More ease

weeknight meals (that my kids eat!!!): a new series.

I used to love cooking dinner. Cooking relaxes me and I find it meditative and enjoyable. Or, I used to. I still do find enjoyment in cooking, but it is certainly more conditional than it was before I had three young children to feed. Three young children who, by the end of another long day, are OVER IT and just need food NOW and it better be food that they enjoy god help you otherwise you will KNOW ABOUT IT.

So now cooking dinner is more an exercise in expert level organisation, efficiency and the specific knowledge of the foods that are tolerated/enjoyed by the youngest members of our household (and if this sounds like I am making more work for myself and I should just let the kids eat what we eat or not- I also used to think similarly. Then I endured more than one dinner that ended in tantrums and food on the floor and feet, yes feet, in a plate of food. So now I make it easier for me by making it easier for them.) And on nights when it isn’t those things, there is takeaway. Or cereal.

2 of said goblins, looking deceptively innocent…

Despite having to cater for three youngsters who are, by late afternoon, more goblin than child, I do still enjoy cooking (mostly). I am building a collection of meals that I know are: easy, enjoyed by all, relatively nutritious and filling and quite quick or hands off to make. I now know that these things are absolute pre-requisites when talking to parents tasked with cooking for young kids.

I thought it might be helpful to share these as I develop them? For nights when you want a relatively smooth dinner but also don’t want to eat pasta with cheese and butter again. (But trust me, pasta with cheese and butter has become quite the regular meal in our house). Anyway, these are meals that all three of my very different kids will eat and (I think), enjoy, and Will and I also actually enjoy eating too.

These meals are not about hiding veg in pasta sauce or going to elaborate lengths to GET KIDS TO EAT HEALTHILY. They are just meals that are usually simple to eat, not too demanding flavour or texture wise, very easy to cook, pretty low cost and open to interpretation/substitution. There is no point making dinner time stressful- raising young children is already stressful enough. And I say this as someone who spent a lot of time making uber “healthy” baby food that mostly ended up on the floor or in the bin, who stressed about how many vegetables the kids were eating, who fretted that it was toast for dinner again. Cooking, eating and feeding the kids has become a whole lot more pleasant as I am learning to let go and trust them to feed themselves (caveat being I make sure they have access to a wide range of food, regularly). If they eat only bread for dinner one night? Luckily bread is fortified with vitamins! If they are only interested in strawberries today? That will be fine, they will probably want something else tomorrow. Two bites of dinner and then a bowl of icecream? Dairy intake is important!

Feeding kids can be stressful and emotional, as it is literally about their survival. I get it! It is also very messy and I am very keen for the day when eating doesn’t involve food all over faces, arms, clothes, table and floor. But it can be easier, and more enjoyable. And I hope some of these recipes provide some of that ease for you, as well as a tasty dinner.

Red Lentil Soup (lightly adapted from Greg and Lucy Malouf’s Turquoise)

This soup is an absolute staple in our house (though I will admit that I am not a massive fan of soup for dinner- to me it is more of an excellent lunch option… thoughts?). But this is a soup that takes around half an hour, uses one pan and minimal ingredients, freezes well, and, so far, has been a hit with the kids!

This is basically the red lentil soup from the wonderful book of Turkish food, Turquoise by Greg and Lucy Malouf (which sadly appears to be out of print now?). with some very slight alterations to make it a little more kid friendly. I ate this soup a lot when I was travelling in Turkey years ago, and I still remember it being one of my favourite cheap, local staples available everywhere.

Finely chop 2 sticks of celery, 2 carrots and one white or brown onion. Put a large pot over med heat and add about 2 tbsp of butter and 1 tbsp olive oil (you want the butter here!). Add you chopped veg and fry til softened. Add 2 crushed/finely chopped cloves of garlic and1 tsp of ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander and 1 tsp of sweet/mild paprika. Fry a couple of minutes more until aromatic.

Add 1-2 tbsp tomato paste (I know how annoying it is to have a little bit of tomato paste left over so if you have those sachets, or need to use up the rest of the jar- use whichever amount saves you having an irritatingly teeny bit left over), and stir. Then add 200g red lentils (full disclosure- I never measure the lentils, I just tip an amount in that looks right… usually somewhere between 1-1.5 cups. And then I add more liquid if it needs it- but use these amounts if that sounds stressful to you!) and 1.5 litres of chicken or veg stock - the better quality stock, the better I think the flavour of the soup is- but I don’t think your kids will care so use what you’ve got, be it home made, store bought or cube form!

Put a lid on the saucepan and cook for about 20 minutes until the lentils are broken down and the soup looks creamy-ish. Add 1 large diced tomato (or, half a tin of chopped tomatoes which is usually what I do) and 1/4 cup fine bulghur. Season with salt and pepper to your tastes. Gently simmer for another ten minutes or so.

Serve with lemon juice squeezed over top- this is essential for me (and, chilli flakes and fresh or dried mint for grownups or unfussy kids) and buttered bread.