Families need to eat and the hungry mouths never stop asking "what's for dinner"? We Moms know that a pile of recipe cards with meals that you can throw together in minutes is a must-have. Things happen quickly in families today, and you may be called on to put a meal together in a matter of moments. Wouldn't it be great to have a simple plan for quick meals that the whole family can help with?



Dive In:

What kid doesn't like to dunk their food. Clean and slice some carrots, broccoli, cucumbers, celery, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, and zucchini and lay them out on a platter with some ranch style dressing. I've seen the most dedicated vegetable-hater dig right into these vegetables when they can dip them.

Sandwich Building 101:

Your child will love experimenting with whatever you have on hand to build a sandwich. Use buns, waffles, bagels, English muffins, or dinner rolls to begin with, or anything you have on hand. Now you can start adding peanut butter, fruit, meat slices, vegetables, cheese, hummus, fried eggs, scrambled eggs, or hard boiled eggs, or whatever jumps out of the refrigerator at you. Let your child give it a try and remember, it is a work in progress.

Never Fail Noodles:

Every pantry should have an assortment of noodles at the ready. When dinner plans are unsure, noodles will be there to pull off a family-friendly meal in a minute. Start some noodles boiling and search the kitchen for goodies to add. Try adding some leftover vegetables to your hot noodles and topping with cheese. If you have a can of chicken broth you can make a quick soup with noodles and some celery and onion. A skillet dish with some hot, cooked noodles, pasta sauce stirred in, and topped with cottage cheese makes a great mock lasagna.

Wrap it Up:

If you've got tortillas and leftovers, you've got a wonderful meal. Warm up your leftovers and wrap them up in a tortilla with some cheese. Voila! Leftovers Burrito.

Spuds from Heaven:

Potatoes are a meal waiting to happen. Microwave a potato, pile on cheese of any sort (cheddar, mozzarella, cottage cheese) and some meat, veggies, or even salsa or sunflower seeds, and you have a delicious dinner.

Soup Warms the Soul:

Fill a pan with broth and veggies. Then, just throw in whatever you have in the house, meat or beans, leftovers, a can of diced tomatoes, noodles or rice, and spices. You just made soup in minutes.

Turn the Day Upside Down:

You can have breakfast any time. Cereal, eggs & bacon, waffles, and pancakes are all so much more delicious when they're unexpected. Breakfast is always better at night.

If your meal planning took a turn for the worse today, take note of these quick and easy dinnertime solutions and your table will be ready for your family in the blink of an eye.