S/o: if your nanny doesn't cook

[Anonymous]

More realistically for most people:

Breakfast:
To bump up the yogurt/granola, do Full-fat greek yogurt (ideally plain or with just a little honey or something) topped with berries and nuts.

Instead of waffles with pbj, I make pbj oatmeal: cook whatever kind of oatmeal your kids like best, mix in peanut butter and frozen berries.

I also do banana slices with a little dollop of pb on each one (put a spooful of pb in a ziploc, snip one corner and frost it onto the banana slices).

And I would add in eggs of some kind. Scrambled eggs with cheese are a great way to add veggies.

As for pantry staples to assemble simple meals:
Pasta only works if your kids will eat a reasonably healthy sauce on it. If not, the pasta becomes a side dish (carb) vs. entree. Is there a jarred (or homemade and frozen) sauce your kids will eat?

Some of my go-to easy meals:
Lunches I do tend to go with sandwiches. Will your kids eat cold cuts, tuna fish, grilled cheese, or just pbj? Are they eating whole wheat bread at least?
Along with that I tend to do fresh fruit (apples, pears, oranges, grapes) and veggies (carrots, broccoli, cucumber) with a dip (ranch, hummus, guac, even ketchup occasionally) for the veggies.

Dinner:
Quesadillas: pre-cooked chicken or canned beans for protein, frozen corn and butternut squash, shredded cheese and tortillas.

Scrambled eggs and toast works for dinner too.

Veggie soup and grilled cheese or toast with bree or avocado spread.

Homemade "pizza" on something like pita bread

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really don't understand this, how can you be comfortable employing a woman who is not clever or intuitive enough to cook, even at a basic level, to care for your children? Even if you didn't require cooking, knowing that a grown, adult woman can't handle the basic tasks of life would make me move on to find someone a little smarter to watch my children.

Exactly what I was thinking.

[Anonymous]

Lunch should be lunch - not dinner. I give my little ones basically the same thing I would pack them in their lunch boxes when they are older: sandwiches, soup, yogurt fruit and veggies with dip.

No cooking except to warm up soup on occasion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Buttered noodles is NOT a meal. I don't consider any of your breakfast options acceptable either (too much sugar, too little protein, no veg).

To me, every meal has protein, complex carb, fruit, veg, some fat. For a special occasion, a meal might not be as balanced (holidays, celebrations), but otherwise? No way.

The only sugar in breakfast is in the jelly on the waffles and in the fruit. But I agree they aren't perfect.

Would you like to give me some ideas of no-cook meals that meet your requirements? You have some good thoughts.

Breakfast: smoothie made of almond milk, greek yogurt, splash of grapeseed oil, banana, 1-2 other fruits, carrot, 1-2 other veg (like cucumber, zucchini, summer squash, leftover beets or winter squash); whole grain toast on the side, lightly smeared with butter
As long as the vegetables are bland/sweet, they won't take over the flavor. Any fruit works, but citrus can't be refrigerated for later (turns very bitter).

Lunch: Cold salad made of cold quinoa, black olives, chopped cucumbers and tomatoes, diced cold chicken or turkey (cold boiled eggs work too), garnished with mandarin slices and blueberries, very lightly sauced with olive oil and 1.5 teaspoons orange juice (mix in egg yolk if using eggs)
That's one option, but it works. I love things that can be cooked ahead of time, prep only involves peeling/slicing/dicing and then it can sit and marinate. Oh, and it can be assembled on Sunday night and eaten Monday and Wednesday (not after Wednesday).

btw, OP, yes, your breakfast options are full of needless sugar. Cereals are easily absorbed by the body, and most have plenty of added sugars, frozen waffles have added sugars. Yogurt sounds good, but most are flavored, which means added sugars, and granola has tons of fats and sugars added when it is formed into clumps to be baked.

Lol..like most kids would eat that?

I wouldn't eat that and prefer buttered noodles.

I'm the nanny who posted this last April. The first time I make smoothies for the kids, they don't see what goes into it, and I don't tell them until they're done. The next time, they help get things out and they realize that healthy food can be delicious. The lunch I listed is something that I make AFTER kids are used to healthier eating, not as the introduction.

Food doesn't have to be a choice between taste and health. I have a chocolate that I make make which has no added sugar, no gluten, no dairy, tons of protein and complex carbs. The test was taking it to a bunch of men we never eat healthy food, and they all loved it, at least until I told them I made it with quinoa, cocoa powder, nuts, almond milk, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Buttered noodles is NOT a meal. I don't consider any of your breakfast options acceptable either (too much sugar, too little protein, no veg).

To me, every meal has protein, complex carb, fruit, veg, some fat. For a special occasion, a meal might not be as balanced (holidays, celebrations), but otherwise? No way.

The only sugar in breakfast is in the jelly on the waffles and in the fruit. But I agree they aren't perfect.

Would you like to give me some ideas of no-cook meals that meet your requirements? You have some good thoughts.

Breakfast: smoothie made of almond milk, greek yogurt, splash of grapeseed oil, banana, 1-2 other fruits, carrot, 1-2 other veg (like cucumber, zucchini, summer squash, leftover beets or winter squash); whole grain toast on the side, lightly smeared with butter
As long as the vegetables are bland/sweet, they won't take over the flavor. Any fruit works, but citrus can't be refrigerated for later (turns very bitter).

Lunch: Cold salad made of cold quinoa, black olives, chopped cucumbers and tomatoes, diced cold chicken or turkey (cold boiled eggs work too), garnished with mandarin slices and blueberries, very lightly sauced with olive oil and 1.5 teaspoons orange juice (mix in egg yolk if using eggs)
That's one option, but it works. I love things that can be cooked ahead of time, prep only involves peeling/slicing/dicing and then it can sit and marinate. Oh, and it can be assembled on Sunday night and eaten Monday and Wednesday (not after Wednesday).

btw, OP, yes, your breakfast options are full of needless sugar. Cereals are easily absorbed by the body, and most have plenty of added sugars, frozen waffles have added sugars. Yogurt sounds good, but most are flavored, which means added sugars, and granola has tons of fats and sugars added when it is formed into clumps to be baked.

Lol..like most kids would eat that?

I wouldn't eat that and prefer buttered noodles.

I'm the nanny who posted this last April. The first time I make smoothies for the kids, they don't see what goes into it, and I don't tell them until they're done. The next time, they help get things out and they realize that healthy food can be delicious. The lunch I listed is something that I make AFTER kids are used to healthier eating, not as the introduction.

Food doesn't have to be a choice between taste and health. I have a chocolate cake that I make make which has no added sugar, no gluten, no dairy, tons of protein and complex carbs. The test was taking it to a bunch of men we never eat healthy food, and they all loved it, at least until I told them I made it with quinoa, cocoa powder, nuts, almond milk, etc.