Help - will only have microwave, kettle & toaster for 2 weeks

[BalloonSlayer]

Having kitchen done - woo hoo!

2 of my three DCs are the dreaded chicken nuggets type kids. One is a good eater.

What the hell can I give them to eat? We can't even eat out all that much as DS1 (the good eater) is allergic to milk and eggs.

Then there is us. DH is a vegetarian. WTF are we going to eat?

Anyone who has been through this who can help me?

thesecondcoming - what a nightmare! Is it all OK now?

I was just coming back to say that washing up is a bit tricky with no kitchen, so plastic picnic crockery and cutlery were very useful then, as they don't mind banging against the enamel of the bathroom sink.

OMG thesecondcoming

You're just all trying to scare me now, aren't you?

I hope it will only be 2 weeks, I do trust our builder, he is a very nice chap . . .

Thanks for the reminder about toastabags - I have some - yay! I am not sure I could get a George Forman grill clean enough in the bathroom sink to be able to use it for all of us - to explain, DH is a strict veggie and would be at any meat residue, DS1 anaphlyactic to milk and eggs so if it was used to cook quorn fillets for example that could be dangerous for him (allergies also why he can't have hot school meals). I will think about the grill though.

My mum has a mini oven thing I might borrow but she has annoyed me by not coming over to see us at Christmas ("couldn't cope" with being driven over by DSis for a 45 min drive) so I am loath at the moment to schlep all the way over to see her. Let's see how desperate I get, huh!

Paper plates and styrofoam cups are on my shopping list for sure.

maybe the burglers figured you'd already been done...

! And this was to get the kitchen done? Scary...

Message withdrawn

good luck with the kitchen - I was in this situation a few months ago - I still can't get used to the fact I now have a working kitchen. DP stocked freezer for DS, but we ran out of that as kitchen took longer than expected. after that it was M&S microwave kids meals. I survived on crisps, toast and take aways!

your mantra is "it will all be worth it in the end, it will all be worth it in the end..."

fishfingers (a couple of mins in the microwave) waffles in toasted (or 9 or frozen bread setting and baked beans in the mircrowave

is acdtually rather yummy and one of my 2 minute uni dinners for when i had no time to properly cook

Go to the library and borrow a microwave cookbook, there are seriously loads of thginds you can cook with a mocrowave if you know how to.

Any possibility of buying an electric steamer or slow cooker or borrowing from a friend?

also stock up your freezer now with casseroles, curry, bolognese sauce etc that can just be microwaved.

you can cook pasta in the mocrowave, and rice, couscous can be made with boiling water, baked potatoes can be mocrowaved, you can even do scrambled and poached eggs in the mocrowave.

It is definitely worth it in the end - I still feel all warm and fuzzy looking round my kitchen one year on. It only took months because we needed a new floor, damp treatment, wall dry-lining, etc, etc. If it was just the kitchen it would have been finished in weeks.

Good luck & look forward to stocking up your new cupboards and cooking fabulous meals in a kitchen designed by you!

Thanks everyone.

I bought a George Forman grill today - twas only £13, about the cost of two trips to McDonalds so hopefully that will help.

We used our barbecue when we had our kitchen done. OK we couldn't eat outside because it was cold but that didn't stop us using it to cook sausages, chicken, fish etc and then eating it inside.

Oh we lasted a few months like that. We had

beans on toast
microwaved scrambled egg on toast
baked potatos with beans or tuna
soup and toast or sandwiches
curry or chilli with baked potato or rice (cook curry or chilli in MW, then put to one side while cooking potato or rice in MW)

We found that this gave enough variety to last some time with only the occasional take away or microwaved ready meal before we began to get bored. At that point we were given an electric grill on loan and that added enough variety to keep us going a few more weeks until we had a proper cooker.