Is there an easy way.....

I am personally not a good cook so my Mom usually does the cooking but her trick is she cooks things in bulk when she has time and then she freezes it. We heat it back up later and you can't even tell it was frozen. Also, you might want to invest in a slow cooker for your main dish. You just put it in there and leave it for the day so when you come home all you have to make is your side dishes!

What I do to cut down the meal prep time, is fake my way through some of the dishes and premake a few of the others. Some things, like sweet potato cassarole, can be made almost all the way in advance like 3 days ahead. Then when you're ready just put on the topping of your choice and warm in the oven. Things like green beans can be cooked in advance and frozen, so that all you're doing is reheating (even in the microwave). You can purchase desserts that you just have to thaw and serve or heat and serve. And one other major thing I do to make it easier and less time consuming when I'm making a big meal is to take everything out the night before (except what needs to be in the fridge) and put it on the counter or table in groups according to what goes into the recipe. Then I place the recipe by each group. I normally put the items together in a baking pan or dish or the pot that I'll use to cook it in so that it looks like a little recipe gift basket, lol. It makes it easy when I get up the next day to just grab one group and make it and then grab the next recipe group and work on it while the other is cooking. If you clean up as you go and put things away as you use them (unless u need that item for another recipe) then it actually saves time, clutter, confusion and you from feeling overwhelmed at all the stuff there is to clean up.

Very good question Taz. Actually, it takes a lot of practice to have the timing right in order to make a 5 course meal. The easiest way for beginners is to make 3 of the courses in the same pan. For example, get a large baking pan that is about 3 inches high. Put chicken pieces on the left side, potatoes that have been quartered and coated in olive oil and spices in the middle and vegetables on the the right. Cover the right side with tin foil so that the vegetables don't over cook. Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes. While all of this is baking you have time to make #4, the salad and #5 the dessert. Hope this helps.