Quick and Easy Meals Your kids can cook
This summer have a file box of easy meals your kids can cook.
We all want our children to become independent. Learning to cook is a big step towards that independepence.
I tried to put these tasty, but easy meals children of varying ages can cook in order of difficulty rather than by age. Age is subjective to experience.
In this day and age of everyone has a dietary need, I did not worry about it. My worry was, could most kids cook it and would most kids eat it?
Bon Appetit!
First Level: Requires no stove or oven, some require a microwave or toaster oven and knife.
Smorgasbord: My grandma made this whenever we came to visit for the first meal. She said she was not sure when we would arrive and she did not want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen preparing the meal or cleaning up afterwards. She just wanted to enjoy us. She went to the deli and got three different meats and cheeses. Then she rolled them up artfully and displayed them with pickles and olives. We also had crackers and rolls. It was a simple, light and tasty meal.
Mediterranean Bliss: I was at a swanky restaurant for lunch and I ordered the Mediterranean lunch. It was a bowl of hummus, roasted red peppers, a variety of olives and peppers. It also came with that really soft pita bread to scoop it all up with. Divine!
Cucumber and Tomato Sandwiches: I am not a vegetarian and these were a summer favorite of mine. The key is to find veggies out of a garden. Also, if you can get really great bread this sandwich goes “up a notch.” Smear on pice of bread with cream cheese and then sprinkle lightly with Italian salad dressing DRY seasoning mix.
Tuna Melts: I had forgotten about these until my friend from the past posted on Facebook about them. We made them often after school. Super easy: mix up a can of tuna with some mayonnaise. Then take your bread and on one slice put butter, on the other side sliced cheese, we use cheddar. Toast the bread just until the cheddar melts. Then put the tuna on the sandwich, hearty, filling and really tasty.
Bean Burritos: I think tortillas need to be a staple; anything can be rolled up into them. A can of refried beans and some cheese and you have a great bean burrito (obviously throw it in the microwave to heat it up).
You can do many add-ones for additional flavor: enchilada sauce to the beans before you put in tortillas for a little “spice” and flavor.
If you have cooked rice on hand, throw it in.
Hamburger and chicken also taste great in the burrito.
Chicken Caesar Wrap: The sacred tortilla strikes again. A local restaurant came to our summer camp and taught the children how to make these. It was fun to see the children become involved and LOVE their lunch when just minutes before they were complaining because there is spinach in it. Tortilla, pre-cooked chicken shredded or cubed (rotisserie is great for this), Caesar Dressing (Ranch will work as well) and spinach. Roll it all up! You can add Parmesan cheese or cranberries for added flavor.
Next Level: requires a stove or oven or knife and some require work with raw meat.
Chicken Salad: I live on this. It is easy and yummy. I don’t have exact measurements; I wing it. These are the approximate instructions for one person. 1/4 choked chicken breast cut up in small pieces, 1 tsp chopped cashews, 1 1/2 green onions finely chopped, 1 TBSP dried cranberries finely chopped, 1 rounded tsp. mayonnaise and a small squirt of Dijon mustard.
Mix it all up, if it is not “wet” enough, add more mayo.
Great on crackers. I use the Milton’s gluten free and it is a great lunch or light dinner.
Meatball Subs: Easy. The hardest part of this recipe is remembering to start early. It is a crockpot recipe. Throw pre-made frozen meatballs in a crockpot with pre-made spaghetti sauce. Cook on low for (about) 4 hours. When done, serve over heated and buttered hoagie rolls. Top with provolone cheese.
*Bonus: use the extras for spaghetti with meatballs. Different dinner, same ingredients!
Taco in a bag: my favorite baseball field food. Heat up a can of chili (you choose: with meat, without, with both meat and beans, it does not matter). Buy individual size bags of Frito® Corn Chips. Open your chips, pour in some chili and add your favorite taco toppings. Sour cream, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce-the sky is the limit. This travels well.
Pizza: it seems every child loves pizza. There are a ton of ways to make pizza. I chose a fun recipe here. that uses crescent rolls simply because I am not going to include “pigs in a blanket” in these meals. Click here for that recipe:
I also found a pizza recipe that is very simple and sounds tasty enough that I would be tempted and I do not care for pizza. This one seems much easier to fix than any of the other pizza recipes I have found: French Bread Pesto Chicken Pizza, This is almost gourmet and your child can do it all, I might get a rotisserie chicken to make it even easier.
Tater Tot Casserole: I originate from the Midwest. Tater tot casserole, if you have never heard of it, is really about 25 different casseroles. We can find anything in our pantry, throw it on frozen tater tot’s, toss it in the oven and a yummy (and cheap) dinner is served.
Here is a link to one that is fairly “normal.” (Pictured above).
Kabobs: The hardest part about kabobs, in my opinion, is the time spent washing and chopping everything. I love grilled veggie kabobs that then get turned into a grilled veggie salad. Cut up your favorite veggies, for me, onion, mushrooms, and bell peppers, both red and green. Then, they key to a great kabob, the marinade. This is the one I used for veggies. Then skewer them.
It is a very tasty meal, which can also be served on a bed of rice. You can add tri-tip, chicken or shrimp. I would find a great marinade for these as well.
If you have never had grilled pineapple, give it a try, it is phenomena-balls.
Final 3 require more skills and raw meat.
Texas Rice : when I first saw this, I really thought it would be awful. The reviews do say it is a little bland, so if your family likes a lot of flavor, read the reviews and add a few seasonings. We made it and liked it better the next day wrapped in a tortilla. It is easy to fix and it is hearty. I added Rotel for the tomatoes. I strongly recommend you do NOT forget the bacon.
Home-made Chicken Nuggets: Who doesn’t love chicken nuggets? We all just want to know what is in them and we don’t want to pay a ton of money. So, home-made it is.
My boys loved chicken nugget night, of course this night was also mashed potato and gravy night. Chicken breasts cut in half LONG ways. This is my super secret, super economical tip: do this with your chicken from here on out. I had two boys who ate everything, seemingly in one sitting. Yet even they never realized that instead of getting 1/2 a chicken breast they were really getting 1/4 – to 1/3 depending on how well I cut the breast in half. It only LOOKED like a 1/2 a breast.
Then cut those “breasts” in nuggets size bits. Next, make your coating. I like bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley and pepper; we are not much of a salt family.
Dip the breasts in the coating and bake at 350° for @ 20 minutes.
If you like really battered nuggets, find a different coating recipe.
My secret pleasure: Loaded Tater Tots: “Tater Tots again?” You say. I know, but just like the tortillas, these little babies can make an easy meal on a friendly budget.
The difficult part of this meal, other than not eating them every night and gaining a ton of weight, is cooking the bacon.
I use turkey bacon and have found there is a “trick.” Cut it into bits before you fry it. Add a little oil to the pan, then put the bacon in. Bacon just does not taste right it it is not “crispy.” The oil causes the bacon to get nice and brown and crispy.
Bake your tots.
Put on plates. Sprinkle with cheese. Add bacon bits and chopped green onion. Pop in the microwave to melt it all.
Dip in ranch. Seriously, I am drooling right now.
When our chickadees fly from the nest, we want them to be able to fend for themselves. This includes feeding themselves. If they are helping you with meals as they grow, they will learn easy and quick meals they can cook on their own and BONUS they will be alleviating you of some of your work and worry.
Let me know if your family liked any of these and please tell me of any others your child fix at home.
“Fish are friends, not food” ~ Bruce in “Finding Nemo”