There’s only one thing better than a one-pot meal full of fresh ingredients: A one-pot meal that everyone LOVES. That’s this easy taco bake. A four-thumbs-up hit. Our fresh taco bake takes a classic dish and gives it the Foodlets treatment: making it healthier, simpler and as kid-friendly as ever. What’s special about our best-ever…
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…
One-Pot Mexican Quinoa Casserole (Plus a Fancy Serving Suggestion for Kids)
THERE ARE TIMES WHEN I NEED A LITTLE HELP getting the kids to try something new. Part of my goal here is to create a great relationship between our kids and the food we eat. Part of that is nutrition, cooking fresh and healthy meals. Part of that is fun. Enter, egg cups. They’re just…
roasted lemon chicken with vegetables, the perfect make-at-nap-time dinner
RIGHT AROUND 5PM THINGS GET ROUGH at my house, maybe even 4. There’s too much whining and not nearly enough wine. That’s why I love to make dinner earlier in the day and let it just hang out — or in this case, roast away — until we’re ready. When the cranky hour arrives I…
healthier fish & chips for kids
THE LAST TIME I HAD FISH & CHIPS–AND THE FIRST TIME THE KIDS EVER HAD IT–WAS IN LONDON. Doesn’t that sound lovely? Except, the rest of my memories include being very, very sick. No, not food poisoning, just the flu. But the worst flu, and even worse timing. We were actually moving from Rome to…
whole wheat penne with sugar snap peas & pork
I DON’T THINK THEY HAVE SUGAR SNAP PEAS IN ITALY. And if they do, I didn’t know how to say it (surprise!) so my kids were new to peas until last week. Now to be clear, my brood is not always interested in new foods. Before a bite of anything unfamiliar ever touches her lips,…
super simple turkey pot pie (and yes, I cheated)
WHEN YOU HAVE A FRIDGE FULL OF TURKEY and a house full of guests, the best way to handle both is a big casserole of turkey pot pie, just like this one. It’s a new riff on the Barefoot Contessa’s chicken pot pie recipe we made over once (and still the number one recipe of…
one pot dinner: sauteed cabbage & chicken with dried cranberries & toasted almonds
HERE’S THE PINT-SIZED REVIEW FOR THIS ONE: “I like it a little bit.” That would be Phoebe (4) when I served this cabbage dish for dinner the other night. Estelle (2) and George (1) were equally enthusiastic. And you know what? That works for me! A few bites here, a few bites there, and pretty…
spicy pasta with chicken, spinach and goat cheese
I’M BREAKING A PRETTY BIG RULE HERE. The idea of making two meals, one for the kids and another for the adults, is just too exhausting for me to even consider on most days. But for our Halloween lunch, I decided to spare the moms those mummy turkey dogs. Instead we adapted a recipe from…
easy penne pasta with cauliflower, sausage & parmesan cheese
IT’S NOT ALWAYS EASY TO GET KIDS EATING veggies. Especially those with a funny smell when you cook ’em. That’s right cauliflower, we’re talking about you. The good news is, we’ve discovered three ways to make cauliflower an easy sell at dinner. Roasted cauliflower, baked into macaroni and cheese, and this way right here. I…
tomato, basil & spinach soup with cheese tortellini (and bat croutons)
Dear Ina Garten, you know I love you and your amazing recipes, but I can no longer spend 45 minutes roasting tomatoes BEFORE the soup making process begins. That is because there are three small crazy people living in my house now. I can however, make a simpler (and healthier) version of your wonderful Roasted Tomato…
chicken & zucchini casserole castles
“THIS IS SO AWESOME!” That’s what Phoebe said when she saw her casserole castle last night. Then she wouldn’t eat it. Instead there was lots of trying to hug it while murmuring, “I just love it so much”. So that was the down side. The good news is, the whole thing couldn’t be easier to…
one-pot roasted lemon chicken with green beans & potatoes
RIDICULOUSLY GOOD. And easy. And all the kids eat it. That’s what I have to say about this chicken recipe, the one making the rounds on Facebook right now (have you seen it?) that’s actually from Real Simple. And also this: We’ve had this recipe twice in the last week and might have it again….
roasted sweet potatoes and chicken with quinoa in mustard sauce
WE’RE PASTA PEOPLE, and I’ll bet any family with small kids will say the same. But when it comes to other fluffy fillers, rice is always an easy sell around here. Barley is not. Millet has a so-so track record (good in muffins, not great as a dish). And that pretty much exhausts the options that were available to…