Sure, there are days that we relish spending hours in the kitchen crafting the perfect feast. But there are others when we just want dinner to magically appear on the table, or at least require as little effort as possible. Enter the new cookbook The Lazy Girl’s Guide to Delicious Dinners, which is filled with tasty recipes that rely on a few shortcut ingredients to make effortless meals. “I will show you how to become the master of your kitchen without spending your whole day in it,” promises author Sophia Kaur. “You’ll be making standout dishes that look and taste like they took all day, but only you will know they were a cinch.” Try one of these tonight!

Pizza Biscuit Puffs

(Serves 4)

1 (16 oz.) tube Grands!™ Flaky Layers Original Biscuits
14 oz. pizza sauce
16 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tbsp. oregano
Your favorite toppings, such as mushrooms, olives, pepperoni, pineapple, green peppers, onions or ham.

Directions:

1. Heat an air fryer to 320°F or an oven to 350°F. Open the biscuit package, take each biscuit out and split it in half horizontally. Next, you can either take a rolling pin and spread each one out a bit, or use your fingers and spread each biscuit flat.
2. Top 1 side of the biscuit with pizza sauce, shredded cheese and oregano, and any other toppings you want. Cover with the other half of the biscuit and crimp the edges with a fork, sealing the pocket all the way around. Repeat with the remaining biscuits and toppings.
3. Put the biscuit pockets in the air fryer 8 minutes or in the oven 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown. Serve.

PER SERVING: 749 calories, 34 grams protein, 58 grams carbs, 3 grams fiber, 11 grams sugar, 43 grams fat.

Butter Chicken

(Serves 6)

1 jalapeño
8 tbsp. butter
1 yellow onion, grated
4 to 5 cloves garlic
2 tsp. minced ginger
28 oz. tomato puree
2 tsp. salt
1⁄2 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
3 tbsp. curry powder
2 cups heavy cream
1 lb. shredded rotisserie chicken
1⁄2 cup chopped cilantro

Directions:

1. Prep the jalapeño. Depending on the level of spice you can handle, you can leave the seeds in if you like a little heat or take them out. Either finely chop jalapeño or cut it lengthwise so you can remove it when the dish is finished.
2. Into a skillet over medium, add butter and onion and brown. Add garlic, ginger and jalapeño; cook 1 to 2 minutes. Add next 6 ingredients; cook 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in heavy cream.
3. Add chicken and mix to coat. Top with the cilantro. Serve over some basmati rice or dip in with toasted naan bread.

PER SERVING: 519 calories, 10 grams protein, 22 grams carbs, 5 grams fiber, 9 grams sugar, 46 grams fat.

Butter Chicken
Sophia Kaur

Baked Spinach and Ricotta Shells

(Serves 6)

15 oz. ricotta cheese
10 oz. chopped frozen spinach, thawed
1 egg
2 tbsp. salt
2 tbsp. pepper
1⁄4 tsp. nutmeg
12 oz. large shell pasta
2 (24 oz.) jars marinara sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tbsp. Italian seasoning
1 cup fresh basil

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. In a mixing bowl, combine the ricotta, spinach, egg, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Mix everything well. Add the mixture to each dry pasta shell, making sure each is totally full. Scrape the top of each shell so the filling is flat and not coming out.
2. Lay shells in a single layer in a 3-qt. oven safe baking dish. Add marinara sauce, making sure all the shells are submerged.
3. Cover baking dish with a lid or foil and bake 1 hour. Remove from oven and add shredded mozzarella. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Bake 15 minutes more or until the cheese is golden and bubbling. Remove, top with basil and serve.

PER SERVING: 466 calories, 23 grams protein, 67 grams carbs, 8 grams fiber, 13 grams sugar, 13 grams fat.