Feeding our Family: Toddler Lunches

This is the next post in our new series on Feeding our Family. If there is a specific idea or post topic you would like to read about as part of this series, e-mail us at dupagemamas(at)gmail(dot)com.

One of the hardest things for me about the daily grind of motherhood is feeding little people. It has always been a challenge for me to make sure my boys are getting a good mix of all the necessary food groups and nutrients. Lunches are particularly hard for me. The flow of the day rarely seems to lend itself to laid back lunch prep and drama free meal-time. Either we are on the go or nap time can't come fast enough. All this has led me to do some research on different lunch ideas that are quick and healthy or can be made ahead of time and frozen for easy heat-up. I like to mix it up and not feed the same ol' lunches all the time- you know, the PBJ and chicken nuggets and mac-n-cheese and ... I worry that I am not giving them enough veges or calcium or grain or protein. There is so much to think about on top of making sure that they will actually eat what I manage to get in front of them.
So, for any of you who find themselves in the same boat as me, here are some websites and healthy lunch ideas I found to get you out of the lunch-time rut too.

Egg "McMuffins"- fried egg on a buttered english muffin, maybe with some ham for a little extra protein
Scrambled eggs with some grated cheese (My 3yr old LOVES this for any meal and I feel good 'cuz he is getting good protein)
Fruit and vege and cheese plates- raw veges or slightly steamed to make them easier to crunch
Cheese Quesadillas
Mini-pizzas on pita bread or bagels
Soup- chicken noodle, tomato, beef barley (We love the boxed versions from WholeFoods or TraderJoes- quick and healthy)
Pasta- plain or with a little butter or parm. cheese
Baked mac-n-cheese- you can cut this into squares and freeze them for quick re-heating
Turkey/Cheese roll-ups (or any lunch meat- nitrate free is best)
Ravioli- canned or frozen or homemade and pre-frozen if you are super ambitious
Bread or crackers with Hummus spread (we love this too! Good source or grain if you use wheat bread and a good protein source too)
Grilled cheese with ham or even a little tomato slice added in for some extra nutrients
Mini Meatloaf made in muffin tins-also can be made and frozen
Ramen noodles- only use a portion of the seasoning mix and remove some of the broth so it is a little less messy
Peanut butter and jelly in an ice-cream cone- a little twist on a classic, good for a quick snack too
Fruit Smoothies- add a little wheat germ or soy protein powder in there and they will never know. You can also juice some veges (in a juicer) and add that in too.

Here is a fun, toddler-friendly recipe to try: Put a stick of string cheese in a buttered hotdog bun. Microwave for 45secs. Serve with a bit of marinara sauce for dipping.

Some helpful websites:
Wholesome Toddler Foods
Healthy Toddler Lunches

Since I am all about moms helping other moms, I must give a shout out to my bloggy friend Terra who does such a good job being creative in how she feeds her family (and from who I got a lot of these ideas!).

Do you have any recipe ideas or helpful resources that we all could use to help us on this journey of feeding our family? Please share! You can leave them here in the comments or, better yet, write your own musings on feeding your family and we will post it as part of our series. Thanks Y'all!! (I met Paula Dean at BlogHer this past weekend... so maybe that has me inspired to cook.. and say y'all!)

**P.S.~ The new look of DupageMamas debuts THIS WEEK!! HOORAY!! I can't wait to show you!! **

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Budget Friendly Meals

Today's guest post is courtesy of Becky from Wheaton
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In an economy where we are all trying to make our dollar go a little further, we asked Becky to help give us some tools to stretch that food budget. Here are some budget-friendly recipes that are sure to be easy on the checkbook without disappointing the taste buds.

Asian Pork and Noodle Skillet

Tight on time? This quick skillet dish is a great “go-to” recipe that your family will request again and again!

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2 medium carrots, peeled

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1 medium red bell pepper

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5-6 green onions with tops (about 1¼ cups sliced), divided

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2 pork tenderloins (about 1 pound each)

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2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

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2 tablespoons Asian Seasoning Mix
4 packages (3 ounces each) oriental-flavor ramen noodles

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1 tablespoon vegetable oil

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4 cups water

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1. Cut carrots into julienne strips. Cut bell pepper lengthwise into ¼-inch strips. Slice green onions; set aside tops for garnish.
2. Using a boning knife, trim fat and silver skin from pork tenderloins. Slice pork lengthwise into four strips. Thinly slice strips crosswise. Combine pork, sesame oil, seasoning mix and two of the ramen seasoning packets; mix well.
   

3. Add vegetable oil to (12-in.) skillet; heat over medium-high heat 1-3 minutes or until shimmering. Add half of the pork. Cook and stir 2-3 minutes or until browned; remove pork from Skillet and keep warm. Repeat with remaining pork.
4. Add carrots and bell pepper to skillet. Cook 1-2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add water and remaining ramen seasoning packets; stir to loosen browned bits from bottom of skillet. Add ramen noodles and white parts of green onions to skillet. Cover; bring to a boil and cook 4-5 minutes or until noodles are softened. Add pork; stir to break apart noodles. Remove skillet from heat; let stand, covered, 3-4 minutes or until pork is heated through. Garnish with reserved green onion tops.

Yield: 6 servings
Nutrients per serving: Calories 530, Total Fat 24 g, Saturated Fat 8 g, Cholesterol 100

Creamy One-Pot Pasta

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This one-pot wonder combines slivered garlic and fresh vegetables for a light pasta dish your family will be sure to request again.

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4 large garlic cloves, peeled

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1 jar (7 oz) sun-dried tomatoes in oil, undrained

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3 cans (14.5 oz each) chicken broth (5¼ cups)

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1 lb uncooked penne pasta

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1 head broccoli (2 cups small florets)

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2 medium carrots, peeled

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4 oz reduced-fat cream cheese (Neufchâtel)

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¼ tsp salt

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½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper

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Grated fresh Parmesan cheese and snipped fresh basil (optional)
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1. Thinly slice garlic and place garlic and 1 tbsp oil from sun-dried tomatoes into (8-qt.) stockpot. Cook garlic over medium heat 2-3 minutes or until garlic is golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; add broth. Return to burner; increase heat to high. Cover and bring to a boil. Stir in pasta; cover and simmer vigorously 8-10 minutes or until pasta is almost cooked but still firm, stirring occasionally.
2. Meanwhile, cut broccoli into small florets; place into a medium size bowl. Cut carrots in half lengthwise; thinly slice crosswise on a bias.. Drain sun-dried tomatoes; pat dry with a paper towel. Slice tomatoes into thin strips. Add carrots and tomatoes to batter bowl.
   

3. Cut cream cheese into cubes. Add vegetables, cream cheese, salt and black pepper to Stockpot. Stir until cream cheese is melted and fully incorporated. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook an additional 2-4 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Serve immediately. If desired, top with grated fresh Parmesan cheese and snipped fresh basil.

Yield: 6 servings

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Nutrients per serving: Calories 410, Total Fat 11 g, Saturated Fat 4 g, Cholesterol 15 mg, Carbohydrate 65 g, Protein 15 g, Sodium 1000 mg, Fiber 5 g

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Ham and Cheese Brunch Squares

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Drop-in guests on their way for brunch? No problem! This colorful dish comes together in no time and serves a crowd.

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1 teaspoon vegetable oil

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2 cups (8 ounces) grated Colby & Monterey Jack cheese blend, divided

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1 package (22.5 ounces) frozen toaster hash brown patties, thawed (10 patties)

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8 ounces cream cheese, softened

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12 eggs

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.½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

.8 ounces thickly sliced deli ham

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4-5 green onions with tops, divided (1 cup sliced)

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3 plum tomatoes

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Additional coarsely ground black pepper (optional)

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1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Lightly brush baking stone/bar pan with oil or other bar pan. Grate cheese. Crumble hash browns over bar pan; press gently into an even layer. Sprinkle half of the cheese evenly over hash browns. Bake 13-15 minutes or until crust starts to brown and cheese is melted.
2. Meanwhile, whisk cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add eggs and black pepper; whisk until smooth. Coarsely chop ham. Slice green onions, reserving ¼ cup of the tops for garnish. Place ham and remaining green onions into a saute' pan; cook and stir over medium heat 2-3 minutes or until hot. Stir ham mixture into egg mixture.
   

3. Remove bar pan from oven. Pour egg mixture over crust. Return bar pan to oven; bake 6-8 minutes or until center is set. Meanwhile, slice tomatoes in half lengthwise; scrape out seeds and dice. Remove bar pan from oven; top with remaining cheese, tomatoes and reserved green onions. Sprinkle with additional black pepper, if desired. Cut into squares and serve.

Cook’s Tips: To soften cream cheese, microwave on HIGH 15-20 seconds or until softened. Whisk until smooth. If desired, 2 cups cooked and crumbled bulk pork sausage (¾ pound) or 1 pound bacon, cooked, drained and crumbled, can be substituted for the deli ham.

Yield: 12 servings
Nutrients per serving: Calories 250, Total Fat 19 g, Saturated Fat 10 g, Cholesterol 260 mg, Carbohydrate 4 g, Protein 16 g, Sodium 530 mg, Fiber 0 g
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Some of these and other of my favorite recipes feature the Deep Covered Baker, which I lovingly call my “Magic Pot.” You can always improvise if you don’t have one, but this is the ONE piece of stoneware I feel every kitchen should have. I am offering a special for Cooking Show hosts in June or July ~ you can earn it for FREE or HALF-PRICE in addition to all of the other wonderful host rewards Pampered Chef gives you. Ask me how!! Shoot me an email at pamperedbecky@comcast.net and tell me you heard of this offer through your affiliation with DupageMamas. Then I can fill you on all of the other generous host rewards, as well as FUN summer theme shows you can choose from!

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Was this helpful? Would you like more recipes? We would love your feedback! And as always, if you make any of these meals for your family, take a picture and send it to us or just shoot us an e-mail dupagemamas(at)gmail(dot)com and let us know how it went. Becky has a lot more recipes where these came from so we can make this a regular feature if you would like to see more.

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We're always looking for guest bloggers! If you'd like to share something with the Dupage Mamas community, send us your completed post or half-baked ideas to dupagemamas(at)gmail(dot)com.

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