Anyone have nutritious, simple recipes for a single dad?

Question

I"m trying to teach a friend of mine to fend for himself in the kitchen. He has 4 kids and lost his wife suddenly just before Xmas last year. He's not even up to novice level in the kitchen. The kids are all teens or preteens and have no culinary skills, either.

So we're looking for very simple, inexpensive recipes that will feed 5 hungry people and can be made quickly and without a lot of utensils (which they wouldn't ever be able to find even if they had them). Nutritious and delicious are the key words here. They've pasta'd themselves out and need to get away from empty calories. Anyone have suggestion?

Answer 1

for sandwiches and burgers etc....

http://www.fbnr.com/finder/searchlists/144.htm

for crock pot meals.....

http://www.easy-crock-pot-recipes.com/crock-pot-cook-book.html

I would start the BBQ

http://www.weber.com/bbq/pub/recipe/menu.aspx

here is a good recipie hard to mess up and tastes great....

MAGDALINAS VALENTINE CHICKEN

4 boneless skinless chicken breast
2 cans Campbell's condensed golden cream of mushroom soup
1/4 chopped yellow onion
milk (1) one soup can's amount

flour seasoned with garlic powder, season salt, pepper, and (dill weed) optional.

Season and flour 4 chicken breasts and fry in skillet with vegetable oil till done.

Drain and remove excess grease from skillet.

Combine chopped onion, milk, Campbell's condensed golden cream of mushroom soup, 2 tbsp of seasoned flour in skillet with cooked chicken breasts.

Simmer on medium heat till onions are soft.

lists of good cooking sites for ideas, good luck

Answer 2

You need something quick and fresh. Buying prepackeged stuff is not always baset and usually caters to 3-4 servings at most.
Here's something Very healthy and tastes good.
Chicken Pieces(can be any cut.)
Powdered Ranch mix
Frozen Green Beans
Canned Biscuits.rolls(wheat if available)

Ranch Chicken
Preheat oven to 350
Spray a pan with cooking spray.
Lay chicken out on pan.
Spinkle ranch powder over chicken.
Bake in oven until don (20-30 min)

With the ranch chicken I suggest green Beans. Any frozen veggies will work. Green is your best bet. Frozen veggies are easilly put into boiling water and that's all there is to it.

The biscuits I mentioned so there would be a startch. Or, you could place a bunch of potatoes in the hot oven 55min before you plan on eating and just place the chicken in for the last 30 min. Everything is done at the same time.

Usually, if you follow this formula, you know you're eating healthy.

Meat/Veggie/startch

Note:Corn and Peas are not veggies, they are a startch.
Interchange what you use for each one on a daily basis, it can be very easy to do. You can make several variations on the chicken, just stock up on spice blends. Sprinkle on top of the panned chicken, and you're done.

As for a beef dish, I suggest buying a roast or a round.

Stick it in a crock pot, sseason it, then let it cook on medium heat all day. This one is best set up in the morning before leavign for work. It should be nice and tender by the time everyone gets home.

For a pork dish, you can do almost the same thing as the chikcken. Just pan and season however you want and bake. Just use fresh ingredients and follow the menu formula I mentioned earlier.

If you plan on cooking it the same day, you can save some money by purchasing "manager's Special" meats. They are still good, just cook them as soon as you get them home and you'll have it for a week.

Also, try shopping at places likt "Save A Lot" and "Aldi" they have great deals.

Answer 3

These are teens and not gonna go for meatloaf and mashed potatoes. but try anyway. Kids need structure.

Being teens they should at least learn how to cook or have some input into a meal. More than likely they eat pizza, spaghetti, tuna or ground beef.

There is a wonderful quick and easy boxed meal on the market called "BANQUET HOMESTYLE BAKES" They come in 'chicken mashed potatoes/gravy and biscuits, lasagna, beef strogenoff, chili beef and others.

Very simply to make and no doubt a teen can do it or even Dad! Add water to the mix or maybe some butter and toss it in the oven for 30 minutes and it even comes with microwave instruction. Add a couple of cans of green beans or peas or carrots and "voila" an entire meal in a few minutes.

Try it....................no fuss no mess..........

and the kids have to do the dishes

Answer 4

You should use this recipe:Crispy Chicken Fingers




Recipe Summary
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
User Rating: No Rating




1 1/4 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut across into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup lowfat buttermilk
Cooking spray
4 cups whole-grain corn cereal (recommended: Corn Chex or cornflakes)
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
Honey-Mustard Sauce, recipe follows

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Combine the chicken and buttermilk in a shallow dish. Cover and chill for 15 minutes.
Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Put the cereal in a sealed plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin. Transfer the crumbs to a shallow dish. Season the chicken with the salt and a few grinds of pepper. Dip each piece of chicken in the cereal to fully coat and arrange on the baking sheet. Bake until cooked through, about 8 minutes. Leave the chicken on the baking sheet to cool slightly. It will become crispier.

Serve with the mustard sauce.


Honey-Mustard Sauce:
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
3 tablespoons honey
In a small bowl, stir together the mustard and mayonnaise until smooth. Stir in the honey.

Yield: 1 1/4 cups


Nutrition Information
Nutritional Analysis Per Serving Calories 328
Total Fat 6 grams Saturated Fat 1 gram
Protein 36 grams Carbohydrates 33 grams
Fiber 1 gram

Answer 5

Welll... It is summertime, so anything on the grill is easy. (If you have a grill...) I'm single, work full time, go to school and have 3 kids, but if I grab some boneless chicken or whatever lean grilling meat is on sale (marinade optional) and a vegetable like broccoli, baby carrots, squash or similar that can steam quickly... I can have dinner on the table in 20 minutes or so. It's pretty straight forward and if you have to stretch it or add variety, there are some cool sausages or hot dogs on sale usually... (Plus it doesn't heat your house up by cooking on the stove.)

For a fabulous dessert after you BBQ, try cutting a fresh peach in half, brush with a tiny bit of butter and sprinkle with cinnamon. Grill flesh side down on high for 3 minutes, flip and sprinkle with brown sugar. Leave it on the grill just long enough for the brown sugar to melt a bit. Serve immediately alone or with vanilla ice cream... Yumm. (Like a cobbler, but fresh and no extra carbs from a crust!!!) And it's FAST.

PS: Some of the smaller grills aren't very expensive, even with the side burner for the vebetables.

Answer 6

I can't stand her show but I love her cookbooks. Go buy them a Rachel Ray 30 Minute Meal book. Her recipes are easy to follow and really easy to make. Just show them how to use a the essential utensils like a knife, stove, and oven. My boyfriend who never cooks can follow her recipes. He surprised me one night with dinner ( I always cook) and he didn't do too bad. So he proved that he can if he wants to eat. lol

Another idea....Crock Pot. Dad just dumps the food in the pot in the morning and dinner is ready when he gets home to feed the troops. They can do chicken, pot roasts, stews, chili's, rice. The site below is a book for 5 ingredients for the crockpot.

Answer 7

LOL. Another single dad here.I was also once dependant on a lady friend for Mr. mom advise.Meatball stew is a good one everybody will like.Fry the meatballs in a skillet,using fresh ground beef.Once cooked ,put them in a large pot ,adding a can of carrots,a can of green beans and pealed potatoes diced.Add 1 cup of hot water,some salt and pepper.Let it simmer on low for an hour while you relax.Total mess 1 pot,1 skillet ,+plates and utensils.

Answer 8

Here's one we have from time to time (family of 5 including 2 teens) and we ALWAYS have leftovers!

Pizza Casserole

2 boxes of velveeta shells and cheese
2 lbs of ground beef
1 small onion
1 small green pepper
15 oz. can of pizza sauce
mozz. cheese.

Cook mac & cheese according to the package but remove when al dente. Set aside.
Brown ground beef and onion and green pepper chopped into small pieces. cook until browned. Mix well with pizza sauce.
Put mac & cheese into 9X13 baking dish. Top with beef mixture. Top with Mozz and cover with foil. Bake at 375 for 20 min. Remove and let set uncovered for 5 min.

It sounds odd but my 8 year old daughter is a very picky eater and LOVES this. :) Hope it helps!

Answer 9

Get him a grill.
Hamburgers are easy.
fajitas, too.
BBQ chicken

Salmon takes minutes to cook.

A nice green salad.
Ice Cream
tomato and avocado

Answer 10

that's tough to go with both inexpensive and healthy. i'm a bachelor and my favorite is to cook up boneless skinless chicken breasts in a skillet, seasoned any way you can think of, and have any kind of vegetables on the side. supplement with fruit. have premade muffins from sam's club or costco for breakfast to get carbs, or eat cereal, and occasional side of loaf bread.

the chicken and veggies take almost no skill to prepare, as long as you have a skillet(s) large enough to cook enough chicken.