Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sure, I'd love to. Will you come over to my house and teach me how to cook?

They do eat real food - quite a bit. Just not on rushed week nights.

I am a great mom and a good person in many, many respects. But I never learned how to cook and I have no idea where to start, without spending a lot of time and effort making things that my kids then will not eat.

I'm looking for baby steps, here.

Sorry - this is OP, obviously. Having a rough night. Should have known better than to post here.

That poster was nasty. Wish I could come to your house and teach you to cook, I too am a busy working mom and would love to make a career out of helping moms like yourself. I think I have a pretty good system. My kids are the same age as yours as well and healthy eating is sooo important, so I really do make the time and plan. Here are basics I do:
-LARGE pot of lentils on Sunday nights. I often season with one link of sausage (andulille or chorizo). I make a pot of brown rice and we munch on this all week.
-LARGE pot pf Chili made with very lean grass fed beef and lots of beans. For a quick meal for the kids, I'll throw the chili over pasta (DH and I avoid the white carbs ourselves and just eat the chili)
-Large pot of split pea soup, often seasoned with ham hock. For t he kids I serve it with crusty bread.
-Home made pizza dough freezes up VERY well. I always have a few in my freezer and do think crust pizza at least 2xs a month. Pizza can be very healthy if you put the right toppings on it.
-In a pinch I always have the panko breaded BAKED tilapia fillets from Costo. Better alternative to fish stix
-For a pinch, I always have in the freezer baked sweet potato fries.
-Broccoli is my best friend.
-I usually grill a couple of marinated chicken breasts once a week and have in the fridge to put on salads or quesadillas in WW tortillas for thethe kids. I marinate the chicken in advance and put in the freezer in 2 breast packs, unthaw and grill when ready.

This is great advice.

FWIW, although I'm not a big crockpot fan generally, I do make chili in the crockpot as well as pulled BBQ pork. Makes dinnertime much easier - for the chili I shred monterey jack cheese to sprinkle and make cornbread; for the pulled pork I use a (pre-made) salad as a side and serve it on toasted buns. Add sweet potato fries (frozen) if you need a bit more to make it a meal.

Another idea: meatloaf in muffin tins. You can pre-make the night before and leave the tin, covered w/saran wrap, in the fridge. They bake up quickly; serve with steamed frozen veggies & mashed potatoes (made while the meatloaf is baking).

Op, I love this stuff:
http://www.unclebens.com/Product/Detail?p_id=120

Also 2 DCs and two working parents: Definitely get a grill if you can. It opens up possibilities such as grilled chicken, burgers (beef, turkey, veggie patties, vegetables). I also like to make turkey meatloaf/steam broccoli/coucous. If i make sloppy joe (ground turkey, shredded carrots, tablespoon brown sugar, tablespoon of worstcheshire sauce (can't spell), little diced onion, canned organic tomato sauce), then I turn the left overs into tacos by simply adding taco seasoning the next day. I also like browned 1lb ground turkey/meat with a little onion, cook spanish rice (or plain) and then dump it in pan with turkey, can of drained black beans and serve in flour tortilla with cheese or plain. Can last you two days. I try to make something new once a month on the weekend to see if i can incorporate it into the mix of meals. It can get boring but order out on Wednesday or Thursday and you are done for the work days.

Our M-F meals need to be 30 minutes from walking in the front door to sitting down to eat, so I totally get where you are coming from. It really helps if your spouse can help. And indulge in some time saving things, like veggies that are already cleaned and trimmed. Might be more expensive, but sometimes your sanity is worth it.

Our default meal is grilled protein (chicken, beef, pork, seafood) plus vegetable (roasted or microwaved). It gets boring, but it is relatively healthy. You can mix it up a bit with different marinades or the occasional BBQ sauce. Different types of sausage, etc.

Shrimp cook really quickly. If you can get the peeled raw shrimp, defrost for a few minutes in the sink while you saute some veggies, toss in the shrimp, serve with pasta or creamed spinach. Top with fresh parmesan. Yum.

Some crock pot items that are a big hit with my picky 7 yr old:

Pulled BBQ chicken (~2 lbs boneless, skinless thighs, 1 bottle BBQ sauce, ~8 hrs on low)

Pot roast (carrots and potatoes, roast, 1 pkg lipton onion soup mix, wrap in foil, 8 hrs on low)

Split pea soup (immersion blender is key to making this easy and smooth)

As for introducing new foods, make sure that is at least one thing that your kids like (such as carrot sticks, or grape tomatoes & mozz bites) so they don't go to bed hungry, and ask that they try a bite of everything. And don't make a big deal out of it. I also find it helps to tell them what goes into the "new" food, especially if it has ingredients that she likes as stand alone items.

Anonymous wrote:Op here. In a better frame of mind and thank you for the many helpful responses.

PP inspired a new/related question: when trying to get your kids to try new foods, how do you handle it? They have to eat one bite and then just fill up on sides? Let them have something else? I worry in particular about my 6 yr old getting enough protein. If she disdains the main course, what do I do?

new poster, I let my kids starve. If they don't eat (within reason) what is on the plate, assuming I'm not giving them something crazy like Chicken Vindaloo, then they are welcome to excuse themselves, but I'll put the plate in the fridge and pull it out when the invariably ask for a PB&J sandwich. My son is skinny, go figure.

I always think, WHAT IF WE DID NOT LIVE IN A CULTURE OF GLUTTONY AND EXCESS? What do children in other cultures without mothers who are short order cooks do? Do they starve? No. Does anyone think Michelle Duggar has a customized menu for her 45 children? No way, eat or be hungry. I'm old school like that.

Anonymous wrote:Sure, I'd love to. Will you come over to my house and teach me how to cook?

They do eat real food - quite a bit. Just not on rushed week nights.

I am a great mom and a good person in many, many respects. But I never learned how to cook and I have no idea where to start, without spending a lot of time and effort making things that my kids then will not eat.

I'm looking for baby steps, here.

Sorry - this is OP, obviously. Having a rough night. Should have known better than to post here.

That poster was nasty. Wish I could come to your house and teach you to cook, I too am a busy working mom and would love to make a career out of helping moms like yourself. I think I have a pretty good system. My kids are the same age as yours as well and healthy eating is sooo important, so I really do make the time and plan. Here are basics I do:
-LARGE pot of lentils on Sunday nights. I often season with one link of sausage (andulille or chorizo). I make a pot of brown rice and we munch on this all week.
-LARGE pot pf Chili made with very lean grass fed beef and lots of beans. For a quick meal for the kids, I'll throw the chili over pasta (DH and I avoid the white carbs ourselves and just eat the chili)
-Large pot of split pea soup, often seasoned with ham hock. For t he kids I serve it with crusty bread.
-Home made pizza dough freezes up VERY well. I always have a few in my freezer and do think crust pizza at least 2xs a month. Pizza can be very healthy if you put the right toppings on it.
-In a pinch I always have the panko breaded BAKED tilapia fillets from Costo. Better alternative to fish stix
-For a pinch, I always have in the freezer baked sweet potato fries.
-Broccoli is my best friend.
-I usually grill a couple of marinated chicken breasts once a week and have in the fridge to put on salads or quesadillas in WW tortillas for thethe kids. I marinate the chicken in advance and put in the freezer in 2 breast packs, unthaw and grill when ready.

OP asked about introducing new foods. We have a one bite rule - DS has to take a real bite of everything on his plate, but we don't push it beyond that. And since we always serve something he'll eat as well (plain rice, pasta, or potatoes, or a meat/protein) he always has the option of eating enough.

Some things he has been forced to eat one bite of he'll now eat freely (I make carrot apple pancakes he thought were weird but now likes), but really it is still a struggle with most foods outside of his small list of "likes." So we keep at it, offering again and again and again...

Op, I like everyday food on pbs:
http://www.pbs.org/everydayfood/

I would record a few episodes and maybe even watch them with your older kid. Also maybe take a mother/kid cooking class and you can learn together. It may help her be more open to trying new things too. Search this forum for class ideas; someone posted something recently.

Aim to cook a meal at least three times a week once you have a few recipes in your repertoire. Some things can be prepped or cooked the day b/f.

Op here. In a better frame of mind and thank you for the many helpful responses.

PP inspired a new/related question: when trying to get your kids to try new foods, how do you handle it? They have to eat one bite and then just fill up on sides? Let them have something else? I worry in particular about my 6 yr old getting enough protein. If she disdains the main course, what do I do?

I make chicken parmesan - you can bred the chicken quickly the might before, then just throw it in bass pyrex square dish with tomato sauce and mozzarella - we call it pizza chicken - really yummy with spaghetti squash.

Sausage are great - we make that regularly with a starch and veggie like rice and broccolli.

FIsh tacos - in a tortilla with guac and whatever fixings you like.
Breakfast for dinner is always great for a quick meal
Quesadillas
If your kids like meat - get skirt steak at whole foods. It is think and cooks up in a grill in minutes.


Remember - new foods are hard but keep making them and putting it on their plate....and eventually they WILL like it.
My 7 year old is a great eater - but I have to try things over and OVER again sometimes before he will like them.
He either eats it or he doesn't and I don't stress

I have a picky eater, too, OP. He doesn't like sauces or things mixed together, and he very underweight so the ped wants us to be sure he eats. We are a 2 WOH family, too. Here is what we do:

I cook, so I hand off DC duties to husband 1/2 hour before dinner needs to be ready.

I grab a meat or protein, a carb, and a veggie. Usual suspects are sausage, ground beef, chicken thighs, eggs, tofu; rice, pasta, potatoes; broccoli, kale, cabbage, peas.

Choose a "style" - Asian stir fry, typical american, Italian. This determines the cooking method and the kinds of seasonings.

If you chose chicken thighs and broccoli, you can stir fry those with some stir fry sauce for the adults and plain jane for the kids. Throw on top of rice or noodles.

Or, go "Italian" and pan fry the chicken (cut in chunks), microwave the broccoli, and boil some pasta and toss it together with olive oil and parmesean for the adults, serve plain for picky kids.

Or flip the chicken out and instead scramble two eggs into the stir fry pan with the broccoli and serve with rice. For picky kids you can have veg/egg/rice separate.

If you have 45 minutes you can pan fry any kind of meat, steam or stir fry any kind of veg, and do these roast potatoes which my kid adores: cut up potatoes into 1/2 inch chuncks, or you can buy cut up potatoes in a bag. Toss with couple teaspoons of olive oil and spread on baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes, stiring them once.

I've found this method - grab a protein, a carb, a veg - works pretty well for us. Has resulting in some odd combos - stir fried ground beef? - but hey, it was dinner.

Here are some things we (mostly ME) do for our picky 7yo that has an opinion about everything when I'm in a jam. I do know how to cook and I have more time than I know alot of families do but sometimes you get stuck and it all comes down to the wire with soccer or dance and tough schedules.

Tacos - use premade tortilla shells, cook turkey hamburger meat, with cheese ... hubs and i add other stuff including salsa and whatnot but she just likes them plain.

Sometimes when I buy a rotisserie chicken I get 2 (fridays at giant - 2 for 10.00!) and we eat one and the other i pick all the meat off so you have shredded meat to use in any recipe possible. It keeps for a few days so generally on Monday or Tuesday you can use it in a casserole or in a stir fry or something. Or they can just eat the shredded chicken plain.

You can buy a box of brown rice that comes in premeasured bags and you just boil it for about 5 minutes in a pot on the stove. Then you could make a mini stir fry with canned or steam in the bag veggies. DC shys away from "stir fry" so she gets all the components not mixed together ... we do a lot of veggies fresh but I could care less about corn and broccoli so those things come in those steam fresh bags and I am totally siked about it.

I make our own french fries by cutting potatoes into slices and putting on a pan with olive oil and salt and pepper. I've also taken a packet of the dry ranch dressing or french onion soup mix and cut up a bunch of mini red potatoes into little cubes. Put both those things with a little olive oil in a ziploc bag and shake it up. Then put in a pyrex and toss in the oven at 350 for about 45 minutes (this is good to do right when you get home, then do other things around the house - get kids settled whatever and finish the rest of the meal).

Get a George Foreman grill -- easiest way to cook meat, you just slap in on and close the lid. Saved my friend's marriage (she also can't cook).

I also struggle with this issue, and the comments of the PP who railed against the processed food (without providing any useful suggestions along with his/her criticism) were unhelpful.

One thing I do to balance the processed items (like fish sticks or nuggets) is to set out raw or very plain foods: walnuts or almonds, cheese cubes, carrot sticks. Not everything has to be a prepared item - in fact some of my kids like it better that way. Also when I can I buy thick sliced cold cuts (like ham or turkey) at Whole Foods and they will happily eat that. Finally, I often make a big pot of lentils and rice, and that lasts us for a few days. If I can make black beans from scratch (or use cans if I didn't make the beans in advance), then we'll have that with brown rice, tortillas and cheese.

I'm reading attentively because I'm in the same boat, but here's my latest routine: I prep as much of it as I can the night before, after the kids go to sleep. We're still not eating fancy, but if I throw together a steak or chicken marinade or some turkey burgers the night before (which takes 15 minutes) it only takes 15 minutes to actually cook them when I get home, which is about all I have before all hell breaks loose. I cant imagine you can get chicken nuggets or fish sticks on the table much faster, so if they'll eat meat this is a good way to go.

I'll typically also prep a veggie (like chop up fresh broccoli to steam). I've found that I can make a big batch of rice and freeze it in plastic bags, then nuke it, so I can always add rice to a meal quickly if we need a starch; I also buy sweet potato fries at whole foods.