| The daily dilemma: what to cook for dinner. After | | | | 1 package of sliced pepperoni |
| years of cooking for my family, I can honestly say that | | | | Preheat oven to 400 F. Place 2 tortillas on a cookie |
| there have been times when I lost my creative will in | | | | sheet and top each with cheddar cheese. Put another |
| the dinner department. Now that I have a picky | | | | tortilla on top of each cheese covered tortilla and bake |
| four-year-old to consider in the equation, the dilemma | | | | for 5 minutes. Take out of oven and press down on |
| has increased to almost disaster size. He has a list of | | | | tortillas with a spatula. Top with salsa, olives, some |
| about 5 items that he'll eat and will not vary easily. In | | | | more cheese and pepperoni. Put back in oven and |
| other words, I'm having a rather difficult time finding | | | | cook for 5 minutes more or until the edges are brown |
| easy to prepare meals that will satisfy the whole | | | | and crispy and the cheese is melted on top. This is |
| family. What to do, what to do? | | | | great with a garden salad. |
| For most busy families, time is the enemy. They simply | | | | C.J.'s Little Meat Loaf |
| don't have enough time to prepare anything more than | | | | 1 egg |
| something pre-packaged from a box. I've been there, | | | | 1 lb ground beef or turkey |
| done that, and I can also say that it gets old, is | | | | 1 cup oatmeal |
| unhealthy and eventually someone in the family will | | | | 1 onion, grated (I use onion flakes to save time, tastes |
| start to complain anyway. The question here is: Is | | | | great) |
| there a way to combine healthy eating with | | | | 1/3 cup ketchup |
| convenience? | | | | ¼ cup Parmesan cheese |
| Why of course there is! Making better meal planning a | | | | 1 tsp salt |
| priority does not have to cause groans from the cook. | | | | ¼ tsp pepper |
| There are new methods of meal preparation and | | | | Extra ketchup for the tops |
| easy to fix staples available these days that can | | | | Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly spray 8 muffin cups with |
| make you say 'ahhh'. In fact, getting the kids involved in | | | | cooking spray. Combine ground meat, oatmeal, onion, |
| the kitchen has become another novel way of getting | | | | egg, ketchup, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper in a |
| picky eaters to actually put something other than PBJs | | | | bowl; mix well with your hands or a spoon. Divide the |
| in their sweet little mouths. My own little guy found a | | | | meat mixture into 8 balls and put each into a muffin |
| recipe in one of the cute kid cookbooks I bought him | | | | cup; press down lightly. Put more ketchup on the tops |
| and with his help we made dinner and he 'ate it!' Wow, | | | | of each little meat loaf. Bake for 30 minutes or until no |
| I'm a believer. | | | | longer pink inside. Transfer to paper towel covered |
| So, what are some easy recipes for better family | | | | plate to drain and then serve with mashed potatoes, |
| meals? Here are a couple of recipes that I've made in | | | | green beans and carrots...yum! |
| the past month that were hits with everyone in the | | | | These recipes have gone over great in my house, and |
| family from grumpy dad to doubting daughter and | | | | I bet they'll be devoured well in yours too. Making family |
| picky pint-size pouter: | | | | meal preparation and family meal time a priority will |
| Pepperoni Pizza Quesadillas | | | | encourage children to develop healthy eating habits - |
| 8 - 10 inch flour tortillas | | | | an important key to good health as adults. By making |
| 2 ½ cups cheddar cheese (I just buy the 10 oz | | | | meal time less stressful you can focus on the joys of |
| pre-shredded) | | | | spending time together instead of the hassles of |
| 1 cup salsa (I tend to go with mild since it's a meal for | | | | preparing meals. Every member of the family can |
| the whole family) | | | | enjoy dinner time again. |
| ½ cup chopped green olives, drained | | | | |