Recipes for Kids

[akw94]

I am trying to add to my list of ideas for Breakfast, Lunch, Snack and Dinner...that are easy, fairly quick and healthy that kids will like.
Looking forward to new ideas!!

 

[FireGoddess]

Well, I don''t have any kids, but I will check on ideas for you - I thought one of my magazines had some snack ideas for kids. I will double check on that.

One thing I really liked in grade school was ''eggs in a nest''...once I learned it, I wanted to make it for breakfast all the time...and my mother teased me even before I got married that the only thing I''d be able to make DH for breakfast was eggs in a nest. I showed her - I''m a great cook.

Anyway, basically you take a piece of bread , cut a hole out of the middle, and put the frame of bread (and the circle you cut out) in a greased skillet (a pat of butter, margarine, or a spray of Pam is fine). Crack an egg into the hole and let it cook while that side of the bread is toasting. When set, flip it over to toast the other side of bread and seal the egg inside. If the kid likes a soft yolk, s/he can dunk the toasted circle in it. That''s an egg in a ''nest.''

 

[akw94]

That is cute. My son would probably get a kick out of that b/c he does like eggs & toast.
The recipes don''t really have to specific to kids. For me, it''s just the easier the better. My son usually prepares his own breakfast, lunch and sometimes snack (depending on what it is). And i''m always on the lookout for easy, healthy dinner recipes b/c I feel like i''m always eating the same things. I know we don''t eat enough veggies so i''m really trying to find tasty ways to incorporate them.

 

[FireGoddess]

I get the free magazine from Kraft Foods called "Food and Family." It comes every few months and has good quick food ideas. Touts lots of Kraft brands, but you could really use anything that fits the bill. They frequently have cooking ideas and foods for kids. You might check it out.

http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/FoodandFamily/

 

[FireGoddess]

Here's their link to the kids section of their website. Great ideas there. (I just noticed they call my egg in a nest thingy a 'toad in the hole.'

)

http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/ff/kids/

 

[FireGoddess]

And of course Martha''s got something to say on the subject...

http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=learn-cat&id=cat251&navLevel=2&rsc=kidsnav

 

[jorman]

Tortilla Pizzas:

This is a healthy alternative to regular pizza and they cook in 8 minutes.

Flour Tortilla (lard free)
Pizza Sauce
Turkey Pepperoni
Skim Mozzarrella Cheese

Make it just like you would a pizza and bake at 350 for 8 minutes. The edges are crispy and it''s a great snack or meal. You can bake a quatered apple with cinnamon on top for 20 minutes while he eats and have that for dessert.

*Also, Check out my pigs in a blanket recipe on the brunch recipe post. Kids love those and they are fun special treat for weekends or when friends are over. My nephew LOVES them.

 

[jorman]

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Boneless SKinless Chicken Breast
Swiss Cheese Slices
Smoked Ham Sliced Thin
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
Italian Bread Crumbs
toothpicks

Preheat Oven to 350

Beat together egg and milk.

Pour breadcrumbs into a seperate bowl.

Pound the chicken breasts until they are flat.
Lay 1 slice cheese and ham onto chicken and fold. Pin closed with toothpicks.
Dip into egg mixture.
Cover in bread crumbs.
Place onto cookie sheet.
Repeat until all chicken is filled and covered.

Bake for 40 minutes (or until golden brown and chicken is thoroughly cooked)

Serve with steamed brocolli or other favorite veggie.

Enjoy!

 

[Mara]

hehe mac and cheese?

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 4/11/2006 9:30:25 PM
Author: Mara
hehe mac and cheese?

I love mac and cheese..

my kids LOVE grilled cheese with Tomato soup..heathy and super easy..

apples or banana''s with peanut butter

carrots and ranch dip

granola bars

we make pancakes with whole wheat flour, they can''t tell the difference and they can use any extra fiber I can sneak in their diets..

 

[Mara]

i love whole wheat pancakes! you can top them with bananas and syrup, yum!

its so funny how i didnt appreciate grains when i was a kid, i used to hate wheat bread etc but now i love wheat and 7 grain and 9 grain etc and love eating high fiber things etc.

also i love a toasted bagel with Addams peanut butter..crunchy! YUM.

 

[Kaleigh]

Another quick and easy pizza idea

Thomas English muffins, top with pizza sauce and add shredded mozzerella cheese and some veggies if you like. You can top brown them in the toaster oven or bake until bubbly in the oven at 350.

 

[MINE!!]

You can also do there with bagels. We have Bagel pizzas for a Saturday Lunch sometimes. MY kids just like the pepperoni and cheese. but we put on spag. sauce, cheese (American slices work fine too if you have no Mozzerella) and pepperoni. We cook them at 350 for about 10 min or so.. or at least till the cheese bubbles... They are a great, quick lunch.. cannot say that it is 100% the healthiest though.. Oh well.. they are fun.

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 4/11/2006 11:08:02 PM
Author: kaleigh
Another quick and easy pizza idea


Thomas English muffins, top with pizza sauce and add shredded mozzerella cheese and some veggies if you like. You can top brown them in the toaster oven or bake until bubbly in the oven at 350.

My mom made these every sunday night for dinner when I was growing up. she added fries and onion ring too

.

I made them a couple of weeks ago and my kids loved them. Thomas makes a light wheat english muffin that has like 8 grams of fiber and smothered in pizza sauce and cheese, my kids gobbled them right up. they actually have never had white bread so they don't know what they are missing

 

[akw94]

I like the pizza idea. I have seen that on some website but always forget about it. I''m starting to make a chart so that when he can''t think of anything, he has a place to pick and choose ideas. That way he won''t always come to me saying there''s nothing to eat. How annoying!
Actually, he loves mac & cheese, although hasn''t wanted it as often lately. Grilled cheese and soup is one we do too. I''ve got a very picky eater so it makes our lives challenging.

Any ways to cook veggies that are tasty? Different sauce ideas? I used to LOVE cauliflower and cheese when I was little but he doesn''t

Good idea about the whole wheat pancakes! Mara, it is weird to me about starting to like wheat bread as i''ve gotten older. I definitely prefer it now, especially the ones w/nuts and grains included. My son thinks i''m a pain b/c I won''t buy white bread. Too bad!

Oooh, peanut butter on a bagel is great! I have mine on a toasted english muffin usually. I just LOVE peanut butter.

Thanks for the other ideas and recipes. I think my biggest areas now are different things for school lunch and dinner ideas.

 

[Kaleigh]

I call this Monday night chicken;
Sautee chicken breasts in the oil of your choice.
Drain the oil
Put chicken back in the pan and add one can of Cambells Cream of chicken soup 98% fat free
A dollop or two of sour cream
3 tablespoons of lemon juice

Simmer until done.

Serve with rice and vegetable of your choice

Another family favorite is

Chicken breasts with skin on and bone in
In a pot
3/4 cup dry cooking sherry
4 tablespoons of soy sauce
4 tablespoons of lemon juice
1/2 stick of butter
Melt and then pour over the chicken breasts
Bake at 350, for 50 minutes. It's really yummy and easy. I serve it with rice or noodles.

 

[akw94]

Those sound good! You think you can leave out the sour cream in the 1st? I''m not a big fan but I know it can exist in recipes w/o really tasting it. I might even try that this week!

 

[widget]

Here are some of my kid''s favs when they were little (about a thousand years ago

)

Chicken and Rice:
Brown chicken breasts (or thighs or whatever), remove from pan and set aside.

In the same pan prepare any flavored rice package you like. Follow directions on the rice box, remembering to scrape up chicken goodies while water is coming to a boil. Add flavor packet, reduce heat to simmer, return chicken to pan, and cover and simmer until rice/chicken is done and water is absorbed.

I suppose everyone knows this, but just in case: When making mac-n-cheese, cover with buttered breadcrumbs and brown under broiler before serving....yum!

Oh...and I just remembered...my kids LOVED this when they were little:

Meat/Cabbage cassarole

(sorry...don''t remember proportions!)

chop up cabbage, cook BRIEFLY in boiling water, rinse in cold water to stop cooking, set aside.

brown a pound of lean ground beef in large pan, drain fat. Add grated cheddar cheese, and sour cream. Stir in cabbage add pepper and seasoned salt to taste.

Pour into baking dish, sprinkle buttered bread crumbs on top, heat through (30 minutes?) at 350 degrees.

(Sometimes I added some thawed out chopped spinach to the cabbage in order to "sneak in" some extra vitamins...)

widget

 

[Kaleigh]

Yes, you don't really need it. But honestly you don't really taste it too much either, helps in cutting the lemmon juice. That's all.

 

[pebbles]

This was always my favorite as a kid -- grilled cheese sandwiches with mozzarella cheese instead of american cheese. It's almost like pizza -- butter the outside of the bread, use pizza or spaghetti sauce inside the sandwich with mozzarella cheese. Mmmm.

We also use the small Boboli shells to make homemade pizza. Yum!

This isn't one isn't just for kids, but my hubby loves to make his own nachos. I cut up onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, hot peppers, and cilantro. Throw that on your nacho chips, put shredded mexican cheese on top of that, throw it in the microwave just until the cheese melts (maybe 20 seconds) and top it off with a dolop of sour cream. You can put refried beans in it too or sometimes if I make tacos my hubby uses the left over taco meat (if there is any!).

Speaking of whole wheat, we have switched to whole wheat white bread. My kids don't notice the difference. Kraft now makes Super Mac and Cheese which uses whole wheat instead of white flour. My kids love it.

If your kids like PB&J or just PB sandwiches, try making it on toast. You don't need as much PB b/c it melts on the warm toast. My daughter's favorite.

My kids are addicted to warm carmel dip. Not exactly the most healthy thing out there

but they love to dip their apple slices in there. Hey, at least they are eating the apples.

(they actually don't wind up using that much carmel...mommy winds up dipping a lot more!)

 

[akw94]

Pebbles, that''s a good idea about switching to things that use whole wheat flour. I''ll have to check on that, especially for the mac & cheese.

Last week as part of dinner (since i''m trying so hard to incorporate at least one fruit/veggie in each meal), I made a fruit salad w/a little bit of brown sugar and my son loved it. I told him the sugar wasn''t necessary but ok w/adding a bit if he''d eat it. He ate 2 servings and lots of fruits in there that he says he doesn''t like.
I also made chicken w/shake & bake and he likes that a lot too.

Anyone else have recipes/ideas? Doesn''t have to be geared toward kids... Just easy and healthy.

Thanks!

 

[eks6426]

I''m not offering up a recipe, but a tip for getting your kids (and sometimes your DH) to eat more veggies. Cook veggies that are high in vitamins (spinach, brocolli, carrots etc.) puree and add to sauces like spaghetti or casseroles. They won''t even notice they are eating healthier. The trick is that you make the puree then freeze in icecube trays...then put in ziploc bag. Then you just pull out a cube or 2 and add to your sauce or casserole. If the kids catch wind of you pureeing veggies the day you add them they will notice for sure. Sort of sneaky but it works.

 

[Small]

Date: 4/17/2006 4:31:46 PM
Author: IslandDreams
I''m not offering up a recipe, but a tip for getting your kids (and sometimes your DH) to eat more veggies. Cook veggies that are high in vitamins (spinach, brocolli, carrots etc.) puree and add to sauces like spaghetti or casseroles. They won''t even notice they are eating healthier. The trick is that you make the puree then freeze in icecube trays...then put in ziploc bag. Then you just pull out a cube or 2 and add to your sauce or casserole. If the kids catch wind of you pureeing veggies the day you add them they will notice for sure. Sort of sneaky but it works.

That''s a great idea! I read it in a magazine and tried hiding them in pizza sauce but no luck

I''ll have to try that.

Thanks for all the great ideas. My kids are abnormal...LOL...they don''t like mac n cheese (who doesn''t like mac n cheese) and I feel like I feed them the same things all the time

 

[eks6426]

Oh, my gosh small...I feel the same. My son is 9 and I feel like our dinners resemble the kiddie menu at any restaurant. When I deviate and fix adult food he bitterly complains and dinner feels like a war. In fact, if I force him to try something it''s a 20 minute war or if I tell him he can''t leave the table until it''s tried...bedtime will come before he tries it. I really hate the kiddie restaurant & school menus. If I were to have any more kids, I''d never let them see the kiddie menus. I''d just order my food and split it with them so they grow up eating a variety instead of the almighty five: hot dogs, mac & cheese, spaghetti, pizza or chicken nuggets. So, if you have very small children or will have some in the future that''s my advice. Force your toddlers to eat what you want to eat the rest of your life rather than catering to them because at 3 you can control their eating a lot better than with a mouthy 9 year old. Pack their school lunches with lots of variety.

 

[Small]

Date: 4/18/2006 2:51:44 PM
Author: IslandDreams
Oh, my gosh small...I feel the same. My son is 9 and I feel like our dinners resemble the kiddie menu at any restaurant. When I deviate and fix adult food he bitterly complains and dinner feels like a war. In fact, if I force him to try something it''s a 20 minute war or if I tell him he can''t leave the table until it''s tried...bedtime will come before he tries it. I really hate the kiddie restaurant & school menus. If I were to have any more kids, I''d never let them see the kiddie menus. I''d just order my food and split it with them so they grow up eating a variety instead of the almighty five: hot dogs, mac & cheese, spaghetti, pizza or chicken nuggets. So, if you have very small children or will have some in the future that''s my advice. Force your toddlers to eat what you want to eat the rest of your life rather than catering to them because at 3 you can control their eating a lot better than with a mouthy 9 year old. Pack their school lunches with lots of variety.

LOL...my kids are 2 and 1. They like 3 of those 5...well my 1 yo son likes hot dogs so 4 of the 5 but that is alot of what they eat weekly. They could live on pizza if I''d let them. We have the one bite rule in place for my daughter. It is a struggle but we get her to do it. I try to feed them one vegetable and one fruit for lunch and dinner. The fruit goes over lots better than the vegetables. She''ll eat green beans, corn, and potatoes but only when we clap and make a production out of it. We reward her for her eating efforts with a ''cookie'' which is actually a fruit cereal bar. I don''t allow candy and try my hardest to make sure they eat healthy...but the flip side of no candy is our fast food which is probably worse...sigh. My daughter yells out for McD''s when we drive by...chicken and french fries. She could eat it everyday...sad that I said it wouldn''t happen to me...I wasn''t going to let my kids eat fast food...yeah right! But I guess we all have our faults.
I hear what you are saying though...develop the healthy habits early and try variation often otherwise you''ll get stuck with a picky eater. I am kind of a picky eater and my sister is for sure so that''s why I''m trying so hard to expose my kids early and often to whatever I can so they don''t resist later on.

 

[FireGoddess]

Date: 4/17/2006 4:31:46 PM
Author: IslandDreams
I''m not offering up a recipe, but a tip for getting your kids (and sometimes your DH) to eat more veggies. Cook veggies that are high in vitamins (spinach, brocolli, carrots etc.) puree and add to sauces like spaghetti or casseroles. They won''t even notice they are eating healthier. The trick is that you make the puree then freeze in icecube trays...then put in ziploc bag. Then you just pull out a cube or 2 and add to your sauce or casserole. If the kids catch wind of you pureeing veggies the day you add them they will notice for sure. Sort of sneaky but it works.

This is a good idea - in the ''lighter recipes'' thread, I posted a recipe for a soup called Winter Potage. It''s a blend of a bunch of different veggies, and to be honest, I probably wouldn''t eat all of them under normal circumstances but in a blended soup, they''re awesome! I wonder if you could a make a soup such as that and throw some little spaghetti pasta in it to entertain the kids while they''re eating it. It''s a great way to get spinach, broccoli, peas, soybeans, and more snuck into their diet!!

 

[akw94]

That''s a GREAT about making veggie ice cubes and making a blended soup. I think I will be making those ice cubes this weekend. He''ll never know!!

Dinner ideas anyone? There must be other PS''ers who don''t really like to cook but are trying to eat healthy so have some simple suggestions. Or school lunch ideas? It''s hard to come up with something other than a sandwich or tuna and crackers when there''s no microwave available. But i''m still searching...

 

[eks6426]

Hmm, ok I''ll bite on some recipes.

School lunches are hard. The key is not to make the healthy food you send your kids look different than what everyone else gets. My mom was a "granola" child and she actually made homemade whole wheat bread every week for sandwiches. Then she would put lots of veggies on my sandwiches. Boy did other kids make fun of me. Secretly though, I loved my lunches. Not to say I didn''t occasionally trade my homemade whole grain cookie for a twinkie . Thankfully the whole grain bread is a current trend so you can send it in school lunches and your kid won''t be too weird.

You can try to get your kids to eat hummus. You can put it in a sandwich and it will look like peanutbutter to their friends. Or better yet, get kids to dip carrots/celery or whatever in hummus or almond butter etc. Fruit can be dipped in yogurt. I get the unsweetened yogurt and add splenda and vanilla extract. Tastes as good as the regular vanilla only with much less sugar. You can use a variety of extract flavors. There are some Gen Soy cakes that look like rice cakes only are much better. My picky son loves these. I use these instead of chips. For snacks, try getting the kids to eat cooked then chilled edame. My son thinks they are fantastic. I also send soy nuts for snacks--they come in flavors which helps. Get your kids in the habit of eating raw nuts like almonds. Leftover cold pizza works well.

Here''s a recipe for my mom''s grilled chicken. My son loves this stuff. You can use it to make salads, fajitas, etc. too.

Mom’s Fabulous Spicy Grilled Chicken Breasts
Chicken breasts in cookie sheet
Cover with soy sauce
Sprinkle on Cayenne Pepper & Garlic Salt
Minced Garlic & Olive Oil (or butter)
Add lemon juice (1-2 tablespoons)

Cook on grill or in broiler. Baste while cooking

 

[zakei]

heya!

im not a mother of any kind, im not even of marrigable age, but i do have a couple of simple receipes i like to bake and eat. i dont mind contributing them to you.

Brownie Receipe (its mine.

)

400g chocolate (dark preferably)
40g plain flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs (beated)

preheat oven 350F

Double boil chocolate until fully melted, appx 7-10 mins. Let cool for a bit.
Stir in eggs (chocolate should be warm still)
Mixture will turn blacker

Add in flour and sugar
Mixture will turn EVEN blacker

line a shallow tray with greaseproof paper
pour in mixture
bake for 30 mins

after times up, let brownie cool in tray
airtight tray, ie use cling wrap then use masking tape to tape down edges
let it set for 2 days

un-airtight brownie, remove from tray and cut and eat. Use a hot/warm knife to cut brownie. Eats well with ice cream.



Shortbread Cookies

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) butter slightly cooled
sticks in reference to the small ones

preheat oven 300F
butter a few trays
mix flour, sugar and salt
crumb butter into mixture, finely crumbled
roll into small balls, put on sheet then press slightly with either thumb or fork to make ball flatter (cookie-shaped)
bake till center lightly golden, edges a bit dark, appx 30-35 mins
store airtight after baking

cookies typically taste nice after a few hours, as flavour sets.

thats about it for my receipes! hope its appreciated.