It’s true. I joke about what a terrible cook I am. Often. But this morning, Big and I had a discussion that, I have to admit, stung a bit.
He was watching a couple minutes of the Food Network, his new favorite. Sanda’s Money Saving Meals is what happens to be on almost every morning when he goes in and turns on the TV (a new skill I’m not so excited about). When I joined him on the couch, he told me what she was making…which totally escapes me at this point.
Then came the zinger. “She cooks a lot of different things. Her kids must really love that.”
Ok, so it wasn’t that bad. In fact, I’m guessing I wouldn’t have thought twice about it if my kids hadn’t spent the past 5 weeks praising the lovely (and greatly appreciated) home-cooked meals others have brought us. I have a feeling after being so well fed recently, they may even be a little disappointed when I’m finally sprung from bed rest.
“Linda really knows how to cook chicken.”
-Big, translation: Get over your phobia of dealing with the good stuff raw, would ya?
“Mmm, this is a good dinner!”
-Little, translation: I might actually eat if you cooked this well!
“Wow. Do you think they always have this many things at their house for dinner?”
-Big, translation: Would it really hurt you to throw together a side dish or two?
How’s a mom who has very little skill (and even less interest) in cooking supposed to please her 5-year-old foodie? I almost turned to Facebook in desperation. (Because that’s the totally normal thing to do, right?) Then I figured I’m probably not the only one who could use some simple ideas. I get the Recipe Exchange email at least once a month…and never have anything to add.
So here’s my plea. Please, please share your family favorites that don’t come from a box or the freezer section. Requirement: They have to be simple enough to write in the comment section. That means not too many ingredients or steps. Oh, and pretend you’re talking to a 5-year old (because, let’s face it, you kind of are).
Bonus points for an eggplant recipe. (Yes, Big saw some other show with eggplant and now he keeps talking about wanting to try it.)
If I can think of anything I make that my family likes, I’ll add it to the discussion. Ready, set, share!
(Big thanks you in advance!)
Our kids’ new favorite meal is “assemble your own taco.” They like the food, like the act of having to turn their heads to eat the taco without spilling, and really like feeling so grown up that they get to choose what goes in it. You know the “recipe” of course (we shredded a pre-cooked chicken, plus black beans, avacado and lettuce). One thing they really liked was choosing between soft and crunchy tacos and discussing which was better.
Definitely a good & easy one. Thanks so much for the reminder!
i’m not sharing, but i have an extra copy of a cookbook that elisabeth’s daycare put together. it’s all fairly easy and kid friendly and a lot of it is healthy. i’m sending to you asap. please note that i added 3 of my own recipes, including how to make the best cream cheese, butter cream frosting. okay, so not so healthy! you will enjoy. xo, aimee
Yippee! This only makes me a tiny bit nervous because I know what a good cook you are. Then again, one of our family favs is your recipe, so I’ll do my best to live up to your standards!
You are the world’s best mom…putting ego aside and wanting to “step
up to the proverbial Stove” to find new menu items for Big.
Not including any recipes now but, really want you to know that I have
3 sons and a daughter and the guys are all exceptional cooks…my daughter
not so much! Encourage him in the kitchen…it will be soooo beneficial
to him later on!
I couldn’t agree more. My brother always loved experimenting in the kitchen and still does. Luckily Lenny is a better cook than I am (confirmed by the kids) and he is very patient cooking with them.
OK….(excuse spelling-you’ll figure it out)
A simple quesdilla/black beans/guacamole (they make)/chips
BBQ chicken (yes, I learned to use the gas grill) the kids like making their own qa-bobs
Spaghetti and meatballs
Homemade hamburgers/fries
We make our own version of KFC night….baked chicken legs/coleslaw/biscuits/potatoes
Simple tomatoe/basil/garlic pasta-homemade garlic bread
I will think of more…if any sound interesting I can send you how I make them…
Great list! And as you know, we’ve already adopted a couple of your recipes as our family favs.
Also homemade pizza…pigs in a blanket!
Yum!
Hey Amy,
I love your blog. You have an amazing way with words. Hope the following recipe helps you whip up something quickly so that you can spend more time with your amazing family.
Tilapia grill
This recipe helps when I want to whip up something quick to satisfy my seafood cravings.
Ingredients:
Tilapia fillets (cut into 2″ pieces)
1/2 stick butter (unsalted)
For Marinade:
Oil
Garlic cloves
Ginger
Green chillies (cut into small pieces)
Salt
Lemon juice
Prep Instructions:
1. Mash the garlic, ginger, green chillies together to form a coarse paste-like consistency (mortar-pestle works like a charm!)
2. In a bowl mix the paste with oil, salt & lemon
3. Add tilapia pieces to this. Mix well so that the surface is covered completely by the marinade. Let it marinate for about 15 mins.
4. Heat a nonstick pan at medium high. Add the fish pieces. Add butter to the pan. Cover the pan with a lid
5. After 3-4 minutes, flip the fish pieces to the other side. You can check if the fish is done if there’s a light brown color.
6. Cook the other side of the fish on a low flame. Don’t cover the pan.
7. Within 3-4 minutes, its ready!!
Variation: Adding white wine alongwith the butter gives the fish a nice sweet & buttery finish. Just a 1/4th cup of white wine (maybe a Riesling) would work.
Hope this helps.
I’ve always wanted to try tilapia and now I have a great excuse to give it a go. And, yes, my boys love fish. Thanks for the wonderful recipe, as well as the very kind words!
You can always replace the tilapia with any other light flavoured fish like striped bass
OK, my whole blog is about this, but I can’t fit the whole blog here. 🙂 However, feel free to check it out and ask questions or ask for recipes using specific foods, etc. anytime — I’m happy to help families eat better!
Eggplant recipes for Big:
1. You can make baked eggplant “fries” by cutting the eggplant into sticks, then dipping it in beaten egg and rolling it in a mixture of whole wheat breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, and garlic powder (1 cup breadcrumb: 1/4 cup cheese: 1 tsp. garlic powder). Put on greased baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve plain or with marinara sauce for dipping.
2. Cheater’s version of Penne Norma — 1 lb. penne pasta (we use whole wheat), cooked according to package. Cube 1 large eggplant in 1-inch pieces. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Saute 4 cloves of chopped garlic with 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper for about 30 seconds. Add the eggplant. Cook until the eggplant is browned on all sides (this takes a little while). Add 1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes, 1 tsp. salt, 1 1/2 tsp. dried basil (or 1/4 cup fresh, chopped) and 1 tsp. dried oregano. Stir and simmer about 15 minutes. Pour over pasta, top with Parmesan, and serve with a salad and some nice bread.
Have fun!
Both of these will be such a hit with Big. Thank you! I have to admit, I’m always intimidated by food blogs given my lack of skill. But I’ll be sure to spend more time on yours. 🙂
Don’t think of mine as a food blog. Think of it as a families-gotta-eat blog. 🙂
This is a great side for just about any meal (although maybe not the healthiest). Most importantly though…as my mom used to write on the corner of her recipe card…. “good, easy”
Corn Casserole:
1 Package Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
12 oz Whole Kernal Corn (drain the water out of the can)
12 oz Cream Corn
1 Melted Stick Butter
1/2 cup Sour Cream
1 egg
Dash Salt & Pepper
Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl then place in covered casserole dish. Bake in pre-heated oven 375 degrees for 1 hour.
My kids can’t get enough of corn. Thanks, Suzy!
We like to have quiche pretty regularly too. it’s good for breakfast, lunch or dinner…and stays in the ‘frig for a couple of days (assuming we don’t eat it all)
Spinach & Bacon quiche
6 large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups light cream
Salt and pepper
2 cups chopped fresh baby spinach, packed
1 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled (even easier – 14 slices of the precooked bacon you can get at Costco – no cooking, no mess!)
1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
1 (9-inch) refrigerated pie crust, fitted to a 9-inch glass pie plate
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine the eggs, cream, salt, and pepper in a food processor or blender. Layer the spinach, bacon, and cheese in the bottom of the pie crust, then pour the egg mixture on top. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes until the egg mixture is set. Cut into 8 wedges.
Ok, two thoughts.
1) Costco has pre-cooked bacon? How on earth did I not know this?!
2) This sounds healthy, tasty and do-able. Thank you!
Costco also sells great pre-made quiches in the deli section!! 😉
Last one. This recipe is pretty healthy (from eating well magazine) and although it seems lengthy, it’s really quite easy. We buy the mahi filets from costco and keep them in the freezer until we need a couple.
Grilled Fish Tacos
==============
Adobo Rub (see below)
2 pounds mahi-mahi or pacific halibut, 1/2-3/4 thick, skinned and cut into 4 portions
Adobo Rub
—————–
4 tsp chile powder, preferably made with new mexico or ancho chiles
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
Combine chili powder, lime juice, oil, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
Coleslaw
————-
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
1/4 cup low-fat mayonnaise
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp lime zest
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper to taste
3 cups finely shredded red or green cabbage (buy the bag from safeway)
BTW…I usually halve the coleslaw sauce since I don’t like it particularly wet.
12 corn tortillas
1. To prepare fish: Rub adobo rub all over fish. let stand 20 to 30 min. for the fish to absorb the flavor.
2. To prepare coleslaw: combine sour cream, mayonnaise, cilantro, lime zest, lime juice, sugar, salt and pepper in a medium bowl; mix until smooth and creamy. Add cabbage and toss to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use.
3. Pre-heat grill to med-high.
4. Oil the grill rack (use plenty if you don’t want it to stick) or use a grilling basket. Grill the fish until it is cooked through and easily flakes with a fork, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer the fish to a platter and separate into large chunks.
5. Serve the tacos family-style by passing the fish, tortillas and coleslaw separately.
I’ll have to work my way up to this one, but it sounds delicious too. Next time I run into you or Josh at the store, I’m just going to follow you around!
Wow! Some of these recipes are so fancy! Here’s one that takes literally 10 minutes tops…..I might have shared this w/ you already but it’s my go to for the kids when I don’t have much time!
Easy French Dips
In a crockpot mix a packet of Lipton’s Onion Soup with water – slow cook a tri tip (better flavor than a chuck roast!) in it all day. The meat should shred easily and practically fall apart. Mix up of a batch of Au Jus from the packet. Toast some awesome french rolls. My hubby like to melt cheese on it too. Put it all together – what kid doesn’t like to dip? Add fresh corn on the cob and a salad and you’re good!
Thanks so much, Tracy. I saved an email you sent me (probably two years ago) with this recipe and I have yet to try it. I’m definitely going to make this as one of my first attempts. Believe it or not, I’ve even been known to ruin crockpot meals, so I’ve been nervous. But I guess it’s time to give it a try! It sounds delicious.
And by fancy I mean like way more creative and skilled than me! 🙂
I’m far lower on the scale than you, so EVERYTHING on this list seems fancy to me. Yes, really.
Our go to meal is SUPER simple: roasted chicken & veggies. We use just the drumsticks, because it’s easier and we’re lazy.
Heat oven to 375. Put chicken pieces (my husband uses tongs because he gets super grossed out by raw chicken) in a foil lined baking dish (or no foil. It just makes clean up easier). Drizzle with a little bit of olive oil, then season w/salt, pepper, & and other seasons you like (garlic, oregano, savory, & rosemary all work nicely, but salt & pepper alone are fine). Pop in the oven for about 45 min.
For the veggies, cut up in pieces however small, drizzle olive oil to lightly coat, salt, pepper, garlic (we really like garlic, so we put a ton.You can vary for your tastes). Put on a cookie sheet. When the chicken’s been in the oven for about 45 min, put the veggies in and cook everything for another 30-45 min or so (we like our veggies super crunchy, so they’re kind of the deciding factor).
You can also make pretty much this exact same meal on the grill if you don’t want to heat up the kitchen by roasting. Just use little foil pans or make your own using foil & rolling the edges (hey, we’re simple folks). Put the veggies on the top rack. Cooking times are pretty close to the same.
This definitely sounds like something we would enjoy (and I can do). So you really cook the chicken for a total of an hour and 15 to an hour and a half? Thanks so much for the great ideas, Ginger!
secret veggie and kind-of sweet quesadillas:
sweet potatoes
black beans
shredded Monterrey jack cheese
torillas
bake several sweet potatoes whenever you get a chance and let them cool. This can be done days in advance.
Set the kids up at the counter. Rinse the beans.
Big sounds old enough to peel a cold, baked sweet potato. The skin practically falls off. Mash the sweet potato(es).
Unfold tortilla shell. Spread some sweet potatoes on half. Sprinkle with black beans. Sprinkle with a little cheese. Fold empty side over to cover sweet potato/beans/ cheese.
The grown-up throws it in a dry skillet for a few minutes, flips it then puts it on a plate. Cuts with a pizza cutter.
A little Foodie might want to sprinkle cumin or cinnamon before closing it.
This one is really interesting…I know Big will love to try it. Thanks so much for the fun idea!
Amy –
This is a favorite amongst all my friends and family. It is a no fail, add what you like, adapt to your family kinda recipe. It is usually a side, but can easily be a meal with the addition of a protein.
No Lettuce Salad
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 orange bell pepper, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1-2 cans of yellow and white corn kernals (or fresh corn if you like)
green onions, chopped
green beans, chopped
carrots, chopped
pinenuts
dried cranberries
dried cherries
dried apricots – halved or quartered
other ingredients you could include
tomatos
asparagus
garbonzo beans
pomogranite seeds
tuna
cheese – cubes or bleu
Dressing –
Balsamic Vinegar – (i recommend Kirkland brand from costco, it is much sweeter than normal varieties)
light virgin olive oil
Good seasonings italian mix packet
Chop up all the veggies and put in a bowl (you can use any veggies you like) I usually start with one each of the bell peppers and the can of corn and then add others accordingly.
This can be made a day ahead of time.
Right before serving, mix in the dry toppings (pinenuts, cranberries, cherries, apricots) I find if you add them in too early, the dried fruit is no longer dried
Also, right before serving add the dressing. I usually use half a packet of the good seasonings italian mix and then mix balsamic and olive oil in to taste, making about a 1/2 cup of dressing and using more balsamic then oil
Mix it up and serve it.
Hope you enjoy. (Super Lazy tip, you can buy most of the veggies all cut up in the whole foods salad bar)
Ooh, Erin, love the lazy tip. Question is am I more lazy or cheap? This does sound good. I bet throwing in some rotisserie chicken slices (yep, that’s how I avoid cooking chicken) could make this a great main course too. Thanks for sharing!
I just bought a 5 qt crockpot and love it! since I’m a working mom, I can come home during lunchtime when the kids are at daycare, put all the ingredients in and come home at night to a kitchen that smells delicious and dinner is ready! For our family, it’s usually dinner and lunch or dinner the next day. And it’s super easy! I bet Trevor would even like to help you “make dinner” by helping to put in the ingredients! : )
Kid Friendly Pasta Primavera:
-their favorite pasta, cooked
-their favorite fresh vegetables – precooked (peas, carrots, broccoli, etc)
-cubed ham or chicken
-parmesan cheese
-ground pepper
-secret sauce (good ole ranch dressing)
Toss all together and heat on low on stove or in microwave (so dressing does not curdle).
p.s. Big’s fascination with new foods and cooking is sooooo cute! Even I can’t eat eggplant!
I also just got this delicious (and easy) looking crockpot recipe from my Twitter friend, @sahans (from The Daily Blarg).
Italian Chicken
http://www.thedailyblarg.com/2010/04/foodie-friday-crockpot-italian-chicken.html