If you have tons of zucchini, this is the recipe for you. Actually, let’s not sell these zucchini boats short. If you have even a few zucchini, this may very well be the recipe for you! I’ve made zucchini boats for my family no less than six times this summer. In the span of one zucchini…
Chicken & White Bean Chili with Swiss Chard: My 4 Kids’ Favorite Way to Eat Swiss Chard
I did it again. With the Swiss chard in the garden. It always starts so small, this Swiss chard project. Just a handful of tiny seeds, some dirt that I bought dirt from a farmer down the road who swears it’s organic and more than a little hope. (Honestly, buying dirt? That’s when you know your farming dream has gotten…
Taco Soup: a Fresh Take on a Family Favorite, Done in 20 Minutes
Here comes another fast dinner idea! In just 20 minutes you’ll have a fresh spin on the one dinner nearly every family loves (no, we’re not talking about you, pizza, so please calm down): This is taco soup. Taco soup has all the yummy flavors of tacos served in a refreshing new way AND there are…
The Last Minute Side Dish Your Kids Will Love: Veggie Cups in Mini Bread Bowls
Maybe this has happened to you too. The clock said 5:45pm and I had just stumbled in the front door from a big consulting job. Much later than usual. And, cue the meltdowns. That’s because after anxiously looking at the clock for the last 15 minutes of my day I finally cut off a co-worker who kept saying things like…
A 2-Minute, Healthy AND Adorable Veggie Platter for Spring
Who said Easter treats had to be all jelly beans and chocolate? Actually, that my have been my kids. But anyway… You can imagine my surprise at how willing they were to eat inhale this 100% vegetable snack the other day. It’s amazingly easy, took 2 minutes to make…and about the same to devour. Which was fine…
Look what happens when you change 1 thing About a Barefoot Contessa recipe: Bird’s Nest Macaroons!
Want an adorable dessert for your Easter table? How about one that’s actually a cinch to make–and the kids can even help? These coconut macaroons are adapted from one of my favorite Barefoot Contessa recipes, as part of our Barefoot for Babies series where we update the amazing Ina Garten’s ideas (along with a few…
Dairy-Free Creamy Tomato Soup with a Surprising Source of Protein: White Beans!
You’ll never guess the hard-working ingredient in our creamy tomato soup…white beans. Yep, a simple can of white beans brings protein to a meal that you wouldn’t usually call hearty. And since there’s no dairy, you might not guess creamy. But that’s what this soup is. It’s also delicious. My first grader sure thinks so. I…
My Favorite Pasta Recipe I Learned Living in Italy: Amatriciana
If you came to visit me when we lived in Rome, I would’ve made you this pasta. That’s because it’s my favorite pasta recipe I learned living in Italy: Amatriciana. Like many of the world’s most delicious recipes Italian recipes are awfully easy, this one begins with bacon. Except in Rome it’s pancetta. That smokey flavor…
Your Secret Weapon for an Instant Dinner: DIY Rotisserie Chicken Sandwiches
Sometimes a dinner is so fast it makes itself. That’s the case with one of our favorite ways to use rotisserie chicken: DIY rotisserie chicken sandwiches served along with raw veggies. And for that last part, we like to make things interesting. But still it is not like the one we get in the popular…
The 3-Ingredient Pesto Naan Bread Pizza Our Kids Can’t Stop Asking For
This pesto naan bread pizza taught me two things: Kids love pesto. I’m not nearly as clever as I think. It’s part of our What to Make for Dinner When You’re in a Hurry After Work series that I’m calling Dinner in a Flash. This instant pesto pizza was recommended by a lawyer mom whose girls go to school…
The 12 Best Muffin Recipes I’ve Ever Made
Muffins are so sneaky. Most of them are closer to cupcakes but that doesn’t stop those sweet imposters from parading right through most people’s mental list of Healthy Breakfast Ideas. I was in a cafeteria the other day where each item had a little plaque next to it, listing all the nutritional information. Morning Glory muffins! I thought…
2 Minutes to Gooey & Amazing: Why You’ll Want To Make Apple-Jack Sandwiches for Dinner Tonight
A few weeks ago I asked you guys, “What do you make for dinner when you’re in a hurry after work?” Here’s what one smart mom said: Apple-Jack Sandwiches. A fast, easy, satisfying dinner with a deliciously new combination of flavors. (Flavors our kids already know, only not in this formation. Horizons, prepare to be broadened.) And…
Your Family’s New Favorite Weekend Breakfast: The Big Dutch Baby
There’s a weekend breakfast that makes all four of my kids cheer: Dutch baby. A cross between a giant pancake and a souffle, a Dutch baby’s packed with protein (thank you eggs!) and takes about 3 minutes to prep (you too, blender!). We serve ours hot out of the oven, slathered in apple butter , a SUPER…
Ridiculously Cute Mini Taco Cups
These mini taco cups turned out to be a lunch our kids loved–and a built-in, whole-wheat snack too! I used leftover taco meat & beans from taco night, about a cup to make a dozen mini taco cups, which served 4 small kids. Of course the math would change with the ages of your kids, so…
Amazingly Quick & Easy Broccoli Soup that Starts with a Bag of Frozen Broccoli
I’ve tried making broccoli soup for my kids before. With tons of cheese. And love. It took a ton of love to grate all that cheese alone, and guess what? They hated it. The soup. I’m assuming (for my own mental health) they’re into the love. This time I went simpler. MUCH simpler. There’s no milk…
Sheet Pan Honey-Mustard Chicken with Potatoes and Broccoli
There’s a honey-mustard chicken dish that everyone in my family loves. And when I say family, I don’t just mean my kids. I’m talking cousins. In-laws. Friends of cousins. That sweet and tangy sauce slathered over juicy chicken thighs is hard to beat. Except when you cook the whole thing over potatoes and add a side…
Sausage, Sweet Potatoes & Apples: A Sheet Pan Dinner Your Kids Will Love
I’ve been trying to write this post for 2 years. Roasted sausage, sweet potatoes and apples on a sheet pan is an easy, delicious meal that everyone loves every time. That’s the problem. It’s one of my Hail Mary meals when I need dinner done fast–throwing whatever veggies I can find on a sheet pan, along with…
Whole-Wheat Apple Cookies with Lemon Glaze
“It’s the lemon glaze that really makes them,” my mother-in-law told me. And she was right. These whole-wheat apple cookies with lemon glaze are amazing. She should know, she made them! They aren’t quite good for you (because of said icing) but man, are these cookies a great way to round out a tea party, any…
How to Make Marcella Hazan’s Bolognese in 1 Hour
Have you ever made Marcella Hazan’s bolognese sauce? It’s amazing. But it takes almost 4 hours. If you have one, two, four or nine small kids at your house like I do, this just won’t work. So as part of my quest to introduce our kids to delicious food made from fresh ingredients, with tons of…
Sausage & Spinach Over Rice: A 15-Minute Dinner Kids Love
You just can’t beat sausage for quick, delicious flavor. The stuff comes brimming with flavor, straight from the store. You also can’t beat frozen spinach for knock-your-socks off nutrition in a handy little bag. Today we’re combining both for an amazing dinner, an easy dinner, a 4-Thumbs Up dinner done in minutes. Yep, a 15-minute dinner kids…