I have Dinner Amnesia+ Some Ideas

Every busy parent has suffered from a case of dinner amnesia. You stand in front of the fridge, exhausted, with a handful of whatever you find to snack on and you can’t for the life of you think of what you want to make for the kids.

The background music is familiar, it doesn’t matter if you have one, two or three kids. You hear the yelling ” Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama”. “I am hungry.” In a perfect world, you already have everything ready to go. Come on, everyone knows you need to plan a week ahead. NOT. Truth be told, I love meal planning and truly believe in it (a post coming soon) but there are days when I really do not have the time or just forget.

I know how to cook a lot of things but when I think of what to make, nothing comes to mind. It is really frustrating. I forget how easy it is to throw some pasta together. I made a short list of quick dinners you can make on those nights when fresh ideas are a thing of a past. Some of these require a little prep (insert into slow cooker here).

1. Quesadillas. Throw some salsa in the slow cooker or the Ninja with some chicken or pour barbecue sauce on some chicken and slow cook it for a few hours. Make the Quesadillas: shred the chicken, add avocado and some cheese into some tortillas, grill them in a pan and your kids will love it.

2. Oatmeal. A huge favorite in our house. We add date syrup and tahini for iron and calcium. My babies love it. Get creative with your favorite add ins such as honey, coconut, berries or dried fruit. In the mornings, we put it in a cup and take it in the stroller for the walk to daycare.

3. Slow Cooker Lasagna. This is delicious and I am not kidding. Just layer the lasagna in the slow cooker as you would in the oven and cook for a few hours.

4. Hummus with chopped vegetables and a nice warm tomato basil soup.

5. The easiest meatballs ever. Sweet and Sour Meatballs. Make these and freeze them for a rainy day.

6. Tortilla Pizzas. Put all the toppings out on the table and have your kids layer the toppings. Use cheese, corn, tomatoes, mushrooms or anything else you like on your pizza. I actually love canned tuna on pizza (don’t judge). Spread some tomato sauce on the tortilla with the toppings and bake or microwave if you are really in a rush.

7. Fruit Shakes with a twist. I like to freeze bananas and add them to some fruit in the blender. I sneak in a little spinach or kale and my kids drink it by the glass. Serve that with a tortilla rolled up with cream cheese and vegetables or the famous peanut butter and banana that my son will take any day.

What are your favorite dinner ideas?