:: Feeding your family without a lot of fuss ::
I don't know about you, but my lifestyle doesn't leave a lot of time for meal prep. Seems like dinner time sneaks up on me almost everyday along with the awful question of what to make. I'm not much of a foodie, but in my heart I really do want to prepare something healthy and tasty for my guys.
Over the past five years of parenting I've noticed I developed a bit of a no fuss method to feeding the gang.
- Meal must be easy to prepare, cook, and serve.
- I like to try new things, but I must be able to find everything at one store, recipe should have less than 10 ingredients and must have a photo.
- I make one meal. Eat it, or make your own. [This is a good rule for those preschool years but didn't always work before then.]

I also found a two very helpful resources that help me stick to 1 & 2. (both are available online and in print)
These magazines come about once a month. I scour the pages, and mark recipes that look tasty with a sticky note. And attempt to try one new recipe a month. I also created online accounts at their sites, so I can quickly find a recipe when I can't find the magazine.
Here are a few of our favorites (some of which we eat weekly).
Marvelous Mini Meat-loaves
What tips do you have for feeding your family without a lot of fuss? Have any great fresh summer recipes? I'm ready for a few new menu's for the warm weather.
WIN: Leave a comment on any of this month's Mom Tips and be entered to win an Organic Reusable Tote from Bel-Kai Designs. Comments must be left by 5.30.09 11pm CST. Winner chosen at random and announced on this blog and by twitter.
LOVE the recipes! Can't wait to try them! Thanks so much!
ReplyDeleteAnother recipe website I use a lot is allrecipes.com. I love their Ingredient Search feature. If I've got a couple of items left over and just sitting in my fridge I can find a recipe to use them up. And most recipes have a lot of helpful feedback from other users who have already made it.
ReplyDeleteWhat great tips! Thanks for the list of recipe sites, too. We're still in the toddler/baby years with our kids but I'm trying to plan now to make mealtime less hectic. I've started a notebook to collect all my favorite recipes and I'm organizing them by seasons, holidays, and cuisine. This also gives me a resource to draw from when I plan meals/shopping lists.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite no-fuss recipes come from realsimple.com. They also have a great search feature, and each month the magazine features a series of recipes that are quick and easy to prepare and usually only have a few ingredients. For example, right now they are featuring "the Quickest Chicken Recipes" that take only 5, 10, or 15 minutes to prepare.
I also love Kraft magazine. I usually take their recipes and add canned tomatoes, black beans, corn, asparagus, or other veggies to "spruce" it up. And I have chicken cooked and preportioned in baggies in the freezer for easy casseroles.
ReplyDeleteI find myself grilling cheese sandwiches a lot for the little one. I thought he would be a great, adventurous eater. But we eat so many spicy things that he is not too into our meals. Sigh. Thanks for the tips! I think we will try a new method now!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the recipes. It's nice to know I'm not alone in my lack of dinner planning
ReplyDelete