I haven’t been having much luck in the new meal department. I tried a whole chicken in the slow cooker, and while it tasted okay, it dried out in the leaner parts (This is hard to justify when the store-bought chickens taste better and are cheaper!). My slow cooker’s low heat setting is pretty hot so leaving stuff in there all day usually means it gets overcooked.
I tried the same thing with chicken curry and the chicken thighs shrunk to half their size with the sauce burning around the edges. It still tasted good but a bit much for the little ones. But I still like trying new things because finding meals that work for my family feels like hitting the lottery. So, a couple of new items this week — and hopefully some recipe posts to follow!
For more meal plans, check out Org Junkie.
Monday: Turkey Tacos with black beans and toppings
Tuesday: Slow Cooker Spinach Lasagna, salad, bread and fruit
Wednesday: Leftovers — free night
Thursday: Chicken and Broccoli Peanut Stir Fry with Fried Rice
Friday: Salmon patties with black beans and garlicky green beans
Snack of the week: Carrot muffins topped with cream cheese
Making dinner easier by focusing on themes
I’ve been thinking about our dinners and what works and what doesn’t. Mexican night is our favorite, even when I introduce something new. Why? The kids know what to expect.
For Mexican night we always have guacamole, some chips, and beans. Big A knows she can eat these things if she doesn’t want the main course, although she will always at least eat the tortilla.
I thought I would try to carry these themes onto other nights. We usually do some kind of pasta on Tuesday so now that is “Italian night” — where we will always have a special salad and tasty bread. I’m going to get Big A and Little D special salad bowls to pique their interest. Wednesdays are usually slow cook or leftover nights because I work.
For now, we’ll make Thursday “ethnic night” with an Asian influence but will probably alternate this one with other meals. For some reason, I just haven’t made many stir-fries. I’m trying this peanut recipe from Gina at Feed Our Families. But because my kids aren’t used to this, I need to provide some sides they know and like. Big A loves rice. Maybe a good fried rice in case that’s all they eat? I’m still working this one out.
And Fridays, especially during Lent, are fish days. I remember when I interviewed Evelyn Tribole for our DHA guide and she mentioned how she took her son out for “Fishy Thursdays” and now he loves fish.
The structure of themes really helps me to decide which meals to pick. Also, I like to have default meals for the weeks I can’t plan. Monday is tacos and Tuesday spaghetti. You get the idea.
Anyone else doing themes for dinners? Or am I the only food geek??
Simple Mom Guest Post
I’m excited to announce my guest post today over at the Art of Simple: 5 Ways to Keep Weight Management Simple. In this post, I lay out 5 important lessons I’ve learned about maintaining a healthy weight.
Interestingly, there was a report last week that women with children eat more and exercise less than those without kids. I always remember clients telling me they gained substantial weight after each kid. This is a vulnerable time for many of us with children, as it’s so easy to lose touch with our own self-care needs.
I don’t want my article to mislead people into thinking I have no challenges, especially since having kids. The difference is I approach it much more effectively than I did when I was younger.
First, I’d love to be more fit as exercise is a luxury to me and something I’m gradually increasing as my kids get older. But the goal now is more about feeling good (and strong) vs. getting to some weight or looking a certain way. In addition to exercise, I focus on the healthy habits I truly enjoy including eating balanced, feeling satisfied at meals, and getting enough sleep. As a parent of young children, I can easily get thrown off, with sleep for instance, so it makes my health goals a bit more challenging.
I also struggle with balancing my own self-care needs with the needs of my family and career. There’s a constant push-pull but I’m trying really hard to make time for me. I’m finding this is essential to my happiness and quality of life.
The problem I see is that when people find their weight creeping up they immediately focus on deprivation — what they think they have to give up. Clients always tell me that they are trying to eliminate up some food they love — bread, potatoes, sweets, or salty foods. This fails every time and the literature supports this — deprivation causes more food obsession and overeating.
I try to redirect them to the WHY of their eating, which is different for everyone. Sometimes this is easy to catch like skipping meals, a slower metabolism, less activity, or sleep deprivation. Other times it has to do with their relationship with food including good-and-bad food thinking, leftover deprivation from years of dieting, or how they were fed as a child (think “clean your plate”).
What I talk about in my article over at Simple Mom is how I discovered my own WHY of eating too much and being obsessed with food in my twenties. So now when I get out of balance, I don’t look to cut something out of my diet, I check in with what’s going on with me.
Well, that’s it for now. Have a great week!
Hi –
Thanks so much for your work here, Maryann. I have started trying harder to come up with a weekly plan in an effort to make the week go smoother and make the food more nutritious for our family. Instead of having a “theme” night, we’re having specific “food” nights: a chicken night, a meat night, a meatless night, a fish night, and a pizza night. We leave two nights for leftovers. A lot of the choices we pick from come from your postings. You have helped me to see that I don’t have to be a master chef to provide for my family. I just have to be willing to try. I used to be too scared (truly) before reading your posts.
Thank you!
Thanks Kim! I was scared of cooking before too. I realize now it’s just finding meals that are rewarding for our family. I like your “food” nights.
Wednesday night for us is “Sandwich night.” It’s our busiest night of the week, so we have chosen something simple. It’s also the night my kids know they can eat chips for dinner and eat as many as they want.
Good idea Kelli. It’s nice to have a night where kids can do what they want!
Mmmmmm…I’m going to try those salmon patties. I really appreciate the meal suggestions/recipes. I’m a beginner cook myself–as in, I can cook the basics but would like to get fancier in the kitchen.
Your chicken enchiladas are now one of our favorites by the way!
Thanks Sally! I need to make those enchilladas…we are stuck on the Have it Your Way Tacos.
Trader Joe’s make a great fried rice in the freezer section…i’ve only tried the one with shrimp….but it’s quick and pretty tasty and comes with veggies…i imagine the veggie version is too…just in case you want something quick and easy. i love your idea of theme nights…i just haven’t gotten organized enough to try it out. maybe next week….
Stacy — I picked up the one from TJs to try before I try to make it on my own. Here’s hoping Big A goes for it!
another version for the salmon patties….egg, a little mayo, diced onion, parmesan cheese, a dash of cajun seasoning and italian bread crumbs and of course the salmon
squeeze lemon juice over them after they are cooked
Thanks for sharing our stir fry recipe, Maryann. We had it again last week since it seems like my kids are requesting it weekly. The sauce is super yummy, and I don’t mind putting it on the menu since it’s so quick and easy to make.
I also really struggle with chicken in the slow cooker. We have a couple recipes for diced chicken (a West Coast version of Yankee Pot Pie) and chicken legs or wings in a bbq-like sauce, but other than those two, they always turn out dry. Like you, we usually end up buying a rotisserie chicken from the store, or save those recipes for nights I’m home and can bake the chicken. I’ve heard wonderful things about a pressure cooker and might have to put that on my wish list.
Don’t even get me started on how little time & energy I have left over to take care of myself. My oldest is 7 and I’m just starting to prioritize taking care of me – not over my family, but over other things that shouldn’t be more important than myself. It’s a hard thing for moms to do.
Chicken is tough b/c I’m alwasy afraid I’ll undercook it so I overcook it! Have heard good things about the pressure cooker too.
I hope Big A likes it!
Hi Maryann. I love this themes idea. Love it. I need a way to introduce new foods but still offer something they like. My younger is on a real “trying spree” right now. She now likes gnocchi and she will eat tomato sauce on her spaghetti instead of just Parmesan. Plus, themes will give me a way to start thinking. Sometimes when I’m doing my weekly meal planning my mind just goes blank.
We’ve had a big success with spring rolls. Both my girls will eat them now. I buy the Ling Ling vegetarian spring rolls and serve them with rice. Quick and easy and fairly healthy – great for “Asian” night. 🙂
You can buy a whole chicken with a thermometer in it that will pop up when it’s done. You can’t beat doing it in the oven. It takes 10 minutes to prep and a few hours to cook. But the result is juicy. I don’t care for crockpot chicken at all. It’s always going to be dry.
Thanks Goodfountain. As you can see we are trying the salmon patty you recommended. I’ll try the spring rolls…Big A will usually eat those when we eat out.
I have a crock-pot chicken suggestion I have cooked with success, but the key is to use thighs, either bone-in or boneless. I have never been able to cook white meat in the crockpot without it turning too dry, unless it is in soup.
I will give amounts to put in a 6 quart crock pot and you can reduce the amount if your cooker is smaller. The ingredients are brown rice, not quick cook, chopped veggies (whatever you want fresh or frozen), chicken thighs, skinless.
Measure 2 cups dry rice into crock pot, stir in fresh or frozen (not thawed) chopped veggies and whatever seasoning you prefer, place 6 -8 chicken thighs on top of rice/veggie mix. Add water to just below the rice level. Salt/Pepper or season chicken thighs. Cook on low for 11+ hours. The rice absorbs the water, and some of the fat from the thighs, and the thighs are closer to being ‘baked’ than ‘steamed’ from the crockpot.
My husband and I have been weekly meal planners for years, even before kids. My challenge is the girls want to eat early, so I either rely on the crockpot, or I cook multiple meals on the weekend or after the girls go to sleep during the week. That way dinner just has to be thrown in the microwave during the week. The frozen veggies in steamable bags are a huge staple in our household!
Thanks for all your good posts!
Thanks Ramona. I’ll try it. I also find legs and thighs turn out better in the slow cooker!
I came over from your article on Simple Mom and I really enjoyed it! As far as cooking whole chickens, this is what I do the most because I make my own broth. By far our favorite is Sticky Chicken. I make it several times a month. You might check your temperature of your slow cooker. I have a slow cooker that cooks everything too fast and I only use it for sides or on the “warm” setting.
Anyway, here is my sticky chicken recipe (with baked potatoes in there too!) – http://extraordinaryordinarylife.blogspot.com/2010/07/all-in-one-slow-cooker-meal.html
Thanks Gretchen. I’ll give it a try!
I do see that you have the salmon patties on this list. I sure hope that they turned out and your kids enjoyed them.