KId friendly recipes

need something else to make for these boogers than nuggets and mac n cheese.

do you have any recipes that are a hit at home?

please share? please?

Re: KId friendly recipes

My kiddles love:

Turkey Stuffed Peppers - it doesn't SOUND kid friendly.. but it's ground meat, cheese, tomato sauce and rice.. what's not to like? The peppers are just a nice little shell and they think it looks cool so they are willing to eat it.

Cheeseburger sliders. They love mini anything. You can use Wonder Bread Dinner Rolls (from the bread aisle) - toast them and make little burgers. If you want it to be healthier you can use ground turkey or chicken and shred some veggies in. We have also mashed some black beans and put them in the meat mixture as well.

Tacos and burritos are always winners around here. It may be the 'build your own element' that makes them think they have more choice!

Breakfast for dinner is always fun. Breakfast pizza is by FAR their favorite. Easiest would be to use a Boboli thin crust (but you can use your own dough or dough from your favorite pizzeria if you'd like and pre-bake). Top it with scrambled eggs (a little undercooked), cooked and sliced breakfast sausage, and cooked bacon - torn in pieces and some shredded cheese. Put it in the oven until the cheese melts and cut up into wedges. We serve with fruit salad and orange 'Julius' drinks.

THEY LOOOOVE pasta with peas. It's just pasta with chick peas and red sauce!

Sometimes we just do 'themes' and that way they are more open to whatever I give them. We'll have picnics on blankets in front of the fireplace with sandwiches, pickles, chips and fruit. We've eaten outside on the deck fully dressed and coated up in the winter on clear nights - and have BBQ so we can pretend it's summer! Sometimes we'll read about a place and then look up the foods they like/eat and how they dress and have a night based on that. Or.. we surprise them with a 'twist' on something. Like.. if we are talking about Egypt we do pyramid (ish) shaped meatballs with brown gravy. Or I'll make fusilli instead of the usual spaghetti - things to throw them a curve once in a while, ya know?

Re: KId friendly recipes

My kids are all different - DD is a very adventurous eater, DS #1 is a good eater, nothing exotic but will eat many kinds of food, DS #2 is picky. They all love:

Twice baked potatoes:

Cook the potatoes in the microwave till soft, refrigerate until cooled, slice in half longways. Scoop out the middles and mash insides with small amount of melted butter & milk (1 T each for 5 potatoes), salt pepper & shredded cheddar (to taste, I don't measure), Fill the potato halves and then top with a little more shredded cheddar. Bake in oven until melted. Last time I had scallions and threw some of those on. They eat the skins and everything which is great for their fiber intake too. You can use any cheese really, sometimes I do american or muenster if I don't have cheddar.

Any veggie:

Cut up and microwave fresh veggie al dente, firmer than usual consistency when you serve.
In saute pan, put small amt olive oil, butter & garlic. Low heat so the garlic doesnt burn. When hot add veggie & saute until cooked. I do it all the time with broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, spinach and they love it. You don't have to use too much of either the oil or the butter (ie, 2T oo & 1 T butter - do less butter but it adds some extra flavor vs just oo). My little stinker still turns his nose up but the other 2 love it, my DS #1 is not a big veggie fan but he will always ask for seconds.

Turkey burgers:

They can be awful if not seasoned right but I buy the McCormick Hamburger seasoning and everyone loves them. I could never make a beef burger again and they are fine with it.

Brown rice side dish:

Instead of using water, I cook the rice in chicken broth and add some butter, S&P and parmesan cheese when cooked. Again, great for fiber intake to keep them regular.

Re: KId friendly recipes

We make a lot of soups...broccoli and cheese, baked potato, french onion...

I do turkey meatballs (with red sauce or with teriyaki). Sometimes if I am in a bind, I just buy a bag of them!

We do a chicken stir-fry that my girls like, especially when they get to pick the veggies...baby corn are a big hit!

We make pizza once a week and do a bunch of different toppings...we use pizza dough, but they also like it on english muffins or bagel thins.

Re: KId friendly recipes

I get a lot of recipes from www.weelicious.com

Many are made from scratch but I bulk cook when I can and freeze the rest.

Re: KId friendly recipes

Just throwing one thing out there that I do with my 5 year old that she LOVES....
Meatloaf Cupcakes

I make turkey meatloaf in mini muffin pans and then put the mashed potatoes in a small sandwich bag and cut a small piece of the corner to make a piping bag.
I let her pipe the mashed potatoes on top of the meatloaf cupcake and then she decorates with peas, carrots and corn (or whatever other veggies I happen to make)
It makes dinner interactive and she gets to 'play' with her food.

I'll also make mashed sweet potatoes so she can have 2 different 'cupcakes' for dinner.
Most people have a hard time getting kids to eat their veggies...I have a hard time getting DD to eat meat...but this worked really well....


Taco night is always a big hit...I just use turkey or ground chicken in place of beef.....

Message edited 1/12/2011 9:23:10 PM.

Re: KId friendly recipes

Tex Mex! I was checking in on my kids at daycare one day on the camera and saw them both shoveling lunch in their mouths. I had to ask to cook what he had made that day that they were so loving! Tex Mex. Brown ground beef with taco seasoning. Combine with a can of corn and elbow pasta put in a casserol dish and top with schredded cheese. Put in oven to warm and melt cheese. They love it!

Re: KId friendly recipes

Re: KId friendly recipes

Re: KId friendly recipes

wow! your kids are sooo good!


mine are so bad! that won't eat anything that you mention.

i am going to have to force feed them good food.

Re: KId friendly recipes

Try the Sneaky Chef by Missy Chase Lapine....
She has alot of great ways to sneak healthy foods into the things that kids like to eat...
especially those kids that are reluctant to eat veggies...

She has a recipe for sneaking veggies into mac and cheese that you might find interesting and helpful

ETA-- I took the name off my book but here is the site with a few of the recipes
http://www.thesneakychef.com/free_sneaky_chef_recipes.php

Message edited 1/15/2011 10:45:42 AM.