Mealtime can feel like a constant chore, even for those of us who like to cook. This is where ChatGPT comes in to save the day. Sharing creative recipe ideas, meal planning, helping you plan dinner using the ingredients you have, and most importantly, helping you get dinner on the table fast.
For parents, especially, offloading some of the mental load onto ChatGPT can ease stress and solve the daily, unending conundrum: “What’s for dinner tonight?” If you’re sick of the same old cycle of weeknight dinners or want to empower your tween to whip up their own after-school snack, ChatGPT has got your back.
Below, we’re sharing 11 practical, creative, and genuinely helpful ChatGPT cooking prompts that can help you meal plan smarter, cook faster, and give you some fresh ideas (and cooking techniques) to spice up your mealtime repertoire.
This is the holy grail of weeknight prompts: quick, flexible, and focused on what you already have. ChatGPT can help you avoid a last-minute grocery run (or DoorDash order) by pulling together a recipe from ingredients already in your fridge and pantry. It’s great for those moments when you just can’t conceive of what to put on a plate.
Having a loose dinner framework takes the mental load out of “what’s for dinner?” It’s hugely helpful for busy families. This prompt helps you set up themed nights that still offer flexibility but make grocery shopping and weekly planning easier and more efficient. Customize the prompt further with your own likes and dislikes.
Busy mornings are inevitable. This prompt gives you fast, protein-packed breakfast ideas like Greek yogurt parfaits, veggie egg bites, cottage cheese toast, or smoothie blends that will keep you full until lunch. Great for anyone tight on time who wants to start the day on a healthy note.
Tired of cooking two separate dinners every night? This prompt helps you find that sweet spot where kid comfort food meets grown-up flavor. Think baked chicken tenders with an herby dipping sauce, veggie-loaded quesadillas, or creamy pasta with hidden greens. It’s all about meals your kids will eat without protest — and that you’ll actually enjoy, too.
Future you will thank you for this prompt. Sit back and let ChatGPT create a balanced, easy prep plan so your fridge is stocked with ready-to-eat meals, saving you time, money, and decision fatigue all week long.
Especially helpful for anyone on a budget, this prompt gives cost-conscious, filling meals and organizes them into a full plan and shopping list.
Great for shoppers who rely on bulk or specialty store staples. ChatGPT helps translate your go-to items into practical meal ideas that don’t feel repetitive and can inspire new ways of whipping up ingredients – think sheet pan gnocchi, flatbread pizzas, and chana masala rice bowls.
Entertaining for a crowd? ChatGPT will create a balanced menu that fits the season, tastes great, and won’t have you stuck in the kitchen all night. With recipes and shopping lists, you’ll be super organized for your next dinner party. Bonus prompt: ask ChatGPT to curate a seasonal cocktail or wine pairing for the meal!
Take the stress out of entertaining and allow ChatGPT to do its thing. ChatGPT will offer overnight casseroles, baked goods, and easy make-ahead dishes to help you host a festive, low-stress holiday brunch.
Looking to level up your cooking skills? This prompt gives you a shortlist of essential skills (like knife technique, how to cook grains properly, or seasoning 101) that will give you kitchen confidence.
Another chef skill in your back pocket. ChatGPT breaks down the pan-searing process in simple, beginner-friendly steps – from choosing the right pan and cooking oil to knowing when to flip. You can now enjoy restaurant-quality salmon at home.
]]>Natural peanut butter is better for you and just as delicious as the not-so-natural brands, but there’s one problem — it needs to be stirred every time you use it. Because the oils separate from the solids, you have to take a spoon to your natural peanut butter to get it to its spreadable consistency, and that can often lead to oily messes on your countertop.
The solution is this super handy peanut butter mixer that keeps everything contained and leaves your peanut butter perfectly spreadable every single time.
Spotted by Food Network, this mixer is made specifically for natural nut butters. It comes with a metal lid that screws right onto your 16-ounce jar with a three-inch mouth and features a simple mixing rod that’s easy to turn thanks to the handle. And when you’re done mixing, the included silicone ring around the center opening keeps all your peanut butter inside the jar.
“For any fans of natural peanut butter, you know the struggle! This is the kind of tool you didn’t even realize you were missing in your life,” the caption of a recent Food Network post reads.
Grandpa Witmer’s Old Fashioned Mess-Free Nut Butter Mixer is going to change the way you consume peanut butter forever. It’s easy to use, easy to clean, and leaves you with perfect, spreadable peanut butter every time you use it.
“Does exactly what it claims to,” one Amazon reviewer wrote. “For jars of natural peanut butter that separate into oil and peanut butter too thick to get out of the jar, it mixes them very well.”
“This product is just what I have been waiting for!” someone else wrote. “All those years wasted fighting the stiff peanut butter with a knife or a spoon. No more! … I have a little non-slip pad on my kitchen counter, which helped a great deal for the first few turns through the stiff peanut butter. After that, it was a breeze … I love it, love it, love it!!!!!”
And someone else added, “This is a must-have for anyone who likes natural peanut butter. No more mess or struggling to mix the peanuts and the oil … We just leave these on the jar, which makes it even easier — a quick crank or two and you are all set.”
Stop struggling with your natural peanut butters. Use this handy crank, and you’ll never have to suffer through the dreaded stir again!
Satisfy your sweet tooth with more awesome Costco bakery items seen in the gallery below.
]]>“How do you get the kernels off the corn cob without getting them all over your kitchen?” Garten asks in a recent video posted to her Instagram. “I worked out a system.”
You want to place your clean kitchen towel down on your work surface. Make sure it’s a large one that covers most of your working space. Then, slice the butt end of the corn cob off so you’re left with a flat surface to stand the cob on.
“Then you run your knife right down the cob. You want a really sharp knife so you get most of the kernels,” Garten continued, adding, “Without the kitchen towel, kernels just bounce all over the kitchen. And then, when you’re done, what you can do is just pick up the kitchen towel and put the kernels right into a bowl.”
“In the summer in East Hampton, when the fields are filled with gorgeous corn, I love to make corn salads, sauteed corn, corn chowder — anything that uses fresh corn!” Garten wrote in the caption of her post. “I’ve loved it ever since I moved out here, which is why you’ll find so many corn recipes in my cookbooks.”
Some of her favorites include Confetti Corn, Lobster Corn Chowder, Fresh Corn Pancakes, Chipotle Parmesan Sweet Corn, and Perfect Poached Lobster and Corn with Tarragon Butter — is your mouth watering yet or what?
You can check out some of our favorite corn recipes from Ina Garten here, and now that you have Garten’s kernel-harvesting tip under your belt, you can slice kernels from the cob like a pro. Enjoying corn has never been easier!
Before you go, check out our gallery:
Trader Joe’s is a one-stop shop for all your needs in life. Whether you’re replenishing your toiletry collection, cooking for a crowd, or simply restocking your pantry, Trader Joe’s has your back. And the retailer is here to make back-to-school season a little easier, too. Visit your local Trader Joe’s, and you’ll notice the store’s shelves are lined with back-to-school favorites. So the next time you head out to run errands, you can cross off every item on your grocery list and load up on Trader Joe’s back-to-school lunch supplies — all in a single trip.
Like many grocery stores, Trader Joe’s has tons of necessities on offer. You can find all the meats, cheeses, and breads you’d need to make sandwiches. You can easily stock up on hot dogs, hamburgers, pastas, and other go-to entrees. And you can reliably find all the fruits and vegetables you’re looking for—in high-quality shape and at excellent prices.
But back-to-school lunch shopping at Trader Joe’s isn’t just about efficiency—it’s also about fun. Because exciting, out-of-the-box snacks abound at Trader Joe’s. The store’s aisles are filled with fun finds, like pizza-flavored crackers, plantain chips, and lots of cheesy snack options. These items are worth the buy, even though might not end up on your standard grocery list—and that’s precisely what makes shopping at Trader Joe’s so great. You’ll leave the store with more school lunch ideas than you came there with, and your little one will thank you for it.
]]>From healthy snacks that actually taste good (shocking, I know) to unique finds from small businesses that you can’t get anywhere else, Sprouts has quietly built a reputation for curating products that develop serious food followings. These aren’t always items that just sell well; they’re products that have been hand-selected and vetted by the Sprouts team so you can ensure you’re only eating items with quality ingredients. Whether you’re a Sprouts regular or new to the unique grocer, these are the must-have items that shoppers adore and they deserve a place on your next shopping list.
]]>Five years ago, finding vegan and vegetarian products was tough. Sure, you could go to Whole Foods and Sprouts, but other than that, the products were confined to one small section of grocery stores and were limited to the usual suspects, like vegan cheeses, meatless substitutes, and tofu. But over the past few years, veganism and vegetarianism boomed, and retailers, in response, rapidly improved upon and increased their vegan and vegetarian offerings, even at Costco.
As an increasing number of Americans adopted the vegetarian and vegan lifestyles — according to the Vegetarian Resource Group in 2019, 4 percent of American adults are vegetarian, with half of those vegetarians also vegan — Costco was quick to add new vegan- and vegetarian-friendly products. Now, Costco has become, much to many vegan and vegetarian shoppers’ surprise, a dream grocer.
Ahead, take a look at the best of the best vegetarian (and, for some of them, vegan) finds at Costco.
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Spotting the “goldilocks” of kid-friendly snacks is easier said than done. As you stand in the snack foods aisle, staring at the endless brands and options, three questions run through your mind: Is this snack healthy enough? Is it affordable? And, most importantly, will the kids even like it? They’re all valid questions, but some of us just don’t have the time to research every single product and read every single review. That’s why we’ve curated the only kid-friendly snacks list you’ll ever need. And the best part? All of these snacks are found at Costco.
We considered all important factors: health, ease (are the snacks easy to pack? Easy to grab while on the go?), and how they taste (will the kids immediately spit the snack out and never trust your judgment again?). In the end, we found more than twenty snacks that are worthy of the commitment of buying in bulk for Costco members.
From fruits and veggies pouches to snack mixes and crunchy favorites, here are the best kid-friendly snacks at Costco. And, don’t worry; we also tossed in a couple of indulgences — because some days just call for it. Get your snack on and sign up for a Costco membership here.
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When it comes to upgrading our kitchens, we always look for the best of the best. Whether it be kitchen appliances or handy, new gadgets, we love making dinner time as fast and easy as possible.
Instead of spending an arm and a leg, why not spend only $11 for a tool that lets you mash any food you like for that creamy, sought-after texture? You read that right, we found an Amazon bestselling tool that’s a staple in thousands of shoppers’ kitchens, and it’s less than $15.
The Farberware Professional Heat Resistant Nylon Meat and Potato Masher is a powerful and multi-functional cooking tool that works with a variety of staple foods like ground beef, turkey, and more. With the five-blade design, this heat-resistant meat masher can also double with softer foods such as potatoes, yams, pumpkin, bananas, and more. Not only is it super easy to use, but it works with any type of cookware you have, from nonstick to coated.
Per the brand, all you have to do is mash by pressing the blades into the food as desired.
With over 46,000 reviews at 4.8 stars (and over 39,000 five-star reviews), this is a bestseller for a reason! Many shoppers, including this one, are “obsessed” with the tool, saying, “I have wanted one of these for ages and I’m so glad I finally bought it. It makes it so much easier to cook ground meat. This tool isn’t the easiest to clean because of all the corners inside it, but it’s worth the trade off on cooking. You can also just throw it in the dishwasher which is obviously helpful.”
Another shopper added that this is “the kitchen gadget you didn’t know you needed,” saying, “This little gadget gets ground meat separated into small pieces better than anything else. I love it! Heat resistant and super easy to clean. I was concerned it would feel cheap or like it would break easily. It’s super sturdy. 10/10 recommend.”
Before you go, check out our slideshow below:
One of the most reliable, easiest, quickest weeknight dinners? A bowl full of al dente spaghetti topped with a generous dollop of chunky (or creamy!) marinara sauce. You simply can’t go wrong with the classic Italian dish — and it’s even better when studded with mounds of juicy, herb-spiked meatballs. And what truly makes this dish such a breeze to make is our reliance on store-bought, jarred pasta sauce. But not just any ‘ole store-bought pasta sauce will do. Nope, reach for the wrong one, and you’ll be left with a salt-bomb of a dish. (Or, worse: a flavorless one!).
Now, when choosing pasta sauce at the grocery store, you must consider a few factors: How much sodium is printed on the nutrition label? And, how many — and what kind of — ingredients are listed?
“Many jarred sauces aren’t that different from what you would make yourself,” says Dana Hunnes, Ph.D., R.D., senior clinical dietitian at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, tells Consumer Reports. “Look for ones with simple ingredient lists of things you recognize, such as tomatoes, olive oil, and herbs.”
“Marinara is a simple tomato-based sauce,” adds Amy Keating, Consumer Reports Nutritionist. “So, when we taste them we’re looking for the fresh flavors of tomato, onions, garlic, and herbs to come through.”
Last but not least, there’s the final factor when deciding on which sauce to pair with your pasta: What kind of reviews does the sauce have? Of course, answering this takes some research — but lucky for you, we did the hard work for you.
Ahead, we’ve rounded up the best store-bought pasta sauce, based on reviews, ingredients and more.
Our mission at SheKnows is to empower and inspire women, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.
]]>Enter my favorite kitchen hack that has literally doubled the longevity of the egg supply in my house: blending equal parts eggs with cottage cheese in a Vitamix (or whichever blender you have available). I stumbled upon this trick during a particularly desperate morning when the egg carton was looking dangerously empty, but the cottage cheese container was still half-full. On a whim, I tossed both into the blender, and the result was nothing short of miraculous.
Not only does this mixture stretch your egg supply twice as far, but it actually improves the nutritional profile. While a standard egg contains about 6 grams of protein, adding equal parts cottage cheese significantly boosts the protein content, keeping kids fuller longer (a win for busy parents everywhere!).
The texture? Surprisingly fluffy and light. The taste? Picky eaters won’t even notice the difference. I actually hate cottage cheese on its own, but this completely disguises the texture that usually grosses me out, and the eggs are a little salty, and so rich and creamy.
For best results, blend on high for about 30 seconds until the mixture is completely smooth. Cook as you would regular scrambled eggs, though I find they need about one minute of extra cooking time due to the extra moisture in the cottage cheese.
This hack works brilliantly for scrambles, omelets, egg bites, and even French toast batter. The cottage cheese adds moisture that prevents overcooking, giving you a bit more wiggle room during hectic morning routines.
In these times of budget-stretching necessity, this simple two-ingredient solution has become my secret weapon. My grocery budget thanks me, and your protein-packed kids will have no idea they’re eating budget-friendly eggs.