I have something homemade for dinner 3-4 times a week. I eat out (or more rarely get takeout) maybe 2-3 times, and one night is some type of prepared food, typically a frozen Italian pizza or flammenküche from Trader Joe's, with a large green salad.
I have a number of quick meals that I make regularly on busy week nights. Often it's something on the grill (sausages, steak, lamb chops, etc) because that also minimizes cleanup. Tacos with fish or with meat that is precooked (carnitas) are easy. I don't make the tortillas or salsas, but I finish cooking the meat and add fresh salad, etc. Linguine and clams, steamed mussels, fish with a simple homemade sauce, that sort of things.
On weekends I make stews that take longer to cook, and often double quantities so I can freeze the leftovers.
I make components for more time-consuming things in advance and freeze or refrigerate. For example, we love pasta and I never buy pre-made sauce. I make large batches and freeze in small portions (my 10-year old daughter chastised me for doing that one day, and initially refused to eat it, because it wasn't made "fresh"! I had to explain that I had made it from scratch and was simply reheating it). I buy dry pasta and occasionally make fresh in large batches that I freeze as well. I make chicken stock from leftover carcasses and freeze it to later use in risottos or stews. That allows me to make something more complex on a week night because I have already done some of the work in advance.
I use very few canned foods aside from canned tomatoes for sauce, and chickpeas for hummus. The rest is fresh or frozen.
I am not a big fan of convenience foods in general. But I agree with @Thanks for the Crepes that the selections at Trader Joe's are quite good.
