Menu planning for different needs

[LizinFrance]

Hi there,

I'm a bit of a 'lurker' here. You all seem to have some great ideas - so.....I'm after some help please.

I have 4 children, and desperately need to menu plan. Have tried on and off for ages, and never seem to get it right! Do you think its possible to cook 1 dinner, but still cater for the following different needs:

2 veggies, others meat eaters happy to eat veggie during the week/or have a meal that can have meat or fish added at last minute. Both adults need to lose weight. We have a 13 month old, 4 year old, 10 and 12 year old. Other than 2 veggies, we will all have a go at eating most things. Need quick meals in the evening, and perhaps 1 day where I can use 'left overs' the day after.

Please help.....seem to spend all my time trying to sort this out, searching for recipes, diet plans etc but never actually do it. Need some kind person to say 'this is what you are going to eat'!

Many thanks,

Liz and her hungry family

Me, v

sorry, not quite sure where the little 'me v' at the end came from!

you could do several 'make in large quantities and freeze' meals with veggioe and none veggie versions - so curry, bolognaise, cottage pie etc - and then serve the appropriate dish to the right person.

so maybe:
monday: make veggie bolognanise, but enough to freeze 2 portions extra.
tuesday sausages (veggie or meat) and potatoes, peas carrots (if you make enough mash you can then make a cottage pie later on)
wednesday baked potatoes, baked beans and cheese, and salad
thursday - cottage pie with left over mash (can be veggie or use mash and veggie bolognaise and make meat cottage pie for the others)
friday - spanish omlette with peepers etc. ham in part of omlette if you want (don't serve that bit to the veggies)
saturday - pizza and salad
no idea about sunday, do what you like with a roast chicken or a nut roast????

if you do a chicken the next week you can do stir fry and add the chicken (cos it is already cooked) after you've served the veggie portions.

i hope this helps - my menu planning is appalling.

I'm veggie (and doing slimming world) and DH (diabetic) and DD are meat eaters, so complicated here as well.

I do a combination of "all veggie" nights and nights where we share the potatoes/rice/vegetables etc but they have meat or fish with theirs and I have a veggie main bit.

I also tend to make extra of the veggie main part (pasta bolognese, lasagne etc), and freeze some for another day, which saves some work.

On nights where DH and DD have something like a beef casserole or cottage pie, I'll have something I've previously frozen or I'll have a veggie version cooking alongside - so the same vegetables in both but my pan will have Quorn mince, marigold stock etc in it and rather than make a portion for one I'll make enough for two or more meals so it's worth the effort.

hope that makes sense.

My meal planning needs a review now the weather is improving.

Many thanks, some great ideas there. Will get myself sorted this week end and hopefully have a stress free, menu planned week. I also have a slow cooker, and have tried a few veggie recipes, but have not turned out very good. i could perhaps do a meaty thing in there and use a frozen veggie meal. Anyone any success with veggie things in the slow cooker?

Have a good week end.

Hi,

We love indian food, but I have never been brave enough to try cooking it! Always been nervous too - dont know wny really! Can you recommend a really easy one to start with?
Many thanks for all your suggestions - some great ones.

Liz

Jamie Oliver (much as he irritates me) has a couple of easy veggie curry recipes. Or just buy a paste and a tin of coconut milk and start off by making a curry with that.

Sweet potatoes are lovely in a curry, as is cauliflower - it wouldn't need any meat but you could always serve meaty samosas on the side for anybody that felt they 'needed' meat.

We are three veggies and a carnivore and tbh we eat entirely veggie nearly all of the time. meals that carnivore dp is happy to eat include:

Chilli made with lentils
Any veggie curry
Pasta Arabiatta
Lasagne made from puy lentils instead of meat
Chickpea and vege tagine
Pittas with salad and either halloumi or falafel, served with homemade wedges
Asparagus risotto, pea risotto, leek risotto or butternut squash risotto
A pie made from Quorn and leeks in a white winey/milky sauce
Peppers stuffed with rice
Quiche, hassleback potatoes and steamed vege or salad
Baked potatoes with cheese, salad and coleslaw
Sausage casserole made with veggie hotdog sausages
Fajitas made with Quorn and lots of vege

That looks yummy thanks. As a veggie I'm embarassed to say, but i dont cook wih lentils very much. Which ones do I have to soak overnight?

Many thanks again,

Liz

Hi BeligerentGhoul

Loads of great ideas there thanks. What are hassleback potatoes? Can I have your chickpea and veg tagine recipe please?

We live in France, and you can't buy Quorn over here. Ever now and then we get some bought over by friends. Its something we all love!

Thanks, Liz

Hassleback potatoes Here I put fresh rosemary on them too.

Tagine - I don't use a recipe but it's something like:

fry sliced onion and garlic
add vege - potatoes, carrots, peppers, courgettes, sweet potatoes whatever really and fry a bit more
add cinammon, paprika, ginger, cumin seeds, lemon juice, saffron, honey, stock, bit of tomato puree or passata (I don't like it very tomatoey though) olives, chickpeas, chopped parsely, coriander
shove in the oven and cook until the vege is all meltingly soft and serve with cous cous and more parsley, maybe pine nuts plus harrissa.
Some people like dried fruit in tagines too.