Yellow basketti
brown 1/2 pound of ground beef/turkey/chicken with about a 1/4 of an onion per box of mac and cheese. make noodles as directed on box drain hamburger and add to mac and cheese.
add one can of chilli per box of mac and cheese
add one can of tuna per box
Easy peasey stroganoff
brown ground meat with 1/2 onion per pound of meat. Season with salt pepper and garlic POWDER never use garlic salt yuck! after the meat is done drain it and add one can of cream of mushroom soup per pound of hamburger. bring to a simmer and let bubble while making the noodles. this is also the time to add more mushrooms or olives if you like them. Cook egg noodles. when the noodles are done remove sause from burner and add 1/2 container of sourcream per can of soup stir well and pour over noodles.
easiest ever meatballs
equal amounts of ground beef and sausage mix together then add one egg per pound of meat. dice a 1/4 onion add to meat. start with about 1/2 cup of Italian bread crumbs keep adding until no visual moisture from the egg/eggs can be seen. Brown on all sides in a skillet then turn down cover and let cook for around 15 mins depending on the size you made the meat balls. add to sketti sause, or slice in half, heat a jar of marina sause, split hoagy rolls lightly butter and toast under broiler, add halved meat balls a bit of sause, sprinkle grated monzarella retunr to broiler until cheese is melted.
Easy chicken strips:
Buy the prefrozen thin chicken breasts. While still partly frozen slice into strips. let finish thawing then dredge in a beaten egg then Italian bread crumbs cook in a moderately hot skillet until brown on both sides. Turn down heat and cook until no pink can be seen when cut open. Lay a slice of mozarella cheese on each and leave in pan until cheese melts. You can also leave them whole but kids seem to like them better when they are in strips. you can also omit the cheese.
For regular chicken strips cut as above only dip into egg and then four in which you have added, paprika, garlic POWDER. salt pepper and a bit of cayene pepper (more for adults) fry these in about an inch of oil.
Lemon chicken that kids love!
marinate chicken legs in bottled lemon juice I use about 1/4 cup per 6 legs put the lemon juice in a zip lock bag, add salt pepper, garlic powder. If you have lemon pepper use that in place of the pepper. let marinate in the fridge at least an hour. preheat oven to 350 drain legs and bake for 30 mins check the fattest leg for doneness. cook longer if needed. you can also use wings, thighs adjust the time cooked a little less for wings a little more for thighs.
Terriyaki chicken, follow directions above only when you drain the chicken dont drain in completely. I also will add a small can of chunky pineapple after I have partially drained the chicken. When cooking for adults I also add strips of bell pepper but kids seem to hate them LOL!
Stuffed baked potatoes.
Bake as many potaotes as needed to serve 1/2 potato per person being served. While potatoes are baking brown 1/4 pound per person pork sausage with 1/4 onion per pound of meat. When potatos are done carefully slice in half length wise. scoop out the cooked potato leaving a bit along the peel to help them keep their shape. Put the cooked potato into your mixing bowl and mash with a bit of butter and milk until creamy. Add to potatoe mixture 1/2 8 oz container of sour cream per 4 potato halves, 3 chopped green onions, a sprinkle of garlic powder, salt, and pepper. stir with a spoon. carefully put a layer of potato into the bottom of the peels, then add a layer of meat, grated cheese, then potato, and meat again. return to 350 oven for 15 mins to reheat. Sprinkle with grated cheese and more green onion or chives, then back into the oven until cheese melts. You can also add cooked chopped bacon when you do the meat layer and also as a garnish. grankids love these!
tacos are easy and if you make them into nachos kids have an easier time eating them just layer chips with cooked meat heated beans, spinkle with the rest of your taco fixings.
Hot Dog surprizes (another of my kids/grandkids favs) on a night when you are making mashed taters make a double batch. The next night make these:
preheat oven to 375
split a hot dog length wise. place on a cookie sheet. completely cover with mashed potatoes. put in oven and bake for 20 mins. remove from oven and cover with grated cheese then back into the oven until cheese melts. (anyone remember flying saucers from school? Bolgna with a scoop of mashed taters and then cheese on top)
Hot dog kabobs
cut hotdog into bite sized pieces (for wee little ones I do not give them the kabobs as I slice the hotdogs into half circles after they are cooked. 2 inch slices of bacon
Thread onto skewer a chunk of pinapple, a chunk of Hotdog, pineapple a piece of bacon folded over until you have 4 of each. after I put them on the skewers I cut off the sharp end of the stick for kid safety. broil until bacon is done. older kids love helping make these. Dont forget to soak the kabob sticks! You can omit the bacon if wanted.
The next recipe takes a bit of work but are another hit with kids.
Lumpias: (sp)
dice potaotes into 1/4 inch cubes fry
brown ground meat with 1/4 onion per pound of meat. until crumbly and no pink remains.
when potatoes are done add in the ground meat.
have a small bowl of water ready and a package of eggroll wrappers. (even better if you can get lumpia (sp) wrappers but they are hard to find)
place wrapper on waxed paper put a heaping tablespoon of the meat mixture about 1/4 the way up the wrapper. with your finger lightly wet all edges of the wrapper. fold up the side closest to you, then fold each side in, then roll up. make sure you seal the final edge with a bit of water.
at this point they can be frozen so when I make them I make a huge batch.
Heat about an inch of oil in a heavy pan (I use my cast iron pan). Fry until brown on all sides. serve with lots of ketchup. Be very careful as the centers of these can be very hot for little ones. You can add grated cheese, bell peppers if you want. if you freeze them you can cook them directly from the freezer but be careful they tend to spatter more. I cook them at a bit lower temp when frozen.
Apple pies the kids way.
peel and slice apples. Toss with a splash of lemon juice, brown sugar, cinnamon or apple pie spice. Optional raisins.
lay out your egg roll wrapper. lay 2 apples slices on the wrapper roll up as described above and fry. These can also be frozen before cooking.
Ok I am brain dead now if I think of some more off the top of my head I will add thm later.
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WoW Ayla Hunter, Lightbringer, Z Guild
May the forces of evil become confused
while your arrow is on its way to the target. ~George Carlin~
A'yla level 126 UA AC FF
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