15 Healthy, Easy 15-Minute Dinners to Make in January

Salt & Pepper Shrimp with Snow Peas

These healthy and comforting dinners are ideal for chilly January evenings. Plus, it takes just 15 minutes or less to whip up one of these cozy meals. Recipes like our Spinach Tortellini Soup and Salt & Pepper Shrimp with Snow Peas are tasty and easy-to-make choices for dinner tonight.

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Spinach-Tortellini Soup

a recipe photo of the Spinach-Tortellini Soup in a bowl
Photographer: Jennifer Causey, Food stylist: Ali Ramee, Prop stylist: Claire Spollen

When you need a quick and flavorful dinner, turn to this easy tortellini soup with spinach. Refrigerated cheese tortellini bulk up the soup and cook in just minutes. The tortellini can be delicate, so be careful when stirring the soup to avoid them falling apart.

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Salt & Pepper Shrimp with Snow Peas

Salt & Pepper Shrimp with Snow Peas

In China, salt and pepper shrimp is traditionally made with tongue-numbing Sichuan peppercorns. If you have some in the pantry, feel free to use them here; we opted for a combo of easier-to-find white and black pepper. The white pepper adds earthy flavor, while black kicks up the heat.

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Creamy Spinach Pasta

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This might be one of the creamiest light pasta dishes you've ever had! The mascarpone cheese adds a richness to the spinach pasta that's unexpected—especially in a healthy pasta recipe.

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Lemon-Garlic Pasta with Salmon

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Wondering what to do with leftover salmon? This is a delicious and easy way to turn it into another weeknight-friendly, quick dinner. Don't forget to reserve some pasta water—its starch thickens the lemon-garlic pasta sauce and makes it silky-smooth.

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15-Minute Broiled Cod with Tomatoes & Herbed Mayonnaise

15-Minute Broiled Cod with Tomatoes & Herbed Mayonnaise
Brie Passano

Cod broils quickly in this healthy dinner recipe that's done in only 15 minutes. Sliced tomatoes on top give it a pop of color, while your favorite chopped herbs flavor the mayonnaise that tops the fish.

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Sesame Instant Ramen Noodles with Broccoli & Soft-Boiled Egg

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Jazz up basic ramen noodles with toasted sesame oil, quick-cooked broccoli and a jammy soft-boiled egg. To cut back on sodium, look for ramen varieties with less than 600 mg sodium per serving or use less of the seasoning packet.

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Spinach-Artichoke-Sausage Cauliflower Gnocchi

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Hearty and piquant, this quick cauliflower gnocchi dinner incorporates several healthy convenience ingredients, including turkey sausage and tender artichoke hearts, so dinner is on your table fast.

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Bacon and Avocado Topped Baked Potato

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A baked russet potato is topped with crumbled bacon, diced avocado, salsa, and shredded Colby Jack cheese--a meal in itself!

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15-Minute Salmon & Creamy Orzo with Spinach & Mushrooms

15-Minute Salmon & Creamy Orzo with Spinach & Mushrooms
Brie Passano

In this quick salmon dinner, salmon fillets are paired with creamy orzo, wilted spinach and earthy mushrooms. Cooking the salmon at a high temperature helps speed up the cooking in this healthy dinner recipe. Look for pre-sliced mushrooms to speed it up even more.

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15-Minute Sheet-Pan Chicken Tenders & Broccoli with Everything Bagel Seasoning

15-Minute Sheet-Pan Chicken Tenders & Broccoli with Everything Bagel Seasoning
Jacob Fox

Dinner is ready in only 15 minutes and cleanup is a breeze with these easy broiled chicken tenders coated in everything bagel seasoning with fresh broccoli on the side. The three-ingredient dipping sauce adds just a hint of sweet and spice.

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Quick Shrimp Puttanesca

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Because refrigerated fresh pasta cooks much faster than dried pasta, this Italian-inspired pasta dish will be on the table lickety-split! Puttanesca, traditionally made with tomatoes, olives, capers, anchovies and garlic, gets shrimp for extra protein and artichoke hearts to boost the vegetable servings (and the fiber!). If you can't find frozen artichoke hearts, sub in drained canned artichoke hearts.

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15-Minute White Bean, Kale & Kielbasa Soup

15-Minute White Bean, Kale & Kielbasa Soup
Brie Passano

This quick soup recipe is done in only 15 minutes thanks to convenience products like frozen chopped onion and precooked kielbasa. You'll have a warming winter soup on the table in no time!

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3-Ingredient Tortellini with Sausage & Kale

3-ingredient Tortellini with Sausage and Kale
Photo by: Carolyn Hodges, M.S., RDN

Precooked chicken sausage is a handy shortcut ingredient because it heats up quickly and adds lots of flavor without a lot of fuss. A roasted garlic variety pairs perfectly with cheese tortellini and sautéed leafy greens.

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Gluten-Free Teriyaki Chicken with Broccoli

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Everyone loves teriyaki chicken—and this one is better for you with much less added sugar. It's also gluten-free so long as you use tamari (aka gluten-free soy sauce). Feel free to swap out the broccoli for any veggie—carrots, snow peas, green beans—that you have on hand.

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Lemon Chicken Pasta

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In this easy lemon chicken pasta recipe, we love the combination of lemon zest and toasted breadcrumbs. This healthy dinner is made with rotisserie chicken, quick-cooking spiralized zucchini and baby zucchini, so you get a complete meal in just 10 minutes.

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