January 8, 2014

Feeding your family when you're stressed

We've seen a deployment or several in our years in the military.  Another one is looming on the horizon.  We've also been through 10+ moves, bed rest due to surgery and pregnancy, and a myriad of other things. There are times when I'm not physically capable of cooking and times when I can, but emotionally or mentally I'm all over the place.  Sometimes food gets pushed to the side and I start relying on pizza and drive-thrus and frozen things.  In an effort to get better prepared for the next 'crisis', I put together a list of meal ideas that MY family likes.  I hope that some of them work for your family too!

It sounds weird, but in the most trying times it's hard to even know where to start on getting food on the table.  I'll find myself standing in the kitchen at 5:00pm or so and just look around and cannot figure out what to do.  This list is my 'brain' in those times.  Make your own.  Look at the foods that your family loves to eat, that you can make quickly and with minimal effort (or that your children/spouses can make).  Then collect all the recipes together on Pinterest, your blog, a Word document....somewhere.  Somewhere you'll be able to access when stress shuts your brain right down.

I looked for recipes that were:
a.  Quick - 15 to 30 minutes of my time.  
b.  Easy - I could hand them over to my teens or husband.  
c.  Tasty - The last thing I need when I'm already struggling to hold things together are whiny kids who think dinner was 'gross and disgusting' or that it 'looks like someone threw up in the bowl'.

These are not the healthiest (although some of them are).  They are not meant to be the foundation of your diet, just the means to see you through a hard time with your sanity intact and your bellies full!

What are some of your 'quick and easy', no-stress favorites?


Quick and Easy Recipes
For Deployment, Stress, Bedrest, Whatever!

2.  Pancakes or Waffles – I have a bazillion recipes I alternate between.
3.  Breakfast Burritos – recipe below
4.  Bean Tostadas or Burritos or Nachos– recipe below
7.  Eggs and Toast (or English Muffins or bagels)
8.  Smoothies – Also see my Pinterest board here: http://www.pinterest.com/4mycrazyboys/smoothies-juices/
9.  Bean and Cheese Crispy Burritos – recipe below
10.  Yogurt Parfaits – recipe below
11.  Sort of Seven Layer Dip– recipe below
12.  Rice Bowls 
13.  Succotash
14.  Tacos – especially if you cook up a big batch of seasoned meat and freeze it in meal-sized portions.  Then just heat and serve.
15.  White Chili 
16.  Hummus Wraps 
21.  Pasta Bake
22.  Rotisserie chicken from the store with salad, carrot sticks, and fruit
25.  BLTs
27.  Cabbage Soup – 
28.  Make Your Own Sub Sandwiches – put out lots of meats, cheese, toppings, and let them go crazy
29.  Thai Ginger Soup – recipe below
30.  Toad in the Hole, Frog in the Pond, One-Eyed Susans
31.  Chicken Strip or Popcorn Shrimp Salad – recipe below
33.  Baked Potatoes
36.  Kielbasa and Cabbage – recipe below
37.  Steamed Sausage, Cabbage & Potatoes – recipe below
38.  Spaghetti and Meatballs – frozen meatballs, jar of spaghetti, heat and serve over pasta.  Or make all of those homemade!
41.  Bombay Stew 
43.  Snack Dinner – recipe below
44.  Roast – roast beef or roast chicken.  Use it as a meal, then use the leftovers in soups, burritos, salads, etc.  Ham is also another option.
45.  Frozen stuff!  I hear Trader Joe’s has some nice quality, somewhat healthy stuff in their freezer section.  And sometimes it’s just frozen pizza or corn dogs.
46.   World Class Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.  Actually, mine are 2nd, and my husband's are World Class.  Sometimes we add ham or other deli meats.

Breakfast Burritos
We like sausage (pre-cooked) or bacon, scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, tator tots, and salsa/ketchup all rolled into burritos.  I stick the stuff on the table and they assemble their own.  I love the Tortilla Land tortillas.  You can buy them at Sam’s Club, Walmart, or Costco.

Bean Tostadas or Burritos or Nachos
I use the pre-cooked tostada shells (like Guerrero brand).  Warm a can of refried beans, smear it on the tostada and let them add toppings – lettuce, tomatoes, olives, shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream, etc.  Mostly they just like beans and cheese.   You can use tortillas to make burritos or put it all over chips for nachos.  I sometimes add cooked meat.  For the nachos I like to use whole beans instead of refried beans.

Bean and Cheese Crispy Burritos
I like Tortillaland raw tortillas (Sam’s, Walmart, Costco).  Otherwise spread some refried beans and cheese on one side, roll up tight, cook on skillet on all sides until browned and crispy.  Dip in salsa, sour cream, guacamole or eat plain.

Yogurt Parfaits
Sliced fresh fruit
Granola
Yogurt. 
Let each person build their own.  My kids especially love this with chocolate granola.

Sort of Seven Layer Dip
I heat refried beans and plop that on the table.  Each person fills their bowl with what they want....cheese, sour cream, salsa, guacamole, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives.  Then we eat them with 'scoop' or tortilla chips.

Thai Ginger Soup
Okay, it’s not really a recipe.  Grab some Swanson Thai Ginger broth (look in the broth section).  Add in whatever meat you want – chicken, beef, shrimp.  If using raw, let it cook through before adding veggies.  Otherwise, through the cooked meat in with the veggies.  I like to add a can of coconut milk as well.

Suggestions:
Carrots – matchstick or chopped
Celery
Zucchini
Mushrooms
Sweet peppers
Broccoli slaw
Cabbage or cole slaw
Onions – regular or green
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Cook until veggies are desired consistency.  Serve.

You could also add in pasta or rice, either add cooked pasta to the soup as you serve it.  Or cook the pasta in the broth. 

Chicken Strip Salad
Okay, this is another non-recipe.  Grab some chicken strips from the deli or cook up some frozen ones.  Cut them into bite-sized pieces.  Heap up the plate with salad, and add the chicken.  Top with the salad toppings and dressings you love. 

We also like to do this with popcorn shrimp.

Kielbasa and Cabbage
1 lb. kielbasa, sliced (can use other kinds of pre-cooked sausage like chicken-apple, basically any kind!)
1 medium head cabbage, chopped or sliced
salt to taste
pepper to taste

Add the cabbage to a pan and cook & stir until tender, about 15 minutes.  You may want to add water or chicken broth if it gets too dry and starts to stick.  Add salt and pepper about halfway through.  Add sausages in about halfway through as well.  You can add all sorts of veggies to this or keep it simple.

Steamed Sausage, Cabbage, and Potatoes
Cut up potatoes and place them in the bottom of a large pot.  Layer with sliced pre-cooked sausage (smoked sausage, kielbasa, etc).  I prefer to leave mine in larger chunks, about half the size of a hot dog.  Top with cabbage wedges.  Add about 1 ½ cups water or chicken broth.  Bring to boil then cover with lid and cook on medium low until potatoes are tender, between 1 to 2 hours.

You can also bake this in the stove – use a covered roaster or cover pan with aluminum foil.  Or in a crockpot on low for 8 to 10 hours or high for 4 to 6 hours.

I like to make a honey mayo mustard sauce.  Blob some mayo in a bowl, add a few squirts of honey, and a few drizzles of honey.  Stir it up and taste.  Adjust to make it yummy.

Snack Dinner
We load our plates with odds & ends, mostly finger foods.  Ideas to get you started:
Fruit slices (apples, pears, bananas)
Berries
Veggies – baby carrots, celery, sweet peppers, etc.
Yogurt – cups or tubes
Crackers
Cheese – sliced, deli, string
Deli meat or peanut butter
Popcorn
Lara bars – purchased or homemade
Clif Z Bars
Nuts
Dried fruit
Chips or pretzels
Hard boiled eggs
Chips & salsa
Muffins
Popcorn chicken or chicken strips
Hot dogs or sausages – cut into bite-sized pieces
Dried cereal

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