Easy weeknight dinners with the kids!
I understand the rush of finishing work, picking up the kids, getting home, taking the washing off the line, doing school homework, answering emails, walking the dog, and every other job I’ve neglected to do earlier that day or week. And that is before I even think about dinner sometimes. In my house I set aside time between 5-6 to cook dinner, I enjoy being in the kitchen, so this is as much for my mental health and enjoyment as it is for actually cooking dinner. I also get tomorrows school lunch, work lunch and afterschool snacks ready if I need to.
BUT then, sometimes I look at the clock and it’s 5:45 and we do dinner at 6 and if that’s late the tired/hungry meltdowns are REAL (and that’s not just from my daughter).
What do you do!!!
I have a few quick and easy dinners that can be ready in 15-20 minutes and still tick the boxes I want ticked!!
Wraps
Wraps is a go to in our house. Open the fridge and see what you can find. We use grated carrot, grated fresh beetroot, cucumber, avocado, spinach, kale, tomato, capsicums to name a few. I chop or grate them up, put them in the middle of the table on a tray and we have a three-colour rule – there needs to be at least three colours on your wrap (that doesn’t include meat/protein). There will always be a protein source included, perhaps something left over from the night before (chicken or mince) or you can boil or fry eggs or use chickpeas, kidney beans or hummus. My daughter makes the wrap herself and chooses what she wants on it. The struggles of wrapping a wrap so that it stays together are a learned practice and some tears may be shed, but this is also a good skill to learn for little hands and minds anyway. Best part is that I will also make a wrap to put in school lunch for the next day and that’s half of lunch done!!
Noodle Salad Bowl
You could virtually do this the same as if you were doing the wraps. Prepare your ingredients on a big tray for the middle of the table, similar protein sources can be used also. Place some cooked brown rice noodles (or cooked brown rice) in bowls and let everyone put their salads together. You can use the three-colour rule again here and if they want a little bit of soy/honey/sesame oil (4:2:1 Tablespoons of each) mix as a dressing. Add some picked herbs on top, a wedge of lemon or lime and some crushed nuts (if safe for your family).
Brinner
Most people who know me know I love having ’breakfast’ for dinner and I’m not talking about cereal. I’m talking about scrambled eggs, fried mushrooms, sautéed kale, asparagus, a little bit of (nitrate free) bacon if you have some, avocado and some fetta sprinkled on top. The vegetables can be fried all together or separately.
Bone Broth
I always have some bone broth around for times like these. Chop some vegetables, whatever you have in your fridge (cauliflower, broccoli, capsicum, corn, carrot), keep it relatively small, but you want the ingredients to be recognisable but can still be picked up in a spoon (often little ones prefer to know what they are eating. Sauté in a pot, add your (preboiled) liquid and bone broth stock or powder. You could use precooked roast chicken or if you have some thin steaks, you could slice them into small pieces and add to the broth. If you need to add some more flavour grate a little ginger and/or garlic into the broth, add a tablespoon of coconut aminos or tamari sauce. If you need a little encouragement, toast some sourdough or pitta bread and they can dip that into the soup. Sometimes I use it as a bargaining chip, half a slice of sourdough to start and then once the bowl is half empty the other half slice.
Now, like most things, kids can be a little put off by something new and different. These are ingredients that work for our family. If you know that no one will touch grated beetroot, maybe don’t put it out the first couple of times and then just add a little bit the next few, the more they see it the more likely they are to try it. We have a little rule that it is ok not to like something, BUT you should always give it a try, even if it starts with one tiny piece of grated beetroot. Accommodate for your family, make sure there are always ingredients that the kids will like and know as well as something new or that ‘isn’t their favourite’.
These are some super easy weeknight dinners. The aim of them is just to look in your fridge and pantry and use what you have. You can substitute the vegetables and protein for what you have. Don’t try and get too fancy or try too many new things all at once, you want it to be quick and easy, BUT you also want your little mouths to eat it too!!
Want some more ideas that are specific to your family? Make an appointment and we can talk about how we can make dinners easier for you!!