Care to share your emergency baby/toddler meal?

[blushingmare]

As I was once again faced with a hungry toddler and a virtually empty fridge this evening and used my fail safe, tried and tested emergency Philadelphia pasta dinner, I thought "wouldn't it be great if lots of people shared their emergency meals, then I wouldn't always had to fall back on this old chestnut!"

So, would you care to share the meal you make when you've got in late, have a starving child and discover to your horror that there's very little food in the house?

This is mine....

Blushingmare's Philly Pasta

1. Cook pasta
2. Chuck in some frozen peas and spinach with the pasta
3. Drain when cooked
4. Mix in Philadelphia

It's actually delicious

[sharond101]

I do the frozen mash too and serve it with all sorts of leftovers I also freeze for emergency dinners.

[Thurlow]

It just felt like a terrible meal! I normally at least make pasta but toddler was too hungry to even wait for that. I must try and remember that low salt, low sugar baked beans are really quite a good food.

Poppy, we buy the value cream cheese as it's so cheap it doesn't feel as though it matters if we don't use it all. But it is actually lower salt than the main brands.

[PoppyAmex]

Thurlow why the blushes? Sounds very resourceful and plenty of vitamins so they won't get scurvy

A lot of cream cheese recipes here, I never buy it but will investigate now - wonder if the salt content is toddler friendly?

[Eddiethehorse]

Beans/omelette
or
for some reason i ALWAYS have broccoli and cauliflower in the fridge. I dont know why i buy so much of it. Steam both, blend with cream cheese with garlic and herbs and a handful of cheddar, serve with pasta or rice. 1 year old loves this.
or a similar version of feijoada.
DoItTooJulia - How do you make a risotto in 10mins? DD LOVES risotto!!

[Thurlow]

I just had to do an utter emergency meal of a bowl of baked beans, sone oatcakes and some tinned mandarins

[IJustNeedANap]

This is a great thread! I've pinched loads of ideas.

My emergency is omlette with whatever veg is in the fridge

DD doesn't like touching pasta at the minute so that really limits what I can give in a rush

[PoppyAmex]

your=yours

Snakes and bastards, just read that fish pate is out during pregnancy. Now I'm craving it like mad.

[PoppyAmex]

Ceve found them here and might order some or ask mum to send some from Lisbon.

But since I'm not entirely sure about the ingredients, have started looking online for fish pate recipes (thanks for your scarecrow - by the way, DD is half Portuguese and unfortunately not crazy about feijoada/bean stew so not sure where I went wrong!)

[DoItTooJulia]

I can only imagine JJJ wasn't being smug but her sentiment looked so written down.

Anyway ours is risotto. Always got risotto rice in and frozen veg. Handful of cheese in and bobs your uncle! Dinner in 10!

[summermakesmesneeze]

And that was veg, not beg, naturally..

[scarecrow22]

fantastic thread, thanks OP

We keep fresh ricotta and spinach or other pasta 'parcels' in freezer and take out handfuls as required -4m cook from frozen, max.

I also make instant fish pate (poppy and ceev might like this) with smoked mackerel and cream cheese (like Philly) and if you are feeling like a domestic goddess then a splash of lemon juice and a twist if pepper too. My dd would eat polystyrene with this on. Can add spinach if want.

Slightly more work but very easy is cheats feijoada (Portuguese bean stew for want of a better description): fry onion and garlic with chopped chorizo/pancetta/bacon, tip in two or three tins of beans (ideally a mix of kidney, canellini, borlotti, say), a tin of chopped tomatoes and half a pint of stock; bring to boil and simmer for up to an hour if you have time. You can add tomato paste, left over pasta sauce, herbs/bay leaves etc if feeling posh!
(Ceev I grew up in Portugal )

When I was pregnant doctor recommended best meal for keeping up iron levels was baked beans on wholemeal toast with a glass of orange juice, so no guilt at that meal

A handful of frozen peas chucked into any very hot bowl if food will cool it quicker while they 'cook' if toddler is getting antsy!

[summermakesmesneeze]

Sometimes, if its very late, and I deem that lunch was healthy enough... cereal. And fruit.

[summermakesmesneeze]

I make toasty pizza- toast the bread, spread over tomato purée, add some thinly sliced beg of your choice (quickly fried first-don't use much oil), a little grated cheese and melt under the grill. Or microwave if like me, your rented house has a grill that threatens to burn the place down.

[TheSydenhamSet]

I recently found out that mashed potato can be frozen. I usually unintentionally make more than I need (never have been good measuring by sight!) and was thrilled to learn I could bag it up and pop it in the freezer. So now I defrost and heat portions in the micro and serve with fishfingers, baked beans and veg

[TheSydenhamSet]

My kids love green pesto pasta with cheese and fried pancetta. I slice up some cucumber on the side. Done

[ceeveebee]

Poppy let me know if you find it anywhere in the UK - very handy for on-the-go too as they don't need to be kept in the fridge

[Theonlyoneiknow]

Put 25g flour, 100ml milk and 25 g butter in jug, micro1 min then stir and repeat Three times. Add lots of grated cheese and add to pasta. Very quick mac n cheese :)

Eggy bread is another favourite here

[PoppyAmex]

Thanks Ceev and Next.

I'm actually originally from Portugal and just remembered the little round sardine parcels some restaurants used to serve in the late 80's! I didn't know you could still get them.

I'm on a mission to find some now!

[ceeveebee]

www.princesgroup.com/brands/shippams/

[ceeveebee]

Poppy, yes it's retro shiphams paste!!
www.princesgroup.com/brands/shippams/
When we went to Portugal they give you fish pâté with bread before every meal and DD loved it, this was the closest I could find

If she likes fish then tinned mackere or sardinesl on toast a good standby too

[nextphase]

Poppy
Mashed up fish, from a tin or jar usually.
Try near the tinned tuna, or the tins of fruit in your local supermarket. The Brand i know is Shipmans, but there are probably loads more.

LittleMiss yep, I freeze the bologanase in a silicon muffin tin, and then pop them out into a freezer bag. One lump per child (mine don't like too much sauce) ina bowl in the microwave til boiling. If I'm doing it for adults also, I just pop into a small pan with a tiny bit of water on a low heat, and turn up when they start falling apart (otherwise they burn before they defrost?!)

[Littlemissexpecting]

OP I'm impressed you have spinach in as a standby.
Those that have bolognese etc in freezer, do you cook from frozen?
Sweet corn and frozen peas seem to be popular.
We normally always have fresh pasta and sauces in fridge, they have a really long date. Packets of microwave rice too

[PoppyAmex]

Ceev what's fish paste and where do you get it? I'm loving the sound of it and DD is fish mad so I think she'd like that too.

[ceeveebee]

Ha, I was going to say cheesy pasta, made with garlic and herb soft cheese but that's your own recipe

Omelette, with mushroom, spinach and cheese
Houmous or fish paste on toast/pitta
Homemade chicken nuggets - I make batches, cook and freeze
Fish fingers
Spaghetti hoops on toast in dire emergencies!

I also have a freezer full of portions of food - I always cook extra and freeze a portion of whatever

[dashoflime]

Pasta with tomato puree and olive oil.
Tinned ravioli