Kid Friendly Recipes

sRaise your hand if your kids are picky eaters?  I'm guessing most hands are raised...mine included.  To be frank, I don't get it.  I'm eating the same foods they are and I think they're delish.  Ok, yes there is sciene behind it so I DO get it but it's annoying.  No one likes to spend a good hour on getting a meal on the table only to have their kids refuse to eat it.  With that said, I'm sharing some recipes with you that are tried and true in our house and the kids devour these recipes.  In fact, they ask for them!  What's better...they're easy for baby to eat too and only require a bit of cutting up. Genius!!!

First up is MY all time favorite food and my kids are obsessed! Not only that but it's a quick 30 minutes and dinner is on the table.  I like to pair it with a salad or garlic bread.  This also serves a small army so lots of leftovers...and it tastes better and better as it sits.  

SLUMGULION

1 lb. ground beef
1/4 c. chopped onion
1/4 c. chopped green pepper
15 oz. can tomato sauce
14.5 oz can Hunt's stewed tomatoes
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 lb. elbow noodles
1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta to box instructions draining pasta when it's al dente (you do not want to overcook the noodles or they will become mush later on). While the pasta cooks, sauté onions and peppers until tender and translucent.  Add ground beef and brown.  Season with salt, pepper, and chili powder.  Once combined add the tomato sauce and stewed tomatoes and allow to simmer for about 5 minutes. Break apart the stewed tomatoes if they're not in bite size pieces.  Combine sauce and noodles and add cheese.  Stir to combine and pour into 9x13 oven safe dish.  Sprinkles with extra cheese to your liking.  Bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until bubbly.



This next recipe is a go to because it's easy to assemble and is a crowd pleaser.  In fact, this is one I love to make for friends after they have their babies.  I get it all ready to go and all they have to do is pop it in the oven til bubbly.  I haven't met a person who doesn't like this.  Serve with rice and guacamole.

SALSA VERDE ENCHILADAS

1 rotisserie chicken (meat taken off and shredded)
16 oz. jar mild salsa verde
3 scallions
1/2 c. lime juice
1/2 c. cilantro chopped
10 flour tortillas
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. chicken broth
shredded mexican blend cheese

Shred chicken in a large bowl and add 1/2 jar of salsa.  In a medium pan combine the rest of the salsa, scallions, and lime juice.  Simmer 2 minutes.  Stir in 2 T. cilantro.  Lower heat to keep warm and place one flour tortilla at a time into the sauce coating both sides.  Place tortilla in greased 9x13 oven safe dish and add chicken to each tortilla (about 1/3 c.). Sprinkle chicken with small amount of cheese.  Roll up and place seam side down on dish.  Continue until all tortillas are rolled.  With remaining sauce from pan add chicken broth and sour cream and cook over medium heat until heated through.  Pour over tortillas and sprinkle with cheese and remaining cilantro.  Bake for 30 minutes.


Lastly is one that takes no time at all to fix.  It's quick and fills the belly.  Serve with salad, roasted potatoes, rice...you name it.  That's why I love it...it's versatile.

LEMON GARLIC SALMON

1 salmon fillet cut into 4 inch sections (you'll get about 5-6 if you use the salmon from Costco)
1/2 c. mayo
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp. lemon zest or 1 drop lemon essential oil
1 tsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. honey
s&p

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Season salmon with salt and pepper and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Combine other ingredients in a bowl until combined.  Spoon a heaping tablespoon of sauce on each salmon fillet and spread to cover.  Continue until all fillets are covered.  Bake for 13-14 minutes.  Do not overcook the salmon.  It will become dry very quickly.  Allow to rest on the cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes before serving. This will help it stay together when you removed it from the cookie sheet.

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as my family does.  You'll see more pictures on the IG feed soon.  Check out more recipes by searching #allielovestocook on IG.  Click link below to check out the awesome counter high chair from Regalo.  It's easy to install, only $35 and FREE shipping! You need one!  I'm obsessed with mine and Daisy can't crawl out of this one...unlike her actual high chair.  Sneaky baby.

Regalo Hook-On High Chair

Every Step is an Heirloom

Maybe I'm the only one that stashes away clothes here and there that my kids wore when they were tiny so that when they're older and having their own babies they can pull those clothes out and reminisce on the days of yore.  Just me?  Can't be true.  I know you do it.

When I first had Remee I was actually kinda bummed that my parents didn't keep a single item of clothing that I wore when I was a baby as to pass it down to my own kids.  Then I remembered I was born in the late 80's...not great in the fashion department if you know what I mean.  Still, I thought about that a lot as Remee grew.  What would I keep for her so that she could dress her own babies in the same thing.  Now I'm more like a packrat and keep things here and there that are in good shape that have been favorites for each of the girls.  One child has a ton of swimsuits, another might have more onsies and hats.  But Daisy...she has moccs.

Daisy is my last little baby.  So naturally I've spoiled her silly in every shape and form.  I've nursed her the longest...ok that was Daisy's fault though.  I buy her more expensive clothes, she got a top of the line car seat, and lastly she's been the only babe of mine to sport Freshly Picked moccasins.  I just can't help myself.  Her tiny little feet in those adorable shoes...I mean can you blame me? NO!! There's no doubt that they'll stand the test of time.  They'll hold up even after she's run them to the ground.  When she grows out of them they'll hold tiny imprints of her feet...and ,aybe a tiny piece pf my heart. Awwww.

But if I'm being honest, yes their cute, but these little moccasins hold so much more than that for me. These little shoes are what I'm choosing to pass down to my grandkids when Daisy has her own babes.  They're what I'll gift her when she's pregnant and I'll hold those little moccasins in my hands and shed tears remembering so many beautiful and precious moments that I hold so dear of my Daisy.  I'll remember they were the first shoes she ever wore just months after being born.  They're the shoes she wore in our first family pictures.  She sported them in so many of her monthly picture updates and I'm sure they'll be the shoes she's wearing when she takes her first few steps.

Kids get older so fast.  It's like lightening speed fast.  So holding on to things here and there that bring back fond memories of younger years is a must.  Within months Daisy will grow out of her clothes and shoes and I'll pack away a few of them with tears in my eyes knowing there's nothing I can do to slow time down.  All I can do is hold on to the items that give me a glimpse back into the years when she was small, always wanted momma, and got into everything and anything...including her moccs.