Welcome to part one of a little series I’m trying (off the back of the resounding ‘yes’ I got when I asked my Instagram community if they like seeing what my family and I eat for dinner).
In these dinner inspirations posts, I’ll show you a few of the meals we ate during the week and provide a quick recipe for each meal. It works for me, because I’m cooking it anyway and since I purchased my new light (Godox UL150 for those playing at home), it’s possible even when it’s dark. Alexander also loves being my helper and pressing the space bar to take the photograph just before we sit down for dinner, so it lets him be my helper too, which he absolutely loves.
(I hope) it works for you if, like me, you like quick, no-fuss, no-special-ingredients recipes on a week night. I’ll also include Alexander’s almost-4-year-old feedback on each recipe and how, if I did at all, I modified it for him. Many of the ideas I’ve been cooking for years, so I’ll also share how I prepared it when he was much younger.
There will no doubt be repeats of recipes as I do make some things over and over again (we all do, right?), but this is also inspiring me to come up with new ideas, which I love!
So, welcome to the first Dinner Inspiration post. I hope you love it (if you do, or don’t, or want me to include certain ingredients, you can always let me know below or at natalie@nataliezee.com).
This one is pretty self-explanatory. I buy the Ingham Free Range Chicken Kiev most of the time, as I can have it in the freezer ready to bring out when I’m short of ideas and the boys say it’s delicious. Green Yoghurt on Pumpkin is just something to add some dairy and extra protein to the meal, but it tastes good too (Alexander thinks it’s a sauce and all sauces are winners in this house).
Alexander Rating? Ate it all.
Serve to a younger toddler? I’d swap out the chicken kiev for something more simple (chicken tenderloins or even strips of chicken nuggets), and mash the pumpkin with the yoghurt to make more of a pumpkin mash.
This soup is one of my favourite things to make. M has always been a little on the fence about this but, lucky for me, Alexander’s favourite colour is green and he loves it! You can honestly be totally creative with this soup and pop whatever you have in letting the stock, garlic and cumin bring it together. I will say the peas thicken it up most, so it’s worth making sure you have plenty of frozen peas added in.
And now for the recipe of this version…
GREEN SOUP
makes 4 generous serves
Ingredients
- 3 Zucchinis, washed and roughly chopped
- 2 Heads of Broccoli and their stems, washed and roughly chopped
- 3 Cloves of Garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- 3 Cubes of Frozen Spinach (about .95c a bag in the freezer aisle of most supermarkets)
- 2 cups of Frozen Peas
- 1 Tsp of Cumin Powder
- 1 Litre of Vegetable Stock (Chicken would work too, if it’s all you have).
- A Handful of Fresh Basil (Optional - a teaspoon of pesto is also lovely if you have some you need to use)
- Greek Yoghurt or Sour Cream, to serve.
Method
This is the best part - pop everything in a large pot (except the yoghurt), add aenough water to make sure all the vegetables are covered and bring to the boil. When the broccoli stems are tender, everything else will be ready to go, too. Remove 1-2 mugs of liquid and reserve, before blending. If the soup is too thick, add a little liquid back in. Season, and serve topped with yoghurt or cream.
CHEESY FLAT BREADS
I make these ALL the time. Simply get a wrap, or whatever flat bread you have available and rub a clove of cut garlic all over one side (option but delicious!). Pop on grated or sliced cheese and put under the grill, with a plain flat bread/wrap next to it. Once the cheese is bubbly and the plain flat bread is lightly toasted, carefully remove them and sandwich them together. Allow to cool slightly and cut up into triangles. Delicious!
Alexander Rating? As much as he loves green, he usually eats about half the soup. He lives for the cheese wraps - surprise surprise.
Serve to a younger toddler? I’d provide thicker bread fingers for them to dip i - the wraps can be tricky to chew for smaller children. We used to play a game, ‘Do the dip dip’, with Alexander when he was little and he loved it.
I’m 90% sure I got this idea from that diet book ‘French Women Don’t Get Fat’ years and years ago (I shudder that I bought it, now, as it seemed very sweet and trendy, but was definitely a diet book). Anyway, it has become one of my absolute favourite soups and although Alexander currently doesn’t like mushrooms (there’s not much he doesn’t like and we don’t insist he eats anything), I still make it semi regularly. It’s incredibly simple and deliciously filling, so I never need anything on the side. My suggestion? Don’t try to skip the butter - it adds so much flavour. If you are vegan or dairy free, a generous knob of a dairy free alternative will do the trick. I find olive oil alone isn’t enough to bring out the sweetness of the leeks.
LEEK & MUSHROOM SOUP
serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 leek, cut lengthways, washed and sliced
- 2 tbsp of butter (the butter makes it more delicious so don't skip it!)
- A splash of olive oil
- 4 cups of sliced mushrooms, these are just regular button ones
- 2/3 of a cup of dry risoni
- 1 litre of vegetable stock
Method
1. Fry the leeks in the butter & oil until translucent.
2. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes or until they start to soften
3. Add the stock, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes
4. Add the risoni and a litre of water, bring to the boil and cook until the risoni is cooked through.
5. Season with salt, if needed, and serve.
Alexander Rating? He does not like mushrooms, so for him to eat this I either blend a little, or pull out a small serve of another soup from the freezer (pumpkin is always a winner).
Serve to a younger toddler? Again I would blend it with some chunky bread or toast fingers, or little toasties. This was my default plan of action for all soups when A was little. You could also try some steamed veg to dip in.
A classic which I’m not sure I really have to share a recipe for - lucky as the meatballs, though home made, were in the freezer a while and I didn’t record exactly what I put in them. I do recall pork mince, parsley, salt and pepper, maybe an egg? I’ll have to write it down next time.
The sauce is just a basic tomato sauce with a zucchini grated in. If your kids are funny about green things (I know many are), just peel the zucchini and grate it finely. When I used to do this for A I’d also serve some zucchini on the side as I preferred not to ‘hide’ vegetables as I wanted him to be exposed to them, but if he didn’t want it there would be some in the sauce. These days he loves veggies! But if I take the credit for that, I’d also have to take the blame for his dislike of sleep, so I choose to believe kids preferences are mostly nature and not nurture!
Tomato & Zucchini Sauce
serves 2-3
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp (or so) of olive oil
- 1 Brown Onion,, diced
- 1 Clove of Garlic, finely chopped (I find garlic browns too fast when crushed with a crusher, so I avoid it).
- 1 x 400g can of crushed tomatoes (I used Mutti Polpa here)
- 1 Grated Zucchini
- 1 Tsp of dry or fresh Oregano, Basil or Marjoram (if you have it!).
Method
1. In a medium saucepan, fry the onion in the olive oil on a medium heat until it begins to go translucent. Add the garlic and zucchini and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.
2. Add the tomato and herbs, of you have them, as well as a tomato-can worth of water. If you’re cooking meatballs, pop them in.
3. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer and allow to cook for about an hour, making sure it doesn’t dry up (add a little more water if needed), or until your meatballs are cooked through. I allow about an hour of the meatballs are frozen.
4. Serve with your favourite pasta and plenty of parmesan cheese!
Alexander Rating? Pasta is his favourite food and this is one of his favourite pasta dishes!
Serve to a younger toddler? I would probably have had either little pieces of the meatball on a side plate and the pasta with the sauce in a little bowl and prepare for the pasta mess (I miss it!).
There is is, my first dinner round up!
I’ll be working soon to make recipes more searchable on my web site so, when I get to that, I will post these separately too so they’re easier to find. For now, you can find these under the ‘Dinner Inspiration’ tab.
Let me know if you make any!
Nat x