What Is Your Family’s Favorite Meal?
Meal times are the perfect way to squeeze in extra family time! Even during busy weeknights, my daughter and I try to make a point of sitting down for dinner–even if it’s just something quick, like salad. Cooking isn’t the only way to bond. Planning and buying the ingredients is a great way to build memories while teaching life skills to your kiddos!Meal Planning and Prepping with Kids
My daughter and I both plan the grocery list out (to an extent). She tells me what she is in the mood for meal-wise for the week, we compromise on certain things, and I teach her how to shop for bargains and work within a budget as we plan our weekly menu. I try to keep the weekly menu sort of loose with room for us to shift things around if plans change. One of my tricks is to buy interchangeable ingredients, and base meals around them, i.e. if we are making tacos one night, we might make taco soup or enchiladas another night. She also loves helping out at the grocery store, as well as with the basic meal prepping that I do every weekend in order to make the actual cooking during our busy week easier. She assists me in cleaning and chopping veggies, as well as preparing any other ingredients that can be prepped ahead of time.Making Time to Cook During the Week
One of the keys for us here is organization and flexibility. I figure out which meals we can make quickly, and reserve those for the hectic nights. This saves the more in depth cooking for nights without after school activities. On busy nights, we either heat up a frozen meal, or use the crock pot or instant pot. Week nights are usually consumed by homework, and preparing for the next school day. We try to stay efficient by combining homework with our cooking time. I can easily quiz her on vocabulary or help her practice math facts as we take turns stirring and chopping. As my daughter grows older I have found that we have some of our best conversations in the kitchen. There is just something cozy and safe about that environment, and talking about our day while we work together to prepare our meal.How Favorite Meals Become Part of a Family
Our favorite meals have become an important family tradition–but I have found that it’s not the meals themselves (even though they are delicious!) but the love, and memories involved with the dinners that make them winners. Hands down, our two favorite family meals are DIY Taco Night, and Breakfast For Dinner Picnic. DIY Taco Night is special to us. It’s a culmination of each of our favorite ways of serving up tacos, only it’s set up in a taco bar style, so that we can build each taco ourselves. This allows us to discuss ingredients, and try each other’s favorites. It inspires us to constantly try new ingredients, and gives the whole meal a restaurant feel. Dinner is way more fun when it’s an event! I think that’s why we love Breakfast For Dinner Picnic. This tradition began when I was a newly single mother and money was tight. Breakfast food items are generally cheaper, while still being healthy and filling. It was our go-to meal 1-2 nights a week. To “dress it up” a bit for my then 5-year-old, I laid a blanket on the ground, and set it up as an indoor picnic. The thing I love most about this meal is the reminder to be thankful for what you have. We can turn difficult situations into a positive experience. To my daughter, it was a magical excuse for eating breakfast at night (that we still do once in a while).Playing Motherhood Free Online Summit for Moms: Speaker April Woods
Depending on where you leave, summer break is already upon you (or about to be). I can’t think of a more perfect time to stock up on yummy recipes for the whole family. Register now for the Playing Motherhood Online Summit for Moms and be sure to check out April Woods of Mama Love Food, for tons of yummy food ideas for the whole family!April Woods
Mama Loves Food
Hungry Hungry Kiddos: Master the Game of Feeding the Family
April is a mom of five, foodie fanatic, and travel junkie. (She’s an okay-ish wife). April has been sharing easy recipes and exciting adventures at Mama Loves Food since 2008, and cooking live on Facebook every week since 2014! Be sure to keep an eye out for her new cooking system Dinner Hero – perfect for anyone who hates meal planning!
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