One mum’s cry for help to find meals that all kids will love
It’s hard enough cooking for your own child, but when there’s another one coming over for dinner, you need a stockpile of easy-to-prepare kid-friendly meals that will appeal to everyone.
My children have always been fussy about their food, but at least I know what they will and won’t eat. My 11-year-old is becoming more adventurous but is still fairly limited. My younger daughter eats fish fingers and cold spaghetti with tomato sauce and that’s about it. Throw another child into the mix and life can get a little more tricky.
I need help!
One mum in exactly this situation reached out on Mumsnet, asking for food advice as her daughter had a friend coming for a sleepover. While she had her usual favourites, she was looking for something different. “DD has limited taste in foods…she likes my homemade pizza but that’s such a faff! I make the dough and it’s messy…I wanted something easier but nothing like sausages or burgers please…I hate the smell!”
Luckily, there was a heap of advice on hand, with other parents offering fantastic meal ideas that were all easy to make and yummy for just about anyone to eat.
Some awesome suggestions
“I make pasta and put out bowls of ham, grated cheese, a pot of cheesy sauce, peas, sweet corn etc so they can just make their own pasta dish, and it takes minutes to do,” suggested one parent. A great idea that lets kids make their own choices, depending on what they like. It’s also a ‘hands-on’ dinner which is always more attractive.
Another parent had a range of popular choices to offer, all of which are easy to prepare: “The only thing I found that everyone liked is chicken drumsticks, potato wedges and sweet corn and spaghetti bolognese”.
Another suggestion was, “Spaghetti bolognese with jar sauce (or make the sauce ahead, bolognese is great re-heated) Chicken nachos or fajitas,” while another was, ‘Jacket potatoes with a selection of fillings (cheese, baked beans, tuna etc.”)
And the verdict?
The potatoes would have been great, but for this mum, that window has now closed. “DD used to LOVE baked potatoes…she ate nothing but those for tea for months and as a bloody result, now won’t touch them!” says the mum.
In the end, there was one idea that caught her fancy. “Fajitas maybe! Thanks,’’ she said.
Let’s hope they went down well!
Don’t forget you can also browse our Recipe section for lots of easy mid-week meals and fun treats to try.
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