(Family Features) Quick and easy yet delicious meals make time spent in the kitchen effective and enjoyable. Next time you’re in a time crunch for lunch or a simple dinner at home, lean on recipes that require five ingredients or less and can be ready in a snap.

These Creamy Chicken Risotto and Chile Verde recipes are perfect in a pinch to satisfy hunger without requiring complicated prep or cooking steps. Just heat rice and add ingredients like cheese and seasonings for flavorful meals you can cook in mere minutes.

With a main ingredient like Minute Chicken & Herb Seasoned Rice Cups, you can have the base of your recipe ready in only 1 minute. Featuring a new and improved recipe, the cups offer a homestyle taste with carrots, onion and garlic, making them a perfect addition to salads, soup or as an easy side.

Find more fast, flavorful meal ideas at MinuteRice.com.

Watch videos to see how to make these recipes!

Creamy Chicken Risotto

• 1          Minute Chicken & Herb Seasoned Rice Cup
• 2          tablespoons heavy cream
• 1          tablespoon shredded Parmesan cheese
• 2          teaspoons chopped basil
• 1          pinch garlic powder

1. Microwave rice according to package instructions.
2. Add heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, basil and garlic powder; mix to combine.

Chile Verde

• 1          Minute Chicken & Herb Seasoned Rice Cup
• 2          teaspoons salsa verde
• 1          tablespoon shredded cheese
• 1/16     teaspoon ground cumin

1. Microwave rice according to package instructions.
2. Add salsa verde, shredded cheese and ground cumin; mix to combine.

Source: Minute Rice

(Family Features) When the back-to-school season brings jam-packed schedules full of learning and homework, every minute counts for the parents who make those school days possible. Create some extra time for special moments with the special people in your life by prioritizing easy yet delicious dinners that can help refuel parents and students.

In just five minutes, you can prepare a spicy take on chicken and rice with this family favorite Buffalo and Blue Cheese Chicken recipe. Making some extra time for yourself is as simple as starting with Minute White Rice Cups packed conveniently in single-serving BPA-free cups you can finish preparing in just 1 minute.

When you’re looking for a fun way to introduce your little learner to the kitchen, try creating your own homemade Buffalo sauce for this dish by mixing hot sauce, butter, white vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper and garlic powder. Heat in a saucepan until the butter melts and the mixture simmers, then turn down the heat and wait for it to cool.

If your loved ones aren’t big fans of spice, turn to a tamer take on a kid-friendly classic with “Mac” and Cheese in a Cup, a creamy rice version of the familiar favorite made with milk, cheddar and cream cheese. Just because you may not have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen doesn’t have to mean suffering through boring meals – simply use the microwave to enjoy this speedy yet tasty option.

It’s easy to enjoy the buttery taste and aromatic scent of jasmine rice – regardless of how packed your schedule is – by using Minute Jasmine Rice Cups to make quick dinners a reality. This taste bud-tingling take on mac and cheese made in a microwaveable cup saves you from clean-up duty and leaves more time for homework, after-school activities, school projects and all the excitement that comes with a new school year.

To find more quick yet satisfying and delicious dinner ideas for busy school nights, visit MinuteRice.com.

Buffalo and Blue Cheese Chicken Recipe

Prep time: 2 minutes
Cook time: 3 minutes
Servings: 1

• 1 cup Minute White Rice
• 1 breaded chicken tender, sliced
• 2 tablespoons Buffalo sauce
• 1 tablespoon crumbled blue cheese, for garnish
• 1 green onion, sliced, for garnish

1. Heat rice according to package directions.
2. In a small, microwave-safe bowl, combine chicken and sauce. Microwave on high 2-3 minutes.
3. Serve chicken over rice. Garnish with blue cheese and green onion.

"Mac" and Cheese in a Cup Recipe

Prep time: 2 minutes
Cook time: 3 minutes
Servings: 1

• 1 cup Minute Jasmine Rice
• 1/3 cup 2% milk
• 1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon cream cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 pinch dry mustard powder (optional)

1. Heat rice according to package directions.
2. In a microwave-safe cup, stir rice, milk, cheddar cheese, cream cheese, garlic powder and mustard powder, if desired.
3. Microwave on high, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes, or until heated through and cheese is melted and saucy.

Tips: For extra-cheesy rice, add 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese.

Substitute garlic powder with 1/2 clove minced, fresh garlic.

Source: Minute Rice

(Family Features) When you serve kids milk with breakfast, you can feel good knowing they’ll love the taste. Not to mention, as a parent, you’ll appreciate the quality nutrition in each glass. As one of the original farm-to-table foods that kids already love, milk is a simple, wholesome way to show your family how much you care.  

Starting the day around the table with loved ones and a glass of milk will help your family get nine essential nutrients that everyone can benefit from, like calcium and vitamin D. Plus, with 8 grams of high-quality protein per every 8-ounce glass, milk at breakfast is a great way to help power through your morning. It’s no surprise that 96 percent of Americans have milk in their refrigerators – because when you pair quality nutrition with quality family time, everyone will feel the love.

Add some excitement to your morning with these quick and easy Homemade Pop Pastries. Kids will enjoy helping to bake up this homemade, heart-shaped version of a breakfast favorite, perfect to share with the people they love. Pair this strawberry-filled recipe with a glass of milk for a delicious breakfast to start everyone’s day on the right foot.

To share the love with more milk-inspired recipes, visit milklife.com, and watch how you can add a little love at breakfast with these tasty pastries at YouTube.com/MilkLife.

Homemade Pop Pastries

• 1          package (2 crusts) rolled pie crusts, 9-inch diameter
• 3/4       cup strawberry all-fruit spread
• 2          tablespoons lowfat or fat free milk
• 4          fresh strawberries, stemmed

1. Heat the oven to 425° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or coat lightly with nonstick spray.
2. Unroll both rounds of pie dough onto a lightly floured work surface and place one on top of the other. Using a pizza wheel or a chef’s knife, cut the rounds into eight wedge-shaped pieces (for a total of 16 wedge-shaped pieces).
3. Arrange wedges on a work surface. Spread 1 1/2 tablespoons of the fruit spread onto eight of the wedges, leaving 1/2-inch margin around the sides. Arrange the eight wedges on the prepared baking sheet and brush the edges with some of the milk.
4. Using a small heart-shaped cutter cut a heart out of each of the remaining eight pastry wedges (discard the hearts) and arrange on top of the jam-filled wedges. Press the edges with the tines of a fork to seal.
5. Brush the tops of the pastries with additional milk and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown. Let the tarts cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
6. Before serving, slice the fresh strawberries in half from top to bottom to form heart shapes. Place a strawberry slice in each heart cut-out.
7. Serve with 8-ounce glass of milk.

Variation: For a flavor twist, spread 1 tablespoon of chocolate hazelnut spread onto eight of the wedges, then spread with just 1 tablespoon of the strawberry spread. Proceed with the recipe as written.

Nutritional information per serving: 260 calories; 11 g fat; 3.5 g saturated fat; 0 mg cholesterol; 3 g protein; 38 g carbohydrates; 2 g fiber; 180 mg sodium; 16 mg calcium (2% of daily value). Nutrition figures based on using fat free milk.

Source: MilkPEP

(Culinary.net) From work to homework, weekdays can often be extremely busy and sometimes stressful for many families, especially if you have little ones running around. If family means everything to you but time spent with those loved ones feels slim with the chaos of the modern-day world, one easy fix is to simplify your dinner routine.

Sometimes a family dinner is not the first thing on your mind, but you can bring everyone together with something quick and effortless when you’re in pinched for time. It’s a one-pot meal, and less mess means more time to focus on your daily tasks at hand.

With this Easy Tuna Casserole, you can call everyone to the table with a classic and simple meal that is sure to have everyone asking for a second helping. It features soft, perfectly cooked noodles, cheese and veggies, plus a hint of seafood.

This recipe needs only a handful of ingredients and requires just a few steps to make a full meal for your hungry family in a few moments.

Start by boiling the vegetables and noodles together in one pot then add dairy products, mix in your protein (a flavorful, hearty tuna) and top with crackers for some crunch. It has texture, vegetables to provide nutrients for growing kids and meets pretty much every mark for family dinner time.

Kids typically love the cheesy flavor and crunch provided by the cracker topping. Plus, it’s a great way to get them to try foods they normally wouldn’t eat, like tuna.

It’s a classic, easy meal that can leave you wishing that making dinner was that simple every night. Cook this delicious meal and get it on the table so you can enjoy what matters most: the ones you love.

Find more recipes and family meals at Culinary.net.

Watch video to see how to make this recipe!

Easy Tuna Casserole

• 6 cups boiling water
• 3 cups uncooked macaroni
• 1 cup frozen vegetables (corn, carrots and peas)
• 4 TBS butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cheese powder packet
• 1 can of tuna in water (drained)
• 8 - 10 buttery crackers rounds (crushed)

1. Boil water in sauce pan, then add in macaroni. Stirring ocassionaly. Boiling 8-10 minutes.
2. Add frozen vegetables 2 minutes before the end of boil time.
3. Drain and return to sauce pan.
4. Add in butter, milk and cheese.  Stir until mixed.
5. Pour into casserole dish.
6. Add tuna and stir into macaroni mixture.
7. Sprinkle crushed buttery crackers over macaroni mixture.
8. Serve immediately.