Suggestions for quick and easy meals

[Posey]

I'm sure this has probably been done before so if anyone can point me in the direction of a suitable thread, that would be great.
If not, I'm looking for inspiration. Dd (6) will eat anything and ds(1), looks like he'll be the same. Its for those days when you've had no time to prepare anything in advance, have gone somewhere straight after school and by the time you get in, they're starving and will wait no more than 15-20 minutes for food. Added to that baby is being a clingon so you don't want to be standing over the hob.
Things along the lines of fish fingers and potato waffles that can just go in the oven. Its just that they're getting a bit boring.

Any suggestions gratefully received. Thanks

Posey hows the cooking going???

The cokings going very well Melsy thank you for asking!
We've so far tried one of Cha's ideas, and Badhair's baked bean thingy - yumyum.
Melsy your recipe is on the menu for tomorrow and Popsycal's Morrocan chicken on Thursday. Am aiming to try all of them in the next week or two.
Thanks everyone for the inspiration.

I've started giving DS couscous with cooked meat (ham, chicken whatever), frozen veg, spring onions and then when cooked a tin of tomato puree mixed in. We've been doing this for lunches for him and me because his diet had gone down hill over Christmas.

Princesspeahead - just wanted to tell you we had your chiken, pesto, creme fraiche thingy with pasta for tea today and it was fab! Me and dh, dd (6) and ds (13m) all wolfed it down and it has been requested again for tomorrow. Thanks a lot

thought of afew more....cheats shpherd's pie....
cook onions, mince (or veggiemince - what ever suits) in pan - add passata and water - euqal amounts
add whever veggies you have - courgette, mushrooms, tomoates etc
simmer for about 15-20 mins ish
while doing that, microwave some potaotoes and make mash to go with it!

pretend pizzas
get some ready made puff pastry dough from super market
heat tinned tomatoes til they go thickish (or use puree) the cut out little circles of pastry....put of tomato stuff and whtever veg you have and a bit of cheese
stick in oven for 15 mins.
done!

another one,...
cook pasta
cook frozen borccoli
open tin of tuna (or boneless and skinless salmon is you are feeling rich or don't want to use tuna)
make a cheese sauce
mix altogether!

Popsycal - you're doing a great service here! Your Moroccan Chicken was great by the way. You ought to write a recipe book, Meal Ideas FOR Busy Families.

oh yes - and if you do cheats shepherd's pie then do extra and you can serve it the next day with pasta as spaghetti bolegnese!!

Okay this is ds twins favourite and when I cook it I add veg (good with all kinds of veg - carrots and peas are really good in it - so you add what you want.)

First off put on pasta to cook, fusilli (sp) is best with it.

One 400g tin of tomatoes plus a little tomato puree
One tin of hotdogs (at least 8 in tin) cut into chunks
Couple of handfuls of whatever veg
Little bit of garlic, mixed herbs or basil (dried, I am not posh enough for fresh!)

No seasoning needed. Bring tomatoes to boil, simmer, add garlic etc. and hotdogs and veg. Simmer until cooked, add however much you want to the cooked pasta and mix it together. The rest you can freeze for up to 3 months, or eat it yourself as it is quite filling!

When DN(? nephew!) stays he wants this and he is the fussiest eater out, DS twins have eaten this from about 18 months, before I omitted the hotdogs as I wasn't sure if they should eat them at that age, probably could have! I always have some in the freezer for emergencies - and I am not usually that organized

ooooh - i will post some more tomorrow - i am on a roll now....!!!!

Little pizza can be made quickly and easily on top of flour tortillas, english muffins and crumpets too.

Does anyone out there have a suitable quick curry recipe for a 15 month old?. At the moment ds has some of ours which is made using a mild off the shelf curry sauce but I would prefer to make my own for him if anyone can help?

Norny, I'm a complete wimp so our curries are as mild as anything and I've been feeding them to DSs for ages, I'm pretty sure they were eating our stuff at 14 months

This is pretty quick. 45 minutes at max?

Chop up onion and a couple of cloves of garlic and fry until soft. Add diced chicken and brown off. I tend to use Paneer (indian cheese available at most supermarkets) as well as chicken but its not necessary, it is a nice texture for little kids though. Chuck in a few dessert spoons of mild/korma curry powder and then add a couple of chicken oxos and top up with boiling water. I use ground almonds to thicken it and then add creme fraiche to make it yummy and creamy. I usually let it simmer now until the rice is cooked, so 8 minutes for the kettle to boil again, and 15 minutes in the steamer in the M/W.

This is possibly the most Anglised non-curry curry in existance.

lydialemon, I do similar but use curry paste (less powdery taste), tin tomatoes and tin coconut milk.

Oh Oh I forgot the coconut, I just grate the block stuff in usually. I do use tomatoes sometimes - thats then a 'fake' dopiaza rather than a 'fake' korma

I'm hungry.

mmm me too. have last night's leftover chinesy-stir fry in tupperware in office fridge. may have to nip to microwave & tuck in

Norny, here is a quick potato curry - you can add other veg like peas is you like:

Heat oil in pan with half teaspn of mustard seeds and if you like, add one teaspn of sesame seeds. When mustard seeds have popped, add two medium peeled and diced potatoes (and other veg if you like), add black pepper or smidgen of chilli powder, pinch of turmeric powder (be careful as this is the stuff that stains!) a pinch of salt and either a few drops of lemon juice for a dry curry or two teaspn of tomatoe puree and half a mug of water for a sloppy curry.

Toast bread, add cheese/beans/sardines/tuna mayo and serve!

Easy vegetarian curry - fry onions / garlic in oil, then stir in curry powder or paste. Add tinned tomatoes and a tin of chickpeas, simmer for 20 minutes. This is a WW recipe so low fat, you could add coconut milk to make it creamier if you like.

Thanks for all your great help with the tasty curry recipes - will now need to be careful I don't opt for a curry tea every day!

Another quick chicken dish - Place 4 chicken fillets in a casereole dish & season. Cut up onions and peppers and place on top. Add a couple of heaped tablespoons of tomato or sweet pepper chutney ( I use baxters - don't use any sort of relish as it's too acidic) and then pour in some white wine -just enough to cover base of dish. Place lid on dish and cook at 180 degrees for about 50 minutes. Serves great with microwaved potatos or oven chips.

forgot to mention you may have to top up the wine.

Quick bacon, mixed veg and cheese omelette:

Cook a handful of frozen mixed veg in boiling water, drain and put to one side

Cut up a rasher or two of lean bacon (I use scissors for speed)

Grate a little cheese

Lightly beat two eggs

• Start by frying the bacon bits and then chuck in eggs, mixed veg and cheese. That's it. If its too thick and doesn't set on top then stick under the grill for speed (whilst still in pan - be careful if pan has plastic handle!)

Good served with baked beans. Takes circa 10 mins total. The quantity above would easily serve two under 4's. My 18 month old dd whilst often quite fussy, cheerfully eats this

There are a couple of things I keep in my store cupboards for the odd time we get in late and even 15-20 mins will be too long. One is the microwave packets of rice (Tilda or Uncle Bens) and the other the microwave packets of pasta (Dolmio). They are both quite expensive but I tend to buy them when they are on special offer and stock up. They only take 2 mins in the microwave and are ideal for those times when they are just too hungry to wait. The rice comes in some lovely flavours too like tomato or mushroom.
I add chopped ham or tuna and sweetcorn to the rice, and just a bit of grated cheese and pasta sauce (keep cubes in freezer) to the pasta. Dinner in 3 minutes !!