Feeding our Families~ April
End of winter cooking-
I have been having a hard time thinking of what to write for this series, as I often find the act of feeding my family to be a little less inspired at this time of year. Of course I do it, and we are all eating well enough, but late winter is just a hard time to be in the kitchen for me. The root cellar veggies are dwindling (and wrinkling!) and we are all a little tired of rutabagas and potatoes. We've eaten the favorite cuts of meats from the freezer and many of our standard winter meals are feeling rather less exciting than they were in the glowing days of autumn. And as the light changes, I find I want to be spending less time in the kitchen and more time in other pursuits- or at least in dreaming about the other pursuits that I will get to once the snow melts!
But still, there are little bellies to fill, and somehow meals need to be made, and I do manage to cook them, and not to mind too much. So I thought I would write about this then- how to feed our families when we don't have much energy and inspiration to feed our families! So here are a few thoughts on how to make sure everyone gets fed during the less-than-inspiring-wrinkly-veggie season.
I have to admit, my meal planning follows the same curve as my kitchen inspiration- meaning that it doesn't happen much when I'm not it the cooking mood. But I do have a sort of master plan that helps guide me in my less inspired moments and that helps even if I don't manage to sit down and plan the week of meals as I always intend to do. This is just a sort of guideline of meals- types of meals for different days of the week. For a long time I only planned out breakfasts and dinners this way, but I've recently added in lunches and afternoon snacks to this plan. I am amazed at how much freer my head space feels when I don't have to be worrying what the next meal will be, or scouring the fridge for ideas while a hungry child tugs at my sweater sleeve. I also find having a basic meal plan posted on the wall really helps avoids arguments from my kids about what we will be having. My picky eater seems particularly reassured to know what is coming for the day. Our basic dinner plan is this:
Monday- eggs
Tuesday- red meat
Wednesday- beans
Thursday- fish
Friday -chicken
Saturday-leftovers
Sunday- pizza or burgers or soup or whatever
and then when I am really organized I actually plan out what exactly we will be having in each category and what veggies and side dishes we will have with each. This happens maybe half the time these days.
Get Help-
My kids are big enough now to be of some real help in the kitchen, and Ari is especially interested in cooking these days and I am often amazed how much he can do when I think to ask him. I am hoping to hand over more and more kitchen duties to the kiddos, but for now, getting them to help in the ways that they are able lightens the load a bit, and it's fun too. (was Dori ever that teeny?)
Cook Big
I have been getting into the habit of doubling or tripling recipes lately whenever I am making something that freezes well, and then popping it in the freezer for another day. I am always so happy to bring out that container of soup or pan of quiche or casserole on those days that I have not been able to pull together a meal. I also try and cook big batches of chicken broth, beef broth, and beans to have on hand for other quick meals.
Simplify
When I am feeling uninspired in the kitchen I find I need to keep things really simple. At other times I enjoy long, experimental cooking sessions and trying lots of new and exciting recipes, but at times like this I know I need to keep it simple. I have a list of quick meals that are easy to prepare and that my family likes, and stick mostly to those. Some of these are:
Farmer Supper- a name I made up to try and convince my little farm boys to enjoy a quick bowl of greens and sausages, and it seems to have worked as this is one of their favorite meals. Local grass-fed sausages sliced up and cooked with a heap of kale makes a good supper- especially with some sauerkraut on the side.
Dahl and rice- we use a recipe I found in an old mothering magazine, and my kids always enjoy it.
Eggs- my kids love having eggs for supper and they are perfect for the days I just can't manage much else. Frittata, scrambled eggs with raw veggies, poached eggs over veggies or migas are all hits and super fast and easy.
bean bowl- I found this idea during our GAPS days and it has become a standby. All I need to do is thaw out a jar of cooked beans and chop up a few toppings and we have a meal. I also keep sprouted corn tortillas in the freezer for quick fajita,
taco, quesadilla, type suppers with eggs or fish or leftover meat.
picnic supper- I actually had forgotten about this one until I found the picture above- make some crackers or bread and boil some eggs and just pull out a bunch of stuff from the fridge and cupboard- raw veggies and fruit, cheese, pickles, olives, canned salmon, or salami or whatever else I can find. Eating it on a blanket in the living room makes it taste extra yummy.
And now that it seems spring might be here, perhaps some of my cooking-love will return. In the meantime, we will likely keep eating lots of eggs!
Come and check out what these other great mama's are cookin'!
Melanie from Our Ash Grove
Jules from A Little Crafty Nest
Melody from Bespoke
Sarah from Our Island Home
Tonya from Joyful Living
Heather from Shivaya Naturals
Renee from Heirloom Seasons
Thanks for sharing! That was interesting!
ReplyDeleteThis is great Taisa! I know what you mean about lacking inspiration, more so with the writing about food than the actual preparing of food, since that part has to happen either way.
ReplyDeleteLots of good dinner ideas! No one here (except me) would eat eggs for dinner. Fortunately no one here could ever get tired of kale, yum, it's a favorite, raw or cooked, so many ways.
I often cook double, and jars of frozen beans in the freezer too.
I like getting dinner prep/making done early in the day, even in the morning after breakfast time. It just feels so great to spend the day knowing dinner is already done!
You and I have the same yellow mixing bowl! (Melanie and I have a secret plan for next month to write about trivial things such as bowls and kitchen linens…)
Thanks for sharing, very inspiring!
I love this, Taisa. And I love your photos!!!
ReplyDeleteI have had trouble the past two months with this series, feeling so uninspired and tired of wintery foods! In fact I had no idea what to write about for April until the day before!
I am so impressed with your boys eating things like kale and saurkraut. . . .
HUGS
I really like the idea of a weekly meal plan... I am going to try it.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to the planting soon - that will help at least to inspire I think.
I like your picnic supper idea! Great photos Taisa!
ReplyDeleteI fondly remember picnic suppers. I now know that those were the nights that my mama was late at work and had no plan. The fondest of memories from the simplest of meals. I remind myself of this, often, when I'm sweating my "simple" meals. few words (no excuses!) presented with love and a smile!
ReplyDeleteI too have little inspiration for cooking during the seasonal transition this time of year. I just want to be in the garden!
I also meal plan, I have been doing it for about two years now and it is so very lovely to go back to previous months/years to find inspiration. I basically just need to copy/paste from my old meal plans onto my new ones, it takes no effort at all :) And I love your picnic supper! I might just have to use this idea at our home too. Have a great week!
ReplyDelete