What This Mama Made- A Week of More Make It Fast Meals (6)
Busy-ness still reigns supreme around our house. Pre-K, soccer, scouts, library nights, swim classes… It feels like I’m in and out of the house constantly, and dragging kids along with me. We’ve been relying on our slow cooker a lot over the last few weeks, and honestly, I don’t know if that will change any time soon. Luckily, I’ve got a great variety of slow cooker cookbooks to choose recipes from. Keep reading to check out our week of More Make It Fast, Cook It Slow family friendly dinners!
OUR WEEK OF MORE MAKE IT FAST, COOK IT SLOW MEALS
First, Let’s Get This Out Of The Way
I want to make sure this is clear up front, guys. First, I’m not a dietitian, doctor, food photographer, baker, or chef. I’m a mom who really isn’t a great cook, trying her best to put some relatively tasty, not-too-unhealthy food in front of her picky kids each evening. You won’t find 100% organic, from scratch, or totally restrictive menu ideas here. I plan to share what we’re really eating- processed portions and all. Second, you’ll notice I only plan 5 meals each week. My parents inevitably invite us over one night, or we meet them out, or just eat leftovers one evening… Planning for 5 meals is more ‘do-able’ for us, and means we are less likely to waste food when plans change last minute.
What Inspired Our Family Meals This Week?
I’ve mentioned our crazy schedule in the past, and really, it hasn’t settled in yet. (Is it even going to?!) So, you guessed it- our Crock-Pot is still the only reason we’ve eaten homemade meals recently. This week I decided to try out 5 recipes from More Make It Fast, Cook It Slow. I have other books from the author, Stephanie O’Dea that I love, so I was excited to dig into some of these recipes.
The Family Meals + The Family’s Thoughts
Portobello Mushroom Sandwiches
Served with: red grapes + salad.
#thebigone: N/A
#thelittleone: N/A
#thehubs: ★★★★
#homeboundbuthopeful: ★★★★★
Would we make it again? Since I make the menu plan each week, I can guarantee we absolutely will, simply because I love mushrooms. Haha! It’s also super simple, and pretty inexpensive- can’t beat that!
Marmalade Curry Chicken
Served with: salad, peaches + brown rice.
#thebigone: N/A
#thelittleone: N/A
#thehubs: ★
#homeboundbuthopeful: ★
Would we make it again? Despite following the recipe closely, this somehow turned out over-cooked. The taste wasn’t bad, but the texture was tough. So honestly, it’s a toss up, but we’ll likely give this meal one chance to redeem itself!
Pioneer Dinner
Served with: cantaloupe + salad.
#thebigone: N/A
#thelittleone: N/A
#thehubs: ★★★★
#homeboundbuthopeful: ★★★★
Would we make it again? Absolutely! It was a quick meal to put together, and tasted so good on a cool fall day. My parents heard about it from us, and are interested in trying it too, so we’ll definitely be putting this into regular rotation.
Not-So-Sloppy Joes
Served with: apple slices, salad + sliced provolone.
#thebigone: N/A
#thelittleone: N/A
#thehubs: ★★★★
#homeboundbuthopeful: ★★★
Would we make it again? It was good, but I’m not sure it will become a go-to meal for us, only because there are other options we know we like better.
Peperoncini Beef Sandwiches
Served with: apple + salad.
#thebigone: N/A
#thelittleone: N/A
#thehubs: ★★★★
#homeboundbuthopeful: ★★★★
Would we make it again? We likely will, since the recipe is so incredibly simple. It’s a quick ‘dump it in the slow cooker’ option, making it perfect for my husband to put together while I sleep in. So yeah, sign me up for any meal that means I get to sleep in!
Notes:
- Meals rated out of 5 stars.
- ‘N/A’ for #thebigone generally means he was with his dad and couldn’t try the meal.
- ‘N/A’ for #thelittleone generally means he ate his fruit and side dishes, but didn’t try the main course.
- We don’t force the kids to eat anything, but don’t cater to them either. I always serve fruit with dinner though, so even a picky kiddo will find one thing they’re happy to eat.
- Liking our dishes and trays? We mainly use the Pillowfort line from Target!
- Stephanie O’Dea has other great book options available. Here’s a few to consider:
