I DONT KNOW WHAT TO COOK FOR MY FAMILY PLEASE HELP!

I DONT KNOW WHAT TO COOK FOR MY FAMILY PLEASE HELP!

hi im married mum of two children ( soon to be three as we are trying for baby) my problem is i want to feed my family healthy food but we are on a budget, everyone eats different things which makes it harder. my husband likes junky food like burgers, pies ect, my 7 year old son likes a variety of food and isnt a problem , my daughter however who is 5 is a nightmare she will only eat pizza, chips, fishfingers ect which is giving her painfull constipation. when they were babies i never fed them baby food from jars i had a book and made everything myself so they got all the nutrients they needed. my daugter never took to this she would honestly go days without food im totally stuck like i say we all wanna be healthy is there a cheap way to do it, and has anyone got ideas for new recipies ( im the only vegie in the house and living off oven chip sandwhiches, i dont know what to cook) im totally stuck any advice would be grately appriciated.

Re: I DONT KNOW WHAT TO COOK FOR MY FAMILY PLEASE HELP! In reply to: molly84

Hi, ther'es nothing wrong with fish fingers, I buy the ones that are all cod or all haddock, rather that minced fish ones as they will not be as healthy. Have you tried making your own pizza's, it's cheap, healthy, andI think kids like to be involved in what they are making and eating....I buy a cibatta flour mix (its just yeast and strong flour), you put it in a bowl add about a tablespoon of veg or olive oil, some water (exact quantites will be on back of pkt) do not make the cibatta bread, you want to cut the dough into 4 pieces, let the children roll them into a circle (about the size of a small plate)....
for the toppings: Drain two cans of chopped tomatoes, add a little sugar and few squirts of tommy ketchup, that's your base for all the pizzas., Then add grated cheeses, my kids like Double Gloucester as it is mild, let them put the cheese on, if they moan, tell them they wont be able to cook with you again (my son used to say, can't you just cook it mum, and I will eat it!)...then the toppings are up to you, drain a can of sweetcorn, chop up some Ham or Chicken, my daughter has spinach on her pizza's, or you could even try draining a can of baked beans, for really fussy kids!, or sliced peppers, fried onions and mushrooms, etc...bake pizzas in oven 220/gas 7 for 15-20 mins. A little tip is to put a little oil on the baking trays before you put the pizza on them, stops them sticking and adds flavour to the base.

I always think pasta goes down well, if you get the nice shapes like bows etc...there are some lovely recipes on this website, I make vegetarian spag bol, with quorn (my kids dislike beef mince, they say it has chewy bits, but quorn doesn't).

Or have you tried sweet and sour sauce, it's sweet and tangy, ideal for children here is my secret recipe (i used to be a chef, it is more difficult and taxing feeding the family though!)
Sweet and sour sauce
one ladel of tommy ketchup, one ladel of soy sause, 3 ladels of malt vinegar and 3 ladels of sugar, 1 dsp of worcester sauce, the juice of a can of pineapples...boil all in a heavy based pan, stirring, add a gestimate of cornflour mixed in water,mix it before in a bowl, then add to sauce, simmer until required consistency, it's darker than the usual sweet and sour sauces you see, as the shop ones are just full of water and tomatoes, which is not correct, serve with chicken dippers, rice or noodles,or for a veggie option, do stir fry veg, about 99p a pkt, they have beansprouts in etc.... hope you enjoy experimenting with this food, it can be fun x

Don't sit up close at the ballet...it spoils the illusion...

Edited about 1 year ago

Re: I DONT KNOW WHAT TO COOK FOR MY FAMILY PLEASE HELP! In reply to: Hannah

I agree, nothing wrong with fish fingers or burgers for that matter. I try to balance out a meal like fish fingers, and give my girls vegetables with them. They like what we call "orange meals" - fish fingers and carrots :o) I use frozen veg a lot because it's so convenient and it's actually better than fresh sometimes because the nutrients are frozen in with them.

Why don't you try a new meal once a week? There are loads of recipes on this site and a lot of them are quick and easy to prepare. Your kids will soon get used to new taste if you persist (and tell your partner he should be leading by example!).

Also, you need to think seriously about your diet too. You can't live off chip sandwiches and should be eating different kinds of things to be an example to your children so they will eat better. They won't eat if all they see you eating is chips and bread! It's not good for you either, think of the vitamins you're missing out on :o) I used to eat really badly before I had my girls and I started making small changes. Like the first one I made was drinking more water. Then a few months later, I ate one piece of fruit every day. I slowly increased this to 3 pieces of fruit a day. And now I eat 5 pieces of fruit and veg a day and drink at least 2 litres of water. It's making habits for yourself. If I don't eat enough fruit and veg, I feel like I've missed out. I do still have treats and give my kids treats, but it's about eating healthily most of the time.

I hope this has given you some ideas anyway.

Keep Smiling and Eat Well :o)

Re: I DONT KNOW WHAT TO COOK FOR MY FAMILY PLEASE HELP! In reply to: Nina

Yes Molly, you need to be at your healthiest as you are planning a baby, make sure you are taking a good pregnancy supplement containing folic acid, these contain nutrients that we find hard to get from our diets, so it's a good way of preparing yourself. Also, try less stodge like the chip and bread, and have a nice salad, with tuna?...oily fish is very good for you, and salad, well we all know salads are goo for us, we are supposed to eat a rainbow of foods a day, bleberries are a nice "blue" food. And as Nina says above, drink plenty of water (I must admit, I find this hard to, I like cordial juice or pure juice) waffling again, good luck and keep healthy

Don't sit up close at the ballet...it spoils the illusion...