On Backwards Works-For-Me-Wednesdays, where I get to ask you all to help me...Can you help me with
my Meatless Friday Rut?
We're just plain old sick of the two or three meals we fall back on every week. We've got tuna casserole, popcorn and cheese, and broiled salmon down pat. Any other ideas that are easy and quick enough for a hurried mom who's not a gourmet? That's healthful, but that the kiddos will actually eat? Can you help me add to my menu list? Then run over to Rocks in My Dryer and see who else you might be able to help out today!
22 comments:
my boyfriend is a vegetarian so I have this problem every day! spinach enchiladas, meatless spaghetti, brocolli and rice surprise (made with vegetable broth rather than water), bean and rice burritos, meatless taco salad, cheese pizza, veggie pizza. I also get recipe ideas from http://allrecipes.com/
good luck!
How about a vegetable stir fry? A baked pasta dish? Omelets? Mini-bagel pizzas?
We are mostly meatless around our parts. I do "meal plan mondays" and am posting a variety of meatless meals with (and without) recipes on my blog, if you want to have a look.
This week we had homemade pizza on monday, and we are having barley mushroom casserole tonight, and couscous wiht broccoli tomorrow.
fish tacos!!! if you've never had them, they might sound weird, but they are sooo good.
breakfast for dinner.
One thing we like is rice stir fry. I make rice for the number I need to feed. For us I make to serve 6 as the boys eat for two. While that is cooking I put a bit of oil in a fry pan or spray heavy with Pam and add some fresh or frozen chopped veggies - whatever you like. For six I put about 2 cups worth. Then I add about 4 large eggs. I whip these up and pour over the veggies and mix well. I add pepper and other spices to taste - a little onion and garlic. When done I add the rice and top with soy sauce. This is great for left over rice or you can make the rice earlier if you need to. On days you can have meat I add chicken but the guys like pork as well.
Another is spinach lasagna. Pita sandwiches with cheese and veggies - makes a nice twist on a variety of sandwiches. A twist on tuna, grilled cheese and tuna melt. The guys love these and I serve soup on the side.
We do a breakfast night - waffles, eggs (scrambled with cheese is a kids favorite).
Once I ate at a friends house and they had noodles with scrambled eggs and cheese. It was good though.
Have a great day!
I can't promise the kids will eat it but how about vegetable stirfry?
You can pick and chose which vegetables you put in, you can add a handful of nuts like pine nuts or cashews to add protein (is that the right word, but brain's gone blank!) and lots of the prep can be done ahead of time so that all you have to do is heat some oil in a pan and toss in the vegetables. Add a dash of soy sauce and it's delicious. Serve on it's own or with rice or noodles. You can even have some grated cheese on the top.
Two ideas. Veggie pockets (stir-fried veggies and a slice of provolone, mozzarella or swiss cheese stuffed into a pita pocket) or Tofu-Broccoli Stirfry w/ Noodles. Saute broccoli florets in olive oil, then add cut-up chunks of firm tofu and stir-fry. Cook up a bunch of pasta (I prefer bowties for this), mix with tofu and broccoli, toss with grated Parmesan cheese.
I just had to weigh-in on this one. My husband is a huge meat guy. So, meatless has to be filling and easy. My favorite recipe is a cheater one, but cheap too!
http://comomma.wordpress.com
I tried to put it in there, but it got all sloppy, I'll post it on my blog.
How about going Mexican?
Quesadillas with sides of refried beans and red rice...yum! Very filling, very kid-friendly, and not too tough on the prep if you used canned refried beans (I believe there are vegetarian versions, or you can make your own.
Another option...Bean soup with tortillas or rolls on the side. My children absolutely love the pinto beans in soup format if I pressure cook them...they get so smooth and buttery! I use onion, garlic, and olive oil, salt to taste, and voila. If you do this and make a large batch, you can freeze a portion to use for the refried beans. I'm sure other varieties of beans would be just as tasty done in a pressure cooker.
One non-Mexican idea: homemade cream of vegetable soup. I can sneak zucchini by the kids if I do it in soup format with half and half and some good seasonings. If I really want to sneak the veggies by them, I'll puree the chunks.
Hope these help!
P.S. Cheese enchiladas and bean burritos would be some other main dishes that might be yummy!
Vegetable quesadillas, homemade mac n cheese, baked potatoes and corn muffins breakfast for dinner - scrambled eggs and toast. Good luck!
We like Black Bean / Sweet Potato Burritoes... mash 'em all up, add some salsa & cumin...
Ditto the breakfast for dinner idea also... waffles, pancakes... easy, fun, filling!
I've got one for you. Just made it today while my kiddos ate lunch. If you can open cans, you can make Bean Burrito filling. I don't use jalapenos cause I don't like the heat. I opt for a little can of green chiles.
here's the link http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.fc77a0dbc44dd1611e3bf410b5900aa0/?vgnextoid=85ec40ee0c90f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&autonomy_kw=bean%20burritos&rsc=ns2006_m1
I'll try and post it on my blog as well. But if you can't get there via that link, it's on Martha's Website. From Everyday Food.
Enjoy!
Marie's Meatless Layered Enchiladas
10 corn tortillas
1 can green enchilada sauce
1 can green chiles
1 can (vegetarian) refried beans
1 can sliced olives
1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese
Spray casserole dish with non-stick spray. Pour 1/3 of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of the dish, then cover the bottom with half of the tortillas. Spread the refried beans over the tortillas, then layer the olives and chiles. Pour 1/3 enchilada sauce over that, then top with half of the cheese. Cover the top with the remaining tortillas, then pour the last of the sauce over them, spreading it to moisten the entire surface. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees, and serve with salsa and sour cream.
Stir-fry, black bean enchiladas, breakfast for dinner, vegetable soup in the crockpot, or build-your-own veggie pizzas.
Hit the library for various ethnic cookbooks! We've gotten some great low-meat and no-meat meals that way.
Some favorites:
All-veg eggroll and springroll--also good with small bits of chicken
Three-cheese & spinach ravioli: I use wonton wrappers from the fridge section of produce for the outside, and do up a blend of ricotta, parmesan, and mozarella, plus about a pound of shredded fresh spinach, and garlic. One *small* container of ricotta will do up about 60 ravioli. They take minutes to boil, and we serve them with a good chunky tomato pasta sauce, with green salad and garlic bread. YUM.
I also do a lasagna with eggplant instead of meat, and spinach in the cheese mix.
Big salads with everything on them (egg for protein)
Egg Stack: basically, omelette disks. :) I never learned to flip an omelet, so I beat up eggs, and do thin rounds of egg, stacking them on a plate with cheese and sauteed veggies in between. I can do up 8 layers of the stuff, then give them a quick "nuke" to heat everything up, and everyone gets a wedge; add biscuits and fried potatoes/onions, and life is good!
My family always likes Baked Macaroni and Cheese. I like it because It's made in one dish. Here goes...
In an oven preheated to 350 degrees, melt 1 stick of margarine in a 13x11 baking dish. To that add 4 cups of uncooked macaroni, two tsp of salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Mix and coat the macaroni with the margarine and spread it evenly in the dish. Cover this with 3 cups of shredded colby cheese then pour 5 cups of milk over this. Bake for about 45 minutes. I serve it with steamed green beans and grilled or baked fish. When it's not served on meatless Friday I top it with smokey links and bake an extra 15 minutes. With the 7 of us there were never any left-overs...But now that it's just Ron and me it's nice to have something quick to put into the microwave.
Homemade mac and cheese is one of our favorites, served with green beans and apple sauce.
We LOVE pinto beans or red beans made in the crockpot and served with homemade whole wheat bread or with corn bread. Yum!
Good luck!
Martie, Momma to 9
Oh, my goodness, you wonderful ladies! I think I can write a cookbook now! What I am going to do is type all these up and put them in my trusty "everything I need to know, but always forget" notebook! We're set for a while now! Thank you all so much!
Potato Soup is a great favorite and so easy! Boil about 2 potatoes per person, depending on age. Add diced celery and onion. I use 8-10 potatoes, 1/2 an onion and 2-3 stalks celery. You can pressure cook this too. Anyway, add salt, pepper, season salt and water just to cover the spuds. Too much water makes the soup a little flavorless. Boil away until the potatoes are super soft. We like ours semi smooth - some chunks - so I use a potato masher to give the soup some body. Then I add milk, LOTS of butter, parsley, and continue to season to taste. Shred cheese on top - crackers on the side, or whatever you like.... Anymore, my kids just like the soup & cheese. Just play with the recipe to your liking. My sister beats hers smooth after the potatoes are done and doesn't use milk.
How about meatless chili and other soups? If you make a huge batch then you can add it to other things later or freeze for another meal. We also love potato soup. With winter coming on lots of soups with yummy bread make nice meals.
I have several favorite meatless meals. One is an onion pasta, which involves slow-cooking onions with some olive oil until they are brown and sweet. Serve over pasta with fresh parmesan, and plenty of salt and pepper. Super yummy.
Eggs are always good, and quiche is great with veggies in it. There are also great soups that don't have meat in them. We also love quesadillas at our house, and often put veggies in them. My husband's favorite kind is with a fried egg inside.
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