One of my sweet friends asked me for some ideas for kid-friendly meal options. So I thought I'd put that here. She specifically requested "quick and easy," which I don't do well. I love to be in my kitchen. It's so relaxing to me at the end of the day, and I love putting a healthy, homemade, colorful meal on the table for my family to enjoy together. (I also realize "healthy, homemade and colorful" doesn't necessarily mean it's NOT quick and easy.). Quick and easy just isn't my happy place.
When I was growing up, my mom worked a full-time 8:00-5:00 job, and she still came home EVERY DAY and prepared a home-cooked meal for us. My dad worked shift work, and even on the many nights he wasn't home to eat supper at the table with us, she ALWAYS cooked a meal, and we sat down and ate together as a family. So this is something she instilled in me that has always been very important to me. It's gotten much harder to accomplish this as the kids have gotten older and are involved in evening activities like dance, gymnastics and sports. And during the school year I don't have the same amount of time to spend in the kitchen that I do otherwise. But I just do my best to make it work. And, no matter what, there's a home cooked meal on the table every night, and we sit down together.
The other aspect of meal planning around here is that I have a super picky kid. I used to think that picky eaters were made and not born, but I have learned a thing or two about that. So I always plan two meals each week, one to be served at the beginning of the week and the other towards the middle of the week, that I know this kid likes, and I make sure to prepare enough for leftovers so he can eat that on the nights we have something he won't eat.
I'm not particularly sharing my favorites to prepare but my kids' favorites. So some of these I enjoy and others I don't really. But what I DO enjoy is sitting down at the table with my family to something they really love eating.
Something we always all agree on is Taco Tuesday (or any other day of the week)! Tacos are probably the easiest, quickest meal to put on the table. I love them because the combination of toppings is endless, and kids love them because you can eat with your hands! During the school year we usually have your regular ol' ground beef or shredded chicken (from my crock pot or instant pot) tacos. I always prepare homemade pico and guac. But you can purchase these already prepared from your grocer. I set everything up buffet style, and everyone tops their own. One of my very favorites is fish tacos. I LOVE the slaw and sauce in this recipe. I always use panko for breading the fish, or sometimes I'll grill it.
A variation of tacos is fajitas. They really are so easy! I'll prep my meat in the morning and put it in a ziplock bag with a marinade so all I have to do is pull it out and throw it on the grill or in the oven later in the day. Sometimes I do chicken, sometimes beef and chicken. It just depends on what kind of meat I find in the case that week. I always serve black beans and roasted corn, too. I saute onions, peppers and mushrooms because that's what Seth likes. But I also love pineapple salsa on my chicken fajitas. And, of course, I can't have fajitas without pico and guac. BUT! If you're short on time, you can always find these fancies already prepared at your grocer, or you can even make them a day or so ahead if you have the time. My favorite way to serve fajitas is board style. That seems to make the kids really excited about eating. My favorite marinade for chicken fajitas is here. Or you can purchase a packet of taco or fajita seasoning at the store and call it a day!
My picky eater doesn't like any kind of tomato-based sauces so that means spaghetti is a no-go for him. But spaghetti and meatballs is one of my girls' favorite meals! I always make mine with ground turkey and brown the meatballs in the skillet before preparing my sauce. I always make a home made sauce, but, again, there are plenty of already-prepared and jarred options available. This is an easy meal to tweak for my picky eater because I just set a few meatballs aside and don't add them to the sauce for him to eat "plain" with his noodles.
All of my kids love fettuccine Alfredo. This is a super quick meal, especially if you use a jarred sauce. This is one of the few sauces I prefer to buy already prepared. Sometimes I'll roast a whole chicken to go with it (which really is SO EASY, and all of my people love it!) or bake a few chicken breasts or do a quick chicken Milanese (basically pan fried chicken with a little salad on top, but, of course, I'm the only one with salad on my chicken!). I use Ina Garten's roasted chicken recipe (minus the gravy) and also her Milanese (basically parmesan) recipe. Both are super simple and super yummy! Seth always reminds me that salad doesn't belong on top of chicken, but whateves. And I used rotini pasta on this particular day because that's what was in my pantry.
Another pasta dish that's a win-win around here is pasta carbonara. You can whip this up in less than 30 minutes! My favorite carbonara recipe is from Tyler Florence.
Let's go back to meatballs for a second. One of Hannah Kate's favorites is the Pioneer Woman's comfort meatballs. Again, these are easy to tweak for my picky eater. I just put a few in a separate pan without the sauce, and he eats them just fine. I usually serve these with buttered egg noodles. I mean, what kid doesn't like egg noodles?! So fun!
Something similar that's another winner around here are mini-meatloaves. I use my sister-in-law's recipe, and instead of shaping a whole meatloaf or mini-loaves, I just shape big meatballs that I put in muffin tins and then bake in the oven. I used ground turkey in mine, but ground beef would be just fine. I put a sauce on top of half and leave the other half plain. Again, picky eater. I always serve these with mashed potatoes and green beans. Here's April's recipe if you're interested:
1 lb ground beef (I use ground turkey.)
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 t. salt
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup onion, diced
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients (my picky eater doesn't like onions so I combine everything except onions, make a couple of large meatballs and then add the onions and make the rest) and shape into large meatballs. Place in greased muffin pan. Bake 45 minutes or until done (my oven cooks fast so it's closer to 35 minutes for me). If you like a topping, you can combine 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2/3 cup ketchup and 1/2 T mustard and then spread on the meatballs.
Another dish that everyone loves and frequently asks for, even the picky eater, is poppyseed chicken casserole. The very first time I had this was during a BSU (now BCM) Leadership Retreat. Mrs. Dorcas, my campus minister's wife, cooked up two large pans for us, and I've been using her recipe ever since! She is one of the humblest, sweetest, godliest servants I've ever met, and I ALWAYS think of her and Tony every time I cook this. Usually we'll have some sort of green vegetable, corn casserole and oven roasted potatoes with this meal. This is another good one because we always have left overs for later in the week.
I'm not a big meat eater at all, but my people are. So when I cook big hunks of meat for them, I always eat just the veggies or a salad. They all love roast beef, mashed potatoes and green beans or butter beans or lima beans or butter peas. I season my roast (usually a chuck roast, but you can use any cut of meat you prefer) with sea salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder and then brown it roast in a pot with olive oil. I combine a can of low sodium beef broth, a packet of roast beef seasoning and a bay leaf in my crock pot and then put the browned roast in. I top the roast with a few slices of onion and cook it on the low setting for 6-8 hours.
Another option is pulled pork. We enjoy pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, macaroni and cheese, slaw and potato salad. I always use a pork loin, as none of us particularly care for the pork shoulder. Just like my roast beef, I season and brown it in the pot before adding it to my crock pot. I usually season it with a coffee rub. I combine a can of Campbell's condensed French onion soup, 3/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar and 3 T brown sugar in my crock pot and then add the browned loin. I cook it on the low setting for 6 hours and then shred it for sandwiches and serve on Hawaiian rolls.
But our favorite thing about roast beef and pulled pork (and even the whole roasted chicken mentioned above) is leftovers because . . . nachos! I line a sheet pan with foil and cover the bottom with nacho chips (the thick ones work best for this method). I top the nachos with the leftover meat (I usually mix the meat with just a bit of BBQ sauce) and everyone's favorite toppings (Mason and Ellie prefer black olives and cheese, Hannah Kate and Seth will add banana peppers and jalapeños and I also like black beans and diced onion) and then pop it in the oven at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. You can't get any easier than this! Serve with sour cream, salsa and guac, of course! I always use a block of Velvetta white queso cheese that I thinly slice for the top because it melts so good! You can tell below whose is whose!
I can't mention my kids' favorites without talking about chicken lettuce wraps. These are Ellie's favorite. Picky eater, not so much. And these definitely won't be for everyone. But the four of us love them! I've tried many different recipes because I'm pretty particular about the seasonings and the sauce. It took a couple of years, but I finally found my favorite. This recipe is the closest to what I do. I always use ground chicken or ground turkey. It's just easier and quicker than dicing a chicken breast. I also do not add the peanut butter. Again, you can totally customize this based on what your people like. Don't like pineapple? Leave it out. Don't like veggies? Just do the meat. But we like all of it! Again, kids love eating with their hands, and this one is another fun one!
Speaking of fun, there's nothing "funner" than a board! We've had so many of these. Here's a peek.
My favorite place to shop for charcuterie boards is Trader Joe's. They have the BEST selection of sliced meats, a variety of cheeses and crackers. I love their seasonal crisps. Right now the mango and ginger is out. This fall they'll bring back the pumpkin cranberry and closer to Christmas the pistachio pomegranate. My boards are nothing special. You can find TONS of board inspiration on Pinterest. Basically, just do what you like - a variety of meats, cheeses, fruit, veggies, pickles, olives, nuts, dips. The ideas are endless! We've also learned that our picky eater may not necessarily be so picky. One of his favorites from the board is blueberry goat cheese!
This board was something I put together on the night of the National Championship game - tortilla chips, veggies, fruit, pizza rolls, wings, sausage wraps, pickles and assorted dips.
I'd say those are my kids' favorite meals. For lunch we usually do things like quesadillas, dawgs in a blanket (hotdog rolled up in crescent dough and baked), ham or turkey and cheese rolls (slices of ham or turkey and a favorite cheese rolled up in crescent dough and baked), sliders, "fancy" sandwiches (I call them fancy because we'll use sub rolls or bakery croissants instead of sliced bread), make-your-own pizza bar or leftovers.
And that's it!
But, most of all . . . just have fun! And get your kids in the kitchen with you! Mine are much more invested in meal times if they've had a part in putting it together or even meal planning with me. Kids can easily assemble their own tacos or sandwiches. They can build their own plate from a board. Ellie has been able to scramble and cook her own eggs since she was six years old (DISCLAIMER: I never would've allowed Mason to do this at the age of six, but by the time you get to your third child . . . ).
Our meal plan this week:
When I was growing up, my mom worked a full-time 8:00-5:00 job, and she still came home EVERY DAY and prepared a home-cooked meal for us. My dad worked shift work, and even on the many nights he wasn't home to eat supper at the table with us, she ALWAYS cooked a meal, and we sat down and ate together as a family. So this is something she instilled in me that has always been very important to me. It's gotten much harder to accomplish this as the kids have gotten older and are involved in evening activities like dance, gymnastics and sports. And during the school year I don't have the same amount of time to spend in the kitchen that I do otherwise. But I just do my best to make it work. And, no matter what, there's a home cooked meal on the table every night, and we sit down together.
The other aspect of meal planning around here is that I have a super picky kid. I used to think that picky eaters were made and not born, but I have learned a thing or two about that. So I always plan two meals each week, one to be served at the beginning of the week and the other towards the middle of the week, that I know this kid likes, and I make sure to prepare enough for leftovers so he can eat that on the nights we have something he won't eat.
I'm not particularly sharing my favorites to prepare but my kids' favorites. So some of these I enjoy and others I don't really. But what I DO enjoy is sitting down at the table with my family to something they really love eating.
Something we always all agree on is Taco Tuesday (or any other day of the week)! Tacos are probably the easiest, quickest meal to put on the table. I love them because the combination of toppings is endless, and kids love them because you can eat with your hands! During the school year we usually have your regular ol' ground beef or shredded chicken (from my crock pot or instant pot) tacos. I always prepare homemade pico and guac. But you can purchase these already prepared from your grocer. I set everything up buffet style, and everyone tops their own. One of my very favorites is fish tacos. I LOVE the slaw and sauce in this recipe. I always use panko for breading the fish, or sometimes I'll grill it.
A variation of tacos is fajitas. They really are so easy! I'll prep my meat in the morning and put it in a ziplock bag with a marinade so all I have to do is pull it out and throw it on the grill or in the oven later in the day. Sometimes I do chicken, sometimes beef and chicken. It just depends on what kind of meat I find in the case that week. I always serve black beans and roasted corn, too. I saute onions, peppers and mushrooms because that's what Seth likes. But I also love pineapple salsa on my chicken fajitas. And, of course, I can't have fajitas without pico and guac. BUT! If you're short on time, you can always find these fancies already prepared at your grocer, or you can even make them a day or so ahead if you have the time. My favorite way to serve fajitas is board style. That seems to make the kids really excited about eating. My favorite marinade for chicken fajitas is here. Or you can purchase a packet of taco or fajita seasoning at the store and call it a day!
All of my kids love fettuccine Alfredo. This is a super quick meal, especially if you use a jarred sauce. This is one of the few sauces I prefer to buy already prepared. Sometimes I'll roast a whole chicken to go with it (which really is SO EASY, and all of my people love it!) or bake a few chicken breasts or do a quick chicken Milanese (basically pan fried chicken with a little salad on top, but, of course, I'm the only one with salad on my chicken!). I use Ina Garten's roasted chicken recipe (minus the gravy) and also her Milanese (basically parmesan) recipe. Both are super simple and super yummy! Seth always reminds me that salad doesn't belong on top of chicken, but whateves. And I used rotini pasta on this particular day because that's what was in my pantry.
Let's go back to meatballs for a second. One of Hannah Kate's favorites is the Pioneer Woman's comfort meatballs. Again, these are easy to tweak for my picky eater. I just put a few in a separate pan without the sauce, and he eats them just fine. I usually serve these with buttered egg noodles. I mean, what kid doesn't like egg noodles?! So fun!
Something similar that's another winner around here are mini-meatloaves. I use my sister-in-law's recipe, and instead of shaping a whole meatloaf or mini-loaves, I just shape big meatballs that I put in muffin tins and then bake in the oven. I used ground turkey in mine, but ground beef would be just fine. I put a sauce on top of half and leave the other half plain. Again, picky eater. I always serve these with mashed potatoes and green beans. Here's April's recipe if you're interested:
1 lb ground beef (I use ground turkey.)
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 t. salt
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup onion, diced
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients (my picky eater doesn't like onions so I combine everything except onions, make a couple of large meatballs and then add the onions and make the rest) and shape into large meatballs. Place in greased muffin pan. Bake 45 minutes or until done (my oven cooks fast so it's closer to 35 minutes for me). If you like a topping, you can combine 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2/3 cup ketchup and 1/2 T mustard and then spread on the meatballs.
Another dish that everyone loves and frequently asks for, even the picky eater, is poppyseed chicken casserole. The very first time I had this was during a BSU (now BCM) Leadership Retreat. Mrs. Dorcas, my campus minister's wife, cooked up two large pans for us, and I've been using her recipe ever since! She is one of the humblest, sweetest, godliest servants I've ever met, and I ALWAYS think of her and Tony every time I cook this. Usually we'll have some sort of green vegetable, corn casserole and oven roasted potatoes with this meal. This is another good one because we always have left overs for later in the week.
I'm not a big meat eater at all, but my people are. So when I cook big hunks of meat for them, I always eat just the veggies or a salad. They all love roast beef, mashed potatoes and green beans or butter beans or lima beans or butter peas. I season my roast (usually a chuck roast, but you can use any cut of meat you prefer) with sea salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder and then brown it roast in a pot with olive oil. I combine a can of low sodium beef broth, a packet of roast beef seasoning and a bay leaf in my crock pot and then put the browned roast in. I top the roast with a few slices of onion and cook it on the low setting for 6-8 hours.
Another option is pulled pork. We enjoy pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, macaroni and cheese, slaw and potato salad. I always use a pork loin, as none of us particularly care for the pork shoulder. Just like my roast beef, I season and brown it in the pot before adding it to my crock pot. I usually season it with a coffee rub. I combine a can of Campbell's condensed French onion soup, 3/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar and 3 T brown sugar in my crock pot and then add the browned loin. I cook it on the low setting for 6 hours and then shred it for sandwiches and serve on Hawaiian rolls.
But our favorite thing about roast beef and pulled pork (and even the whole roasted chicken mentioned above) is leftovers because . . . nachos! I line a sheet pan with foil and cover the bottom with nacho chips (the thick ones work best for this method). I top the nachos with the leftover meat (I usually mix the meat with just a bit of BBQ sauce) and everyone's favorite toppings (Mason and Ellie prefer black olives and cheese, Hannah Kate and Seth will add banana peppers and jalapeños and I also like black beans and diced onion) and then pop it in the oven at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. You can't get any easier than this! Serve with sour cream, salsa and guac, of course! I always use a block of Velvetta white queso cheese that I thinly slice for the top because it melts so good! You can tell below whose is whose!
Speaking of fun, there's nothing "funner" than a board! We've had so many of these. Here's a peek.
This board was something I put together on the night of the National Championship game - tortilla chips, veggies, fruit, pizza rolls, wings, sausage wraps, pickles and assorted dips.
And that's it!
But, most of all . . . just have fun! And get your kids in the kitchen with you! Mine are much more invested in meal times if they've had a part in putting it together or even meal planning with me. Kids can easily assemble their own tacos or sandwiches. They can build their own plate from a board. Ellie has been able to scramble and cook her own eggs since she was six years old (DISCLAIMER: I never would've allowed Mason to do this at the age of six, but by the time you get to your third child . . . ).
Our meal plan this week:
- Monday - chicken fajitas with all the toppings and black beans
- Tuesday - Asian lettuce wraps, fried rice, eggrolls and steamed dumplings (picky eater had leftover chicken fajitas)
- Wednesday - chicken Milanese and fettuccine Alfredo
- Thursday - stuffed bell peppers, a veggie, salad and cornbread (picky eater will have leftover chicken and fettuccine Alfredo)
- Friday - probably pizza
- Saturday - smoked brisket sandwiches, slaw, potato salad, baked beans and macaroni and cheese (Seth's choice, and he'll be home to smoke the meat). It's very common for us to have something from the smoker or grill on Saturdays. Fried fish is another popular choice.