Turning One Meal into Three

If there is one thing I've gotten really good at since adding a toddler into the mix is how to make a meal go as far as possible. I love to cook, but just like everyone I don't always have the time to make 3 meals a day 7 days a week all from scratch and just like everyone I need to stick to a food budget and cooking all those meals would be quite expensive. So it is imperative that when I think up dinner ideas I also consider how they can transform into lunch, dinner, and even breakfast over the next couple of days. Here is an example of how different recipes start with dinner and go from there.

DINNER: Lemon-Mint Chicken with Couscous & Rosemary Fingerling Potatoes

Lemon-Mint Chicken

ingredients:

olive oil

fresh lemon juice

fresh mint - 1 tsp minced

salt & pepper

skinless boneless chicken breast enough to feed the family and have leftovers (make sure to buy good quality chicken breast, organic, free range. If you have had trouble getting your kiddos to eat meat it could be that it is too dry or overcooked. Shredding it also helps with texture.)

directions:

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Set an oiled rack (optional) in an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. You may also bake directly on baking sheet.

In a small bowl, whisk together oil, lemon juice, mint, and salt and pepper to taste.

Put Chicken on prepared rack and drizzle with oil and lemon mixture. Bake, turning one, until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the enter, 12 - 15 minutes per side.

Couscous

ingredients:

golden raisins - 1/2 cup

unsalted butter - 1 tbsp

salt - 1/2 tsp to taste

ground cinnamon and cumin - 1/4 tsp each

Israeli couscous - 1 1/2 cups or enough to feed your family w/ leftovers

directions:

In a sauce pan over medium-high heat, combine 1 1/2 cups water, raisins, butter, salt, cinnamon, and cumin and bring to a boil. Stir in couscous, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand 5 minutes. Give a final stir and serve.

Rosemary Fingerling Potatoes ( or any small potatoes)

ingredients:

olive oil - 1 tablespoon

potatoes - enough to feed your family and for leftovers

fresh rosemary - 2 sprigs minced

salt & pepper

directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut potatoes into small cubes and place in a large bowl. Add olive oil, rosemary, and salt & pepper and toss. Place potatoes onto an oiled baking sheet and bake until tender 25 to 30 minutes.

Recommendation: Cook potatoes first, then allow the oven to cool down to temperature and bake the chicken. Leave potatoes on the stove top, covered, to keep warm.

Breakfast or Lunch: Egg, potato, & spinach scramble

Egg, Potato, & Spinach Scramble

ingredients:

leftover potatoes

eggs - enough to feed your family approximately 1 - 2 eggs per person. Beaten.

1/4 cup of fresh spinach finely chopped.

butter - 1 tablespoon

salt & pepper

cream cheese - 1 tablespoon

directions:

Heat butter in a fry pan over medium heat. Add spinach, salt & pepper, and saute until tender. Meanwhile in a bowl place the leftover potatoes and mash up with a fork to a fine consistency. Add eggs, potatoes, and cream cheese to the spinach and cook thoroughly until the eggs are no longer runny.

This can also be a great lunch idea and can also be turned into a burrito with some fresh salsa added.

Lunch or Dinner: Chicken, Mango, & Avocado Quesadillas

Chicken, Mango, & Avocado Quesadillas

ingredients:

whole wheat tortillas

vegetable oil

cheese (any kind you wish) 1 1/2 cups grated

shredded leftover chicken

ripened mango - 1 peeled, pitted, and sliced

ripened avocado - 1 peeled, pitted, and sliced

fresh cilantro - 1/4 cup chopped

mild fresh salsa or plain yogurt for serving (optional)

direction:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush tortillas with oil. Place tortillas, oil side down on a baking sheet, two at a time. Sprinkle each with one-quarter of the cheese, half the chicken, half the mango, half the avocado, half the cilantro, and another one-quarter of the cheese. Top each with 1 tortilla, pressing to adhere, brush top with oil.

Bake quesadillas until filling is heated through and edges begin to crisp, about 10 minutes. Using a large metal spatula, carefully turn each over and bake until bottom is crisp, about 5 minutes.

Transfer quesadillas to plates. Cut into wedges. Allow to cool before serving. (Wrap leftover quesadillas in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to two weeks)

Snack: Leftover couscous can be served cold with whole wheat pita bread for a great healthy snack.

Age Appropriate:

For those in various stages of eating you can simply puree, chop, and blend to make all these ingredients work your own little one. 9 to 12 months - simply put the chicken into a food processor and grind into the appropriate consistency add the mango for a different flavor, the potatoes can be mashed as well. Babies (6 to 9 months) may be too young for chicken, but pureed mango, and avocado are always a hit.

I hope these ideas will make you think differently about taking the time to prepare a homemade meal for you family. If one meal can easily be transformed into numerous meals you will save time, money, and frustration.

Bon Appetit!!

Yum-O Chicken Nuggets

Do processed frozen chicken nuggets have you feeling, well, guilty? Your kids like them, but the nutrition info isn't exactly.... promising. Have no fear, Mish+Mash is here! We actually got this at a Baby Chef class we attended this winter, and I've made these several times. My husband and daughter really like them, and we've used the mix to make chicken patty sandwiches too. Check out the fabulous ingredients- who could feel guilty popping some of these out of the freezer for their hungry tots?

On that note: we got a great question yesterday: Do we post all of our recipes on our blog, or just the ones we don't make in class? The answer is that we will reference these recipes often in our classes, though we may not actually make them. The amount of diverse and nutritious recipes out there can be overwhelming, so in our classes we focus on making large amounts of a few promising ones, but we are sure to give out all of our other favorites on the blog for reference. The blog saves paper and is a resource for our customers and the greater community.

Anyway, on with the nuggets!

Yum-O Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients:
3/4 lb organic ground chicken
1 medium onion, peeled and diced (I love the food processor for this part)
1 small apple, peeled and grated (just switch to the grater attachment on your processor)
1 chicken stock cube, crumbled well
1/4 or more cups of frozen spinach, crumbled
1 cup dry bread crumbs
canola oil or olive oil for frying (canola oil can take higher heats)

Directions:
1. Combine first five ingredients in bowl. Mix together with your hands or spoon. Shape into small patties.
2. Put bread crumbs in a shallow dish and press the pieces into the coating.
3. Heat enough oil for shallow frying in large frying pan. Add nuggets and cook about 6 minutes, turning occasionally, until light golden and cooked through.
4. Suitable for freezing- they will be mushy if you microwave them so consider letting them defrost in fridge and then heating them up stove top. Or, you could throw a few in the oven or toaster oven at 375 until crispy again.

Turkey Veggie Puree

Turkey Veggie Puree

1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 lb. ground organic turkey
1 rib celery, diced into ¼ inch pieces
1 small onion, diced into ¼ inch pieces
1 small carrot, diced into ¼ inch pieces
1 can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups homemade chicken stock or vegetable stock*
1 fresh sage leaf


In large stock pot, heat olive oil on medium-high heat. Add ground turkey and sauté until browned. Remove turkey from pot, drain on a plate covered with a paper towel, and set aside.

Turn down heat to medium. In same pot, add diced celery, onion and carrot and cook for about 6-7 minutes, or until vegetables are almost tender. Return turkey to pot. Add beans, chicken broth and sage. Bring pot to boil. Once mixture is just boiling, turn down heat to medium low and simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

FOR 9 TO 12 MONTHS:
Once mixture is has cooled down, add to food processor. Puree until you reach desired consistency. Distribute mixture evenly amongst ice cube trays or cupcake tins, dependent upon desired portion size.

If you want to power pack this meal with vitamins, add some fresh spinach or kale at the same time you add the beans, broth and sage. The flavors work very well together, as the mild, creamy beans tone down the strong “greens” flavor.