Chicken pot pie muffin and watermelon
Sandwiches -
I know what you are thinking, this isn't something new and unique. I promise it really is though. My kids will disassemble and play with a normal sandwich rather than eating them so I needed a better idea. Then I read about sandwich rolls. Basically you take a biscuit - the small ones, not Grands - and flatten it out. In the center you place meat and cheese. Then wrap up and cook according to package instructions. My kids happily eat these and don't even make a mess. Brilliant! I have also made these with peperoni, cheese, and a tiny bit of pizza sauce. They freeze well and I can make a ton of them and just thaw as needed.
Turkey and cheese biscuits on the go!
Muffins -
Jiffy corn muffin mix (or the cheaper Aldi brand if you shop like I do) as the starter for an entree. Once again, it sounds crazy, but just keep reading. One option is to mix shredded chicken and mixed vegetables in to make chicken pot pie muffins. Another option is ground beef and cheese for cheeseburger muffins. I have also made taco muffins, corn dog muffins, chicken and cheese muffins, etc. You get the idea. Sometimes I just take leftovers and mix to freeze for later meals. Other times I will spend a couple of hours to make a bunch of a particular type. Yesterday I made 71 of the corn dog muffins. I cooked hot dogs, cut them into small pieces and mixed into the corn muffin mix. I added cheese to the mix for the fun of it. It took me about 2 hours, but well worth the time I save. That being said, they aren't a neat and clean meal. My kids like to crumble them and eat the bits and pieces before the crumbs. They do eventually eat it all, but it is not a clean process. Granted, they are toddlers so very few things we do are a clean process.
Chicken pot pie muffin and watermelon
Bread -
Sweet daughter has found an opinion on foods. Rather than just eating everything she is becoming picky. This is normal toddler behavior, but my child had to find a way to make it unusual. She won't eat white breads. Seriously, the girl only likes whole wheat. This made the sandwiches above a challenge since I can't find whole wheat biscuits. I did find a recipe I like for whole wheat bread. The big plus is it doesn't involve raw eggs so I let the kids help knead the dough. It's almost fool proof - I'm an awful cook and haven't been able to screw it up yet.
Two loaves
6+ cups of flour (it varies)
2 cups liquid (water or milk)
1 T yeast (do 4 t if doing all whole wheat flour)
2 t salt
1/3 cup oil (up to 1/2 cup)
1/3 cup honey or sugar (up to 1/2 cup)
Bake at 350 for 30 min for a loaf and for 12-15 min for biscuits.
We use milk and honey most of the time, but I have done all of the variations. I've made cinnamon raisin bread, sandwich bread, and biscuits.
Happy toddlers
Other than the bread recipe which I got from a friend, all of the other ideas listed are from one amazing web page. I didn't want to mention it before because you would head there and never finish this post! http://www.bentolunch.net/ She has been featured on the Disney web page, Family Fun magazine, and many other places. All of the lunches she makes are cute and healthy. While I haven't gotten around to making a single bento lunch, I do often steal other ideas from her, as you can tell from above. Our next cooking experiment? Everything muffins
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