What's For Dinner?

It's President's Day weekend and I am already struggling with most of my New Year's resolutions.

I still haven't gotten my act together on my taxes... my "exercise regimen" (walking a mere 30 minutes a day) has become spotty... and I gave up half-way through "You on a Diet" because understanding the monumental task ahead of me (losing all this horrible weight) is just too depressing to fathom.

The one vow I have managed to keep is the one about cooking more often. We're relying less on takeout and delivery, even on the nights when we don't get back from the gym (Megan's, of course! See the paragraph above) until after 8:00 p.m.

Finding dishes we all will eat is a never-ending challenge. I've done a pretty good job so far, discovering recipes in a couple of new cookbooks I bought and filling up my Epicurious recipe box with "fast and easy" fare from Bon Appetit and Gourmet magazines.

My notoriously picky eater will not touch entire species of entrees. She will no longer buy my assertions that the nice chop on her plate is steak and not lamb. And she's not so sure she'll eat pork, either.

More annoying is a palate that cannot tolerate most seasoning. A tiny dusting of pepper makes her gasp for water. Mexican food (or Indian or other spicy Asian dishes) is out of the question. I have had to adjust my cooking style -- either keeping her portion apart from the others or adding spices to my portion later.

Then, there's my husband, who has very rigid beliefs about what encompasses dinner. Sandwiches are not dinner (they belong to lunch and only to lunch). Soup is not dinner (unless it is served as a first course). Pasta is OK as long as I don't cook it too often (say, no more than once every other week).

Finally, there's me. I am allergic to several different types of seafood. The last time I tasted a little bit of shrimp, I had so much trouble breathing that I thought I was going to die. Whitefish (like sole and halibut) makes my tongue and lips swell. Experiences like that dampen your sense of dining adventure. There are only two types of fish I am confident I won't react to: tuna and salmon. My husband HATES the former. And now, everyone is sick and tired of the latter.

So yesterday, when I thought about buying some groceries, I was at a loss. I had NO IDEA what to cook, and nothing sounded good. And no one in the family was offering any suggestions of what they would like. Finally, my daughter had a good suggestion: "Let's go out for sushi."

No, she does not eat sushi - are you kidding? But she has recently decided that she LOVES miso soup, edamame, yaki tori and steamed rice. So she has that, while I get my spicy tuna and salmon skin rolls and the husband has his fix for shrimp, lobster, scallops, octopus, etc. So sushi works.

But that was last night. And today, I'm facing the same dilemma.

It's nearly 1:00, my cupboard is bare, and I'm still clueless.

Any suggestions?

Comments

[Lorna]

Steamed chicken is my answer to every problem---it's good hot, cold, in sandwiches, in quiche, with avocado or cranberry sauce or chopped up in salad or cream---and I never seem to get tired of it. That said, I have to say that other members of my family have been known to run screaming from the house just at the thought that I may be approaching the poultry section of the meat counter.

[karoli]

So...what did you end up having? We're having the same problem, and the schedule issues in this house don't make it any better.

We either end up having the same things over and over or else going out. I'm really trying hard NOT to go out.

[Tammy]

First, get organized. Make a spreadsheet of recipe names and food items that your family likes to eat, and add other recipes that you would like to try - I also add prep time to my spreadsheet, that way I can plan ahead for my time. Then, put a weekly dinner plan together, allowing 1 day for someone else's cooking. Plan your grocery shopping based on your weekly recipe. It's VERY easy to put together a grocery list when you already know what you're going to be making! I try to plan my daily meals based on the time I have to prepare dinner -- i.e. Mondays are always crazy and we all have evening activities on Mondays, so those would be 30 min. or less prep-time dinners - NEVER eat out on Mondays, it's the day that the restaurants feed you all of the food that didn't get eaten over the weekend. Kids get out of school early on Fridays, so I have a bit more time to make dinner.

Because we are a large bunch, I do make two different meals on some nights - one thing for the kids, one thing for the adults. I'd rather have my kids eating than complaining, so it just makes my life calmer.

We don't *have* to stick specifically to my weekly list, but we do pretty good at making sure all of the meals that I had planned get eaten during their respective weeks.

In the mornings, I look at my meal planner and begin my dinner prep - i.e. taking meat out of the freezer, shredding cheese ahead of time, etc. Whatever I can do before that ugly dinner hour (when the kids are wound for sound), I do.

I also let the kids plan meals - one or two days a week, the kids will have their dinner plans and they are the kitchen helpers. This gets them involved in learning how to cook and it sure makes the meal more pleasant when the child is excited about what they've made for dinner! Not to mention that one-on-one interaction is something each of them craves.

Sundays are mom's day off - I will put sandwiches together for lunch (if we don't eat out after church) but dinner is popcorn!

I'm guessing I spend about an hour doing this each week. My challenge is that we are 45 min. away from a grocer, so my weekly planning is essential or we don't eat!

Hope this helps a little! I've seen you put together wonderful holiday meals ahead of time, so I know you can do this!

[Donna]

Lorna: I've never steamed chicken. (I've roasted and sauteed and even poached, but not steamed). I'll have to give that a try.

Karoli: I ended up making a pot roast with another new, easy recipe I found at Epicurious.

Tammy: Oh, if only it was so easy! I used to do that -- before Megan started her three night a week gymnastics regimen and my husband went on the "executive track."

With your brood, you have a reasonable expectation that there will be enough in attendance to make cooking a meal make sense.

Last night, after we got back from gym, my husband informed me that he has an overnight meeting down in Irvine today... and a dinner meeting at his own office on Thursday. (We are driving to San Diego Friday morning for the weekend -- Megan has a meet there Friday afternoon and we will be visiting with friends on Sat.)

Had I planned a menu for the days of the week I'd thought we would be together and shopped accordingly, I would have a whole lot of food that would either have to be frozen or would end up going to waste. (Getting Megan to eat something I have cooked is hit or miss -- if it is just the two of us, it is way easier to give her something she likes, like fish sticks & carrots and heat up a Lean Cuisine for myself.)

I have found that for our family, the best plan is not to plan too much in advance. We're fortunate that supermarkets are plentiful here -- so even if I end up visiting the store more or less daily (I vary it by going to different ones that excel at different products). That way, everything is fresh and there's less food getting wasted.

That said -- how nice to hear from you!! I'm so pleased you still check in on me every so often!

[Stephanie]

Those New Year's Resolutions can get to you. I'm still trying to get my husband's cooperation on taxes, but planning for my son's 2nd birthday has kind of taken over.

Cooking for my family is tough too. It took me years to break my husband's fried foods habit down to something manageable. And with a 4-1/2 year old and one about to turn 2, it's tough finding anything other than pasta that everyone will eat. DH is Italian, so at least pasta is a safe meal for him.

[SK]

Order takeout! What can you do?? Sometimes it is the best. I try to keep my cupboard filled with instant stuff for these "emergency meals": Annie's Instant Mac and Cheese, AnnieChun's instant noodle soups, taco dinner kits, frozen pizza, frozen fries,etc. You get the idea. Bon Appetit(if I am even spelling that right!).