Thread: Kid friendly meal idea

Does anyone have any kid friendly dinner idea? I have 4 children to feed, and now that I am on the road to eating right, I need to get my seven year old on track. He has gained a considerable amount of weight over the last year or so and I dare to say that he is becoming obeses. This overly hot summer has paid its toll on us and he doesn't breathe well outside in the hot air. He has spent most of the summer couped up inside not only from heat, but aslo because we have had a few kids move in in the neighborhood that are of a questionable nature, to put it lightly. So, it would be great to try to find some healthy, easy dinners that we could all eat together for dinner, as opposed to making seperate dinners. I work fulltime and am also a full time student, and it can be really hard to find meals that are easy and quick. I'm fine with eating cottage chz and fruit for lunch or dinner, but the kids need more than that. Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

I don't have the information at the moment but I found a recipe before and it's supposed to be "children friendly". I'll look for it again and post it here..

Awesome! Anything would be great!

I'll see if I can find some kid friendly meal recipes as well.. I have a niece but she's not too picky when it comes to food. In fact, she prefers vegetables over meat..

That's good.. Most kids prefer fast foods and junk foods these day so it's hard to feed them healthy foods. It's a good idea if we start posting child friendly meals as well.. Make that family friendly meal.. Sometimes, my family complains that they can't eat the food I make..

I found these recipes from Country Living and are supposed to be kid friendly. They have high rated recipes too so they might be good:

Prized Family Meat Loaf

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup(s) ketchup
1/4 cup(s) Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup(s) light brown sugar
4 teaspoon(s) low-sodium soy sauce
2 cup(s) fresh bread, torn into small pieces
1/2 cup(s) whole milk
1 cup(s) (about 1 large) minced onion
2/3 cup(s) (about 2 ribs) minced celery
1 tablespoon(s) (about 2 cloves) minced garlic
1/4 cup(s) parsley, minced
1 tablespoon(s) dry mustard
2 teaspoon(s) fresh thyme
3 large eggs
2 teaspoon(s) kosher salt
1 teaspoon(s) coarse-ground black pepper
1 1/2 pound(s) ground beef
1 pound(s) ground pork
1/2 pound(s) ground veal
1 medium onion, sliced into rings
8 sprig(s) thyme
6 slice(s) bacon

Directions

1. Make the ketchup glaze: Combine the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and soy sauce in a medium bowl and stir until combined. Set aside.

2. Make the meat loaf: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Combine the bread and the milk in a small bowl and let sit 5 minutes. Combine the minced onion, celery, garlic, parsley, mustard, thyme, eggs, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add the bread, meat, and 1/3 cup of the ketchup glaze and toss gently with your hands. Be careful not to overmix -- it should be soft but hold its shape.

3. Bake the meat loaf: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer the meat mixture to the prepared pan, form into a 16- by 5-inch loaf, and coat with 1/3 cup of the ketchup glaze. Combine the onion rings with 2 tablespoons of ketchup glaze in a small bowl. Spread the coated onions over the top of the meat loaf. Place the thyme sprigs over the onions and twist the bacon slices in diagonals over the thyme. Place on center rack of oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and bake until an internal temperature of 160degrees F is reached -- about 50 more minutes. Remove from oven and allow to rest 15 minutes before serving. Serve with remaining ketchup glaze.

Serves: 16
Calories: 325

Cowboy Chili

Ingredients

1 tablespoon(s) vegetable oil
1 pound(s) boneless chuck or rump roast, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large (about 2 cups) onion, chopped
6 clove(s) garlic, minced
2 can(s) (14 1/2-ounce) low-sodium beef broth
1 tablespoon(s) chili powder
1 teaspoon(s) cumin
1 can(s) (14 1/2-ounce) diced low-sodium tomatoes
2 dried ancho chiles
1 tablespoon(s) masa harina de maiz
1 cup(s) water
2 can(s) (15 1/2-ounce) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
1 tablespoon(s) cider vinegar

Directions

1. Brown the meat: In a large Dutch oven, add oil and heat over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot but not smoking, add beef and cook until browned -- about 5 minutes. Remove beef, set aside, and reduce heat to medium.

2. Make the chili: Add onion to the Dutch oven and sauté until translucent -- 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 more minute. Return the meat to the Dutch oven. Gradually add 1 can beef broth and deglaze by scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the Dutch oven. Add chili powder, cumin, and tomatoes. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and simmer for 1 hour.

3. Puree the chiles: In a small saucepan over high heat, bring the remaining can of beef broth to a boil. Add ancho chiles and let stand 15 minutes to hydrate. Remove and discard stems. Place chili mixture and liquid in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth -- 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Finish the chili: In a small bowl, whisk the masa and water together. Stir masa mixture into the chili. Add ancho chili mixture, pinto beans, salt, and vinegar. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Serve hot.

Serves: 6
Serving: 1 cup
Calories: 400


Source: Country Living

Mikaela posted a recipe for Cheesy Peas before.. Your kids might like them..

That's true.. You can try that recipe.. I'm still searching for good recipes myself. Please let us know if any of these foods taste great..

Here's the recipe I found at Taste of Home website:

Barbecued Ham 'n' Peaches Recipe

Ingredients

1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon canola oil
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 boneless fully cooked ham slices (4 ounces each)
1 can (8-1/2 ounces) sliced peaches, drained

Directions

In a small bowl, combine the ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, oil and pepper; brush some of the mixture over ham slices. Place each slice on a greased 12-in. square of heavy-duty foil. Top with peaches; drizzle with remaining ketchup mixture.

Fold foil over ham and peaches and seal tightly. Grill, covered, over medium heat for 5-6 minutes in each side or until heated through.

Yield: 4 servings.


Here's another one:


All-Day Meatballs Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup milk
3/4 cup quick-cooking oats
3 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1-1/2 pounds ground beef
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

In a large bowl, combine the first four ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into 1-in. balls. Place in a 5-qt. slow cooker.
In a small bowl, combine the ketchup, water, vinegar and sugar. Pour over meatballs. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until meat is no longer pink.

Nutrition Facts:

Yield: 6 servings
1 serving (4 each) equals 346 calories, 16 g fat (6 g saturated fat), 81 mg cholesterol, 1,139 mg sodium, 24 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 26 g protein.


You can also try Baked Macaroni and Cheese. Based in my experience, kids love cheese..

I hope that helps..

Thanks for the great ideas guys! These recipes sound really really good! The cowboy chili made me think of cowboy stew, which I haven't had in years! I'm going to have to give them a try! I makea pretty easy baked chicken parmesean with wheat pasta, which ends up with about 410 calories and 12 grams of fat per serving. I just kinda threw it all together with a low sugar sauce and 1 can each of sliced seasoned tomatoes and stewed seasoned tomatoes. The kids liked it, but they also told me they preferred the "fried" chicken parm. I also used slices of low fat mozarella.