Take it easy leading up to Thanksgiving with this week's meal plan. Peppery garlic prawns and cheese and mushroom quesadillas come together quickly, then use up those leftovers with turkey chili for the win!

This month, please welcome back Aaron Hutcherson and his meal plans! Aaron is a regular contributor here on Simply Recipes and the blogger behind The Hungry Hutch.

Happy Thanksgiving week! Being someone who loves to cook (and eat), Thanksgiving is definitely one of my favorite holidays. At some point over the past few years I sort of took over doing the majority of the cooking for the big day, so with my main focus on turkey, gravy, and stuffing, I don’t want to spend too much time worrying about what to eat the rest of the week.

To start the week, there’s sautéed shrimp that cooks up in no time, quesadillas, and an easy steak salad. And for after the holiday, there are recipes to use up some of that leftover ham or turkey in a hearty chili and a simple-yet-satisfying sandwich.

All of these recipes are designed to take minimal effort, but I threw in a few other suggestions in case minimalism just isn’t in your DNA.

And if the stress of the holidays starts to get to you, make yourself a classic vodka martini and take a few moments to relax.