Working Mom Dinner Ideas

miamimom93

Sun, Mar 24 2024, 8:10 pm

I work full time and normally get home after my kids eat dinner. My babysitter normally heats up food for them.
Anyone have a good sample meal plan that they use? I am running out of healthy filling ideas.

miamimom93

Sun, Mar 24 2024, 8:40 pm

Crockpot recipes are a great idea! How do you make the chicken and rice?
And yes they will eat leftovers but prefer fresh.

teachkids wrote:

Crockpot meals (we love chicken and rice).

Will your kids eat leftovers of what you made for the adults the previous night?

yachnabobba

Sun, Mar 24 2024, 9:12 pm

Assuming you do shift work
Shift one: deli sandwiches
Shift two : oven stew
Shift three crockpot lentil soup
Night 4: when you are too tired to breath
Breaded shnitzel and mini hot dogs

SingALong

Sun, Mar 24 2024, 10:53 pm

Another vote for crockpot meals. They were my lifesaver when I was in grad school and was out crazy hours.

Chicken potatoes and carrots
Peppers steak and vegetables
Cholent (yes, my kids ate that during the week!)

I’d also prepare a pan of chicken, rice and mushrooms in the fridge. Then set oven to delay start to turn on at a specific time. Told my nanny to put it into the oven before the timer turned on.
Any 9x13 of food can be done with delay start. I’d often prepare the pan the night before since I’d leave so early to the bus I’d have no time.

Babysitter can cut up cucumbers and peppers for the kids. Or you can cut it the day before and put it in containers in the fridge. Just put the slices on a plate in the middle of the table.

teachkids

Sun, Mar 24 2024, 11:00 pm

Rice, water, chicken, seasoning (I just use taco spice) in the crockpot, leave it on low all day.
You can also make meatballs/ meat sauce in the crockpot and have them pour it on spaghetti you made ahead.

If your babysitter is jewish/ you have a kid old enough to turn on the oven, prep a tray of schnitzel or homemade chicken nuggets in the morning and have them put it in the oven at a set time. Alternatively. Prep chicken when you bring it home, then freeze. In the morning pop the frozen tray in the oven and set the oven to turn on at a specific time and tell babysitter when to take chicken out of the oven.

Our weekly dinner menu: one night crockpot chicken and rice, one night london broil, one night hamburgers and hot dogs and fries or spaghetti and meatballs, one night either schnitzel/ schnitzel bites/ fish (I cook ahead and my kids eat cold or we use canned salmon/tuna). One night frozen goodies.

justforfun87

Sun, Mar 24 2024, 11:08 pm

teachkids wrote:

Chicken on the bone or boneless?

miamimom93

Mon, Mar 25 2024, 12:25 am

Do you have exact measurements for the rice and chicken?

teachkids wrote:

teachkids

Mon, Mar 25 2024, 3:43 am

miamimom93 wrote:

Do you have exact measurements for the rice and chicken?

Chicken on the bone. How much I make depends if I also need leftovers. It's generally about a cup of rice, 2 cups of water, 4 chicken quarters, but I can easily add more. It's a very forgiving recipe.