August and this summer is coming to an end and we are trying to get back into routines after this unusual year that 2020 has been. Our kids have just started new schools – Elsa is in 4th grade (!), Isac starts his first year in school (although it is called grade 0) and Noah has moved to an older group at preschool. Like all other parents we find ourselves balancing stressful mornings, sport practices, prepping snacks and figuring out how to keep the boys sitting still long enough time for them to actually eat some of their dinner.
Meal prepping is usually a helpful timesaving tool for us but we haven't properly gotten into that routine yet.
We have however just started planning weekly dinner menus together with the kids, which feels like a step in the right direction. We try to set up some basic rules that make the choices easier for them: one pasta day, one soup day, one pancake day etc. And then they can choose what pasta/soup/pancake topping we should make. It's a good little trick to make them feel included and mentally prepared on what we are making. Kids usually have a wild imagination but when it comes to food, their choices are often surprisingly boring. "Can we have spaghetti with red sauce" "pasta pesto", "pasta with white sauce" or "pasta with ni sauce" … so we try to help out with tips and suggestions.
This is their "pasta with white sauce". It's perhaps not the most exciting pasta we have shared – just pasta that you stir through with some creme fraiche or yogurt + lemon + herbs and sweet roasted butternut pumpkin cubes and chickpeas to make it more nourishing – but we like how simple it is and we love that they like it. So we thought it was worth sharing. You can always add a drizzle of green sauce, harissa or more herbs to make it more exciting for adults.
Meal prepping is usually a helpful timesaving tool for us but we haven't properly gotten into that routine yet.
We have however just started planning weekly dinner menus together with the kids, which feels like a step in the right direction. We try to set up some basic rules that make the choices easier for them: one pasta day, one soup day, one pancake day etc. And then they can choose what pasta/soup/pancake topping we should make. It's a good little trick to make them feel included and mentally prepared on what we are making. Kids usually have a wild imagination but when it comes to food, their choices are often surprisingly boring. "Can we have spaghetti with red sauce" "pasta pesto", "pasta with white sauce" or "pasta with ni sauce" … so we try to help out with tips and suggestions.
This is their "pasta with white sauce". It's perhaps not the most exciting pasta we have shared – just pasta that you stir through with some creme fraiche or yogurt + lemon + herbs and sweet roasted butternut pumpkin cubes and chickpeas to make it more nourishing – but we like how simple it is and we love that they like it. So we thought it was worth sharing. You can always add a drizzle of green sauce, harissa or more herbs to make it more exciting for adults.
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