Celsius, go back to Russia, comrade.
   
6. With about five minutes left on timer, put frozen toast into toaster oven.
   
7. Have you been stirring your sauce?
   
8. Watch that toast. It goes from squishy to burnt in about 15 seconds. Remove when brown.
   
9. When timer goes off, dump ravioli through strainer, let sit.
   
10. Grab plates, take drink orders, find something for the baby to do while you two eat.
    
11. Ravioli on plates, sauce on ravioli, toast on side.
    
12. Collect brownie points.
    

Technically, after the meal you could finally be on the good end of that "I cook, you clean" crap. But if you clean up yourself, you'll be a hero.