Please inspire me with healthy dinner ideas the whole family will enjoy

[Anonymous]

Doing my best, but also don’t want my family to feel like they’re on a diet, too. Thank you for suggestions!

[Anonymous]

I've posted this before -- it's become a regular in our summer rotation. Easy, bright, yummy.

https://healthyishfoods.com/mahi-mahi-with-lemon-butter-and-tomatoes/

[Anonymous]

We've been doing a lot of salads with a protein on top -- beef, salmon, chicken. Serve with bread and it's very filling.

[Anonymous]

It helps to know what you all like.
One of our favs is salmon marinated in pesto then baked or broiled. Serve with rice and whatever veggies you all like..

[Anonymous]

Look at skinnytaste.com

I have loved almost everything I've made from there.

[Anonymous]

So we make a lot of adjustments to this approach, but it's a great rubric to use as a jumping off point to healthy eating that will satisfy everyone and can accommodate picky eaters too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzWb_P4lYgA

Like I said, this is just a jumping off point and our components usually look a lot different from that. Instead of chicken and fish, we'll usually do chicken plus one or two vegetarian options since one of our kids doesn't eat meat and we don't mind going meatless a couple nights a week if we can still make it satisfying. We incorporate beans and lentils into our system for this reason, because they round out a lot of vegetarian meals and also add some heartiness generally.

But this winds up being such an easy away to eat pretty healthfully while also incorporating elements that people really like. Using lots of sauces and dressings is great because you can have lighter and heavier options for different family members, plus we'll do homemade salsa and a green goddess that are always available and incorporate more veggies/fruits. Also, in addition to his suggestions for salads/grain bowls/entrees/tacos, we will often throw some of the components on a big tortilla with some cheese and make quesadillas for the kids (and sometimes also for us) which is an easy way to make the same components extremely kid friendly.

[Anonymous]

We have one picky eater. I've learned to not accommodate him. Sorry, but it's hard enough making menus and decisions, I don't need to double my load. Instead, I'll make sure there's one thing he can eat (usually a vegetable) and he'll have a yogurt or quesadilla as his main.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have one picky eater. I've learned to not accommodate him. Sorry, but it's hard enough making menus and decisions, I don't need to double my load. Instead, I'll make sure there's one thing he can eat (usually a vegetable) and he'll have a yogurt or quesadilla as his main.

This…isn’t a thread about picky eaters. Why is there an assumption that any time there is a child involved, someone’s going to be picky? I have zero picky eaters and among my friend group, there are only about three picky kids I know of. There may be more, but it’s not obvious enough for anyone outside the household to notice, either with the pickiness or the parents’ accommodation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So we make a lot of adjustments to this approach, but it's a great rubric to use as a jumping off point to healthy eating that will satisfy everyone and can accommodate picky eaters too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzWb_P4lYgA

Like I said, this is just a jumping off point and our components usually look a lot different from that. Instead of chicken and fish, we'll usually do chicken plus one or two vegetarian options since one of our kids doesn't eat meat and we don't mind going meatless a couple nights a week if we can still make it satisfying. We incorporate beans and lentils into our system for this reason, because they round out a lot of vegetarian meals and also add some heartiness generally.

But this winds up being such an easy away to eat pretty healthfully while also incorporating elements that people really like. Using lots of sauces and dressings is great because you can have lighter and heavier options for different family members, plus we'll do homemade salsa and a green goddess that are always available and incorporate more veggies/fruits. Also, in addition to his suggestions for salads/grain bowls/entrees/tacos, we will often throw some of the components on a big tortilla with some cheese and make quesadillas for the kids (and sometimes also for us) which is an easy way to make the same components extremely kid friendly.

Interesting concept. Anyone else have an issue with the temp of his chicken breasts? I have always heard cook chicken to 165, he says 150...

Also, salmon is so easy to cook fresh. I'd cook fish on the night you plan to eat it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have one picky eater. I've learned to not accommodate him. Sorry, but it's hard enough making menus and decisions, I don't need to double my load. Instead, I'll make sure there's one thing he can eat (usually a vegetable) and he'll have a yogurt or quesadilla as his main.

This…isn’t a thread about picky eaters. Why is there an assumption that any time there is a child involved, someone’s going to be picky? I have zero picky eaters and among my friend group, there are only about three picky kids I know of. There may be more, but it’s not obvious enough for anyone outside the household to notice, either with the pickiness or the parents’ accommodation.

Congratulations to you. However, this is a thread about dinners that the "whole family" will enjoy. To me, that sounds like accommodating different tastes (not necessarily picky, but different nonetheless). My point is that you don't need to accommodate different tastes all the time. Lighten your load. Cook what you like. Makes the task a whole lot more enjoyable.

[Anonymous]

This was a hit in our house: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/seriously-the-best-healthy-turkey-chili/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have one picky eater. I've learned to not accommodate him. Sorry, but it's hard enough making menus and decisions, I don't need to double my load. Instead, I'll make sure there's one thing he can eat (usually a vegetable) and he'll have a yogurt or quesadilla as his main.

This…isn’t a thread about picky eaters. Why is there an assumption that any time there is a child involved, someone’s going to be picky? I have zero picky eaters and among my friend group, there are only about three picky kids I know of. There may be more, but it’s not obvious enough for anyone outside the household to notice, either with the pickiness or the parents’ accommodation.

Congratulations to you. However, this is a thread about dinners that the "whole family" will enjoy. To me, that sounds like accommodating different tastes (not necessarily picky, but different nonetheless). My point is that you don't need to accommodate different tastes all the time. Lighten your load. Cook what you like. Makes the task a whole lot more enjoyable.

So anyway, OP did not give any no-gos or favorites or restrictions, which must mean feel free to give ideas of recipes your whole family likes. Do you have any ideas of meals that your family likes? Sorry y’all have to make a quesadilla every night. Sounds tedious.

[Anonymous]

I recommend Pinch of Yum for meals that are healthy and hearty but not “lite” and therefore great for families with varying dietary needs. The coconut curry salmon is so, so good. https://pinchofyum.com/coconut-curry-salmon

I recommend browsing her site and pinning a few recipes that interest you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So we make a lot of adjustments to this approach, but it's a great rubric to use as a jumping off point to healthy eating that will satisfy everyone and can accommodate picky eaters too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzWb_P4lYgA

Like I said, this is just a jumping off point and our components usually look a lot different from that. Instead of chicken and fish, we'll usually do chicken plus one or two vegetarian options since one of our kids doesn't eat meat and we don't mind going meatless a couple nights a week if we can still make it satisfying. We incorporate beans and lentils into our system for this reason, because they round out a lot of vegetarian meals and also add some heartiness generally.

But this winds up being such an easy away to eat pretty healthfully while also incorporating elements that people really like. Using lots of sauces and dressings is great because you can have lighter and heavier options for different family members, plus we'll do homemade salsa and a green goddess that are always available and incorporate more veggies/fruits. Also, in addition to his suggestions for salads/grain bowls/entrees/tacos, we will often throw some of the components on a big tortilla with some cheese and make quesadillas for the kids (and sometimes also for us) which is an easy way to make the same components extremely kid friendly.

Interesting concept. Anyone else have an issue with the temp of his chicken breasts? I have always heard cook chicken to 165, he says 150...

Also, salmon is so easy to cook fresh. I'd cook fish on the night you plan to eat it.

Dp. I like chicken at 160 personally, and my favorite seafood to have cooked on hand is boiled and peeled shrimp because peeling takes forever…..

But I just watched this video and it’s really similar to a weekly cook up I’ve been doing that I adapted from an old paleo cook book (well fed weeknights). I just add grains and beans to mix because that’s what I do now. I like having hard boiled eggs on hand, as well as boiled russet potatoes that I turn into oven fries, hash browns, or what have you. I also like having shredded and drained zucchini, and bags of cauliflower rice in the freezer to add to my grain bowls.

Really nice to have stuff you can “finish” however you like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've posted this before -- it's become a regular in our summer rotation. Easy, bright, yummy.

https://healthyishfoods.com/mahi-mahi-with-lemon-butter-and-tomatoes/

DP—thanks for this link, it looks good and simple. My “picky eater” would be fine with it too!