What's on the menu

[Not Nigella]

I feel partially brain dead and can't think of interesting things to feed the family.
Does anyone have a monthly menu planner they can share.
I have 3 kids 6, 4, 2 - they don't like spicey food and onlt the eldest will eat mild curries.  They all eat vegetables and the eldest and youngest will eat salads.  Eggs make the youngest one sick ie omelette, frittata.
I have cookbooks, just normally use cooksdotcom but I am lost for variety.

A typical week is

MON - Macaroni Cheese (hubby hates this so I make a Japanese Curry for us)

TUES - Roast Chicken(bought from Cold Storage)

WED - Fettucine with mushrroms and bacon

THURS - Chicken Snitzel

FRI - Homemade Pizza

SAT - BBQ - Hamburgers and Sausages

SUN - normally dine out or buy in something.

All meals are served with veges or salad!

Please help me with some kid friendly food that tastes good.

[Spend ages in kitchen]

Hi,
You have highlighted an important job of the mother. Coming up with varying menus for the family. Some days I feel like I am in the kitchen from when the kids come home from school 'till bedtime. It's difficult as everyone has different tastes.
What I try to do is pre-cook chicken breasts, have tuna mayonnaise ready mixed in the fridge, along with prepared salads, all separate so the family can pick the food items they like. For example the tuna mayonnaise can be used for a sandwich filling for lunch or stirred into pasta for an evening meal. Chicken fried or boiled and sliced can be added to a Caesar Salad or made into chicken mayonnaise sandwich filler. Some days in the morning I choose to make a selection of sandwiches ready for the moment there are cries of "I'm hungry MUM." Fresh fruit salads are always popular. As are individual bowls of different fresh fruits. Pasta is a major standby in our family, with butter and cheese stirred in for the kids. Finger food always seems tempting to kids. Ham rolls filled with thin cheese slices for example. It's alot about presentation.
Usually make a completely different meal for us the adults, double quantities of chilli con carne or spaghetti bolognese so there is a container put in the freezer for another meal or a lasagne.
Don't worry too much I think we all get into a routine where we repeat our menus, the ones that are tried and tested and will please.

[Justsomefaves]

Cottage/shepherds' pie
fish pie
enchiladas, fajitas, tacos
stirfry with noodles
chicken rice
spag bol
other pasta bakes
varying pasta shapes and various sauces with smallveg dice mixed in
thick chunky soups
roast ratatouille and couscous (with cheese)
homemade baked beans with ham/frankfurters
potato dauphinoise with veg or salad (honest they love this, give husband a steak!)
moussaka
meatloaf/meatballs

[Venice]

Buffalo Wings with Cheese Sauce and Celery Sticks
Breaded Mushrooms with Sauce Tartare
Viennese Schnitzel with potatoe Salad
Gordon Bleu
Saltimbocca alla Romana
Caesar Salad
Chicken Cashew Nuts
Chinese Dumplings
Zongzi
Chinese Spring Rolls
Hot/Sour Soup
Kung Pao Chicken
Po Piah
Singapore chicken Rice
Ma Po Tofu
Sweet Sour crispy boneless pork
Beef Tartare
Cocktail Shrimps in Avocado
Juice Alpokat
Gravad Lachs
Swiss Roesti with Salad
Giouvetsi
Gyros
Papoutsakia (small Shoes)
Stifado
Arni kokkinisto
Murgh Korma (with Cardamom, not spicy)
French Onion Soup
Pizza
Focaccia
Lasagne
Tiramisu
Paella
Baked Stuffed Papaya
Salmon with Black Pepper Sauce and Kimchi
North African Lamb Stew with Ras/el/Hanout
Hummus, Fallafel
Squid rings with Kaffir/Lime/Guacamole
Sambal Sotong
Mee Rebus
Laksa
Butterfly Shrimps
Jimbaran Bay Snapper with Sambal Matah
Nasi Campur
Curry Chicken (Malay Style)
Bihun Soup (Indonesia)
Fried Chicken Wings
Thai Pai/Ti
Thai Tom Kah Gai
Ground Pork with Chillie and Thai Basil
Creamy Coleslaw Salad
Supreme Nachos with Jalapenos and Cheese
Tortilla Soup
Satay
Vietnamese Spring Rolls
Jaganan
Butter Prawns

And so much more to discover, what a pity, my children are grown up now…. Not too much posibility to cook any more…

[Family Staples]

Chicken ala King - cube & stir fry chicken breast or thigh, add can of mushroom soup and mixed veggie (peas, corn, carrots).  Serve over rice - kids love it.

Stir fry beef - Stir fry beef with carrots and brocolli and maybe some celery - season with soy sauce - serve over rice.

Pan Fried Fish - Lightly flour fish fillet - salt and pepper to taste - pan fry in light oil or just a little butter - serve with veg & rice.

Stir Fry Prawns - Shell the prawns (easy for kids to eat - stir fry Asian style with Asian veggies and oyster sauce

Lasagna - A kids favorite

Taco nite - prepare the ingredients - place on table let kids make their own

Spaghetti - bolognese is a staple - alfredo is a kids favorite

Sloppy Joe's - Make a sauce similar to bolognese but "chili" it up a little.  Serve over toasted hamburger buns

Chicken &/of Pork adobo - There is a thread running around about how to make adobo sauce but you can google a recipe. Guarantee the family will love it.

Stir Fry - Prawns, pork, chicken and beef can all be stir fried in many ways with many different vegetables and many different flavors - try ginger, try soy, try oyster sauce for different flavors.  Experiment a little.  Meals are quick & tasty - Just make sure you start stir frying the meats first and add the veggies about 2 minutes prior to meat being done.  Veggies need to be crisp not soggy.

Fried Rice - Almost forgot fried rice as a meal - In a big wok - take an egg (or two depending on qty) and crack into wok, break the yolk and spread around so you make an egg "pancake" - chop into pieces, remove & set aside - cube and stir fry any of the staples (prawns, beef, chicken, pork)  - add rice, egg and mix veggie - season with light soy - fold together. We often eat this on it's own but you can also serve with pan fried pork chops.

Good Luck!

[Not daunting]

Try introducing one new meal a week to the family.
How about this recipe for a start from a famous tv chef:-
Cod Kebabs with Salsa
450g skinned thick cod fillets cubed
grated rind of 1 lime
juice of 2 limes
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley or coriander
1 tbsp drained capers (optional)
1 courgette, diagonally sliced
225g tagliatelle
salt and pepper
1.In a bowl mix together the cubed cod, lime rind, half the lime juice and one tablespoon of the oil. Season with salt and pepper and set aside to marinate for 5 minutes.
2. In a bowl, mix the tomato flesh with the onion, one tablespoon of the oil, the parsley or coriander, capers (if using) and the remaining lime juice.
3. Preheat the grill to high. Thread the cod cubes and courgette slices on to six bamboo skewers and grill for 8-10 minutes, turning once.
4. Meanwhile, in a pan of boiling water, cook the tagliatelle according to packet instructions. Drain, then toss with the remaining oil. Fork some some tagliatelle in the centre of each plate, top with two kebabs and spoon over some salsa.
If using wooden skewers, first soak them in cold water for 10 minutes to prevent burning.

I find anything on sticks is usually more appealing to kids. Cubed fresh fruit always disappears faster than whole fruit.

[just a thought]

I try and cook one new recipe each week as we like eating a wide variety of things and I enjoy cooking.  I borrow cookery books from the library and also use allrecipes.com
Tell us what you like to eat and we might be able to give you some new ideas.  I have loads of family recipes but I don't eat chicken so they will be beef, pork, fish or vegetarian recipes.

[Not Nigella]

Wow!  Thank you all for your ideas.

On a Wintery night like tonight we had lasagna!

To Just a Thought:
We eat most things bar offals, and only bacon and ham from the pork selection.  I have not cooked fish since arriving as I have no idea what tastes good other than prawns.  We have been eating more chicken than anything which I am concerned about as I know it contains large amounts of hormones. (it is not normal for a chicken to be on the dinner plate 28 days after hatching)
Therefore I am keen to introduce some vegetarian meals onto the list.

I think my husband is the fussy eater as he is away so much he is used to restaurant food and thinks he'll get the same at home.  He prefers curries, and will pass on the greens (and chicken) any chance given.

The children on the other hand request vegetables every night even with pizza and eat a good selection of fruit daily.  

I could live on toast with avacado and tomato topped with cracked pepper and cajun chicken salad but sadly the rest of the family don't see things my way!

Our last stop was Australia and we BBQed most nights, however it seems an expensive option here.

As I mentioned it is the evening meal selection that I struggle with.

Thanks again, for your ideas they will be served in the near future!  

[Fusspots]

wow, I wish my children liked their veggies like yours do.  Mine are the fussy eaters in our house and they only like carrots in the cooked veg section, so they get carrots with just about everything!

Child A likes salad and child B doesn't.  Child B likes lasagne and shepherds pie and all that and child A doesn't.  Child B loves things in gravy and child A will only have ketchup..........it's a nightmare and like you, I'm in the kitchen from about 4pm until around 7pm, sometimes making 3 meals.  I'm a fool to myself, honestly I am!!

But you sound like you already have quite a decent menu plan sorted out.

My mother-in-law is a very organised woman and when my husband was younger and lived at home with the family (5 of them in all), she had a menu plan which she had written down.  

She basically had a 3 week plan.  A whole 3 weeks of meals planned out.  When they finished the 3rd week, they just went back to week 1 again and everyone hadn't had that meal for 3 weeks so they didn't get bored of it.  I suppose she changed it periodically, but it seems like a good system if you are as organised as that (I'm not!!).

You could give it a try and see if it works.

If your husband is a curry person (as I am myself it has to be said), then curry is fairly easy, you can make a big pan and keep some for later in the week and freeze the rest.  If he doesn't like what everyone else has, he can have his curry.

I sneak spinnich into my curries sometimes for that extra bit of veg boost and my husband actually likes it now.  He wouldn't touch spinnich (spelling!) with a bargepole if it was just there in a green lump on the plate, but in a curry (or even a canelloni) he loves it.

Give it a try.

[just a thought]

Your children eat vegetables so they might enjoy this low fat vegetarian lasagne.

1 small aubergine (eggplant)
salt
1 400g/14oz can chopped tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 large courgette, chopped (zucchini)
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
125g/4oz button mushroom, sliced
ground black pepper
125g/4oz lasagne sheets

For the sauce:

150ml/ 1/4 pt vegetable stock
300ml/ 1/2 pt skimmed milk
50g/2oz grated cheese
1 tsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp cornflour
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil

Slice the aubergine and put in a colander.  Sprinkle with salt and leave for 30 mins.  Wash and pat dry.  Put the tomatoes, garlic, basil, courgette, onion, pepper and mushrooms in a saucepan.  Add the aubergine, season and cook for 30 mins, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are cooked.

Mix the stock for the sauce, the milk, half the cheese and the mustard in a saucepan.  Blend the cornflour with 4 tablespoons cold water to form a paste and add to the pan.  Bring to the boil, stirring until thickened.

Spoon a layer of the vegetable mixture into the base of an ovenproof dish.  Lay half the lasagne sheets on top to cover.  Spoon on remaining vegetable mixture and cover with the remaining lasagne sheets.  Pour the cheese sauce over the top and bake at 190oC/ 375oF for 40 mins or until golden and bubbling.  Sprinkle the basil on top and serve.

[just a thought]

Someone posted a barbeque sauce recipe on this site which I can highly recommend.  The posters name was Delia Damson.  The sauce is lovely with barbequed meat, sausages etc but is also nice on a ham and salad sandwich.  It is very quick and easy to make.

[try]

my kids also love spinach and ricotta - either as part of a lasagna or stuffed in those giant shells set in a base of tomato sauce, sprinkled with grated cheese and baked.

For a 3 layer lasagna I cook and mash a butternut pumpkin and make a bolognese sauce (or tomato sauce with veges and puree). Stir 1 block frozen defrosted spinach in a pan until water is gone. Mix in 1 tub ricotta and a handful grated parmesan.

Then layer lasagna sheets, mashed pumpkin, lasagna sheets, tomato sauce, lasagne, spinach mix, lasagna, tomato sauce, grated cheese.

It is kind of off the top of my head (sorry) but makes 2 - one to freeze. It is worth the effort to have one in the freezer!

My kids wolf it down (as do I).

Also try a vegetarian "chili": canned chopped tomato, cubed pumpkin, can of kidney beans, couple of handfuls of frozen corn and add chili powder to taste. Serve with rice and something green if desired (or cubed avocado and sour cream). Also freezes very well.

[Shoddy]

We've had some interesting fusion recipes at home which have turned out well.

- We did a porkshop, baked zucchini with tomatoes and parmesan and a pumpkin risotto which turned out a great trio.
Porkchop was marinated in Chinese sauces -- black bean, hoisin, sesame, fivespice powder,garlic and dark soya sauce -- was yummy we thought.

-We did salmon biryani or pilaf and served it with yoghurt salad, poppadums and even some creamy spinach.

We love local food like Mee Rebus, but we do a better job at home because we add more meat and vegies than in the hawker stalls.

Buy this Prima Deli Mee Rebus mix from the supermarket, and yellow noodles -- add fresh prawn, cooked chicken, vegetables and greens, chinese sausage, some assorted tofu and fishballs, garnish with fresh herbs like coriander and parsley and it's a delicious yet healthy noodle night

[prana]

I saw a wonderfully easy soup recipe on Nigella Lawsons show. And she calls it SLIME SOUP which would go down well with the kids.

Put frozen peas into boiling water with couple stalks of onions. Add salt and some stock if you like.

Meanwhile cut pieces of mozerella cheese into the blender.

Afer 10mins, pour the peas (minus onion stalks) into the blender. Blend and drink! Besides the *cool* name there's the wierd green colour.