Make-ahead family meals

What are some of your favorite family meals that can either be made in advance (or frozen) or are super quick? Now that kid #2 is mobile I'm finding it really hard to cook dinner after work. 

Just doing a big batch of sweet potato stew, to freeze in two-people portions; and pumpkin soup, to last us the weekend. It's time for comfort food here: we're still wearing summery clothes during the day but evenings are cool, and we've just had the worst April/May storms (not monsoon or cyclone) since 1980.

I've also found that the Aldi frozen Atlantic salmon fillets work well for us: take out the required number of portions to thaw in the fridge the night before we need them, then poach with herbs quickly when I come home. Eat with salad or green veg (broccoli, spinach, asparagus etc). Easy as, and economical. I think that Trader Joe's or WJ is better place for your bulk frozen fish?

I'm also experimenting with a few things that help me get dinner on the table faster on nights when I'm managing cooking, childcare and homework help.  Some of the kiddie favorites:

1.  Really simply crock pot meals (e.g. chop a couple of onions and celery stalks, throw in boneless chicken, pour in BBQ sauce, and cook.  In last hour or so, fork shred and serve on toasted buns)

2.  Simple sauce meals over rice/pasta (e.g. chop onion, saute tofu a bit, thrown in nice premade Indian sauce which is the only reason I go to Whole Foods)

3.  "Sheet pan suppers"  -- there was a nice NYTimes article on this a year or two ago.  Frozen salmon filets, with yogurt sauce/butter/whatever on top, some sort of starch beside it, etc. and throw it all in the oven until done

And yeah, when all else fails, a big pot of pasta, with kiddie toppings for the kiddies, and something more flavorful or adults.

I always found Mac and cheese and meatloaf to be a go to meal.

Throw a stick of butter into the oven. When melted pour a box of macaroni over it. Stir. Cover with milk and cheese.

Meatloaf is chopped meat, ketsup up and onion soup and maybe an egg and breadcrumbs.

I would roll the meatloaf around brocolli for a veg.

Cook that at 350 with the Mac and cheese until done (45 min or so) voila! Dinner is done!

Ina Garten's tabbouleh: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/tabbouleh-recipe.html

Winter Slaw: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/winter-slaw.html

Cooks illustrated refried beans: http://www.food.com/recipe/refried-beans-cooks-illustrated-406946  You can use it as the base for all sorts of good things like quesadillas or tacos instead of meat

Adorable! When I was little, my mother used to keep a drawer for me to play in. It had some kitchen tools and other things as well. Funny that after all these years, I can only specifically remember the kitchen gadgets (measuring cups and spoons, cookie cutters, wooden spoons... )

Edited to fix typos.

afa said:

Hah.  It's gotten dangerous trying to cook for the past few months in our house.  N takes all the tupperware out while I cook (it's unfortunately in the drawer right next to the stove) so I'm always almost slipping on all the lids, but it keeps her busy for awhile.  I've decided crock pot stuff and casseroles I can put together during naptime are the best, but pretty soon I won't want to have the oven on for an hour because of the heat. 

So I guess what I'm saying is peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  

Not all make-ahead, but easy and quick.

Freeze steak, or chicken thighs or breasts, in marinade (soy-ginger-lime, lemon-cayenne-vinegar, rosemary-olive oil-garlic-lemon juice). Take it out the night before and refrigerate. Cook a big batch of rice or grains and freeze portion size packages. 

Risi e bisi (easy pantry meal)

Fish tacos with frozen filets 

Peeled and deveined shrimp in a freezer bag with lemon juice, olive oil, garlic. Thaw in refrigerator overnight, sautée with a little butter, serve over linguini.

Springtime sheet pan chicken: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/22/dining/springtime-sheet-pan-chicken.html

Matzo brei

Grilled marinated pork tenderloin sliced, grilled onion, smoked mozzerella, grilled potato bun, mustard, arugula.

Pound chicken breasts thin, grill, serve over caesar salad (teen fave).

Meatballs! Turkey, beef, lamb, pork. Make them on the weekend and freeze. I am a big fan of Yotam Ottolenghi's turkey zucchini meatballs right now: http://acozykitchen.com/turkey-zucchini-meatballs/

Really big thing to watch: rice is one of the biggest incubators of the bugs that cause food poisonings. Home cooks rarely think of rice making their families sick. And you're entering the danger zone for food poisoning. Please make sure you follow food safety guidelines and remember that the symptoms might not show up for 75 days after the initial contamination event, so when you get sick it might not be the last thing you ate that made you sick.

*****

I've just made a turkey meatloaf using only1kg minced (ground) turkey, some Thai seasons and a grated apple. Will freeze it in sliced quarters. 

Also, don't forget that others in the household can play a part, too! My brother was helping to make salad (veg, and fruit) when he was 8, we were smashing the potatoes and pumpkin when we were younger, and making jelly (gelatine) and custards desserts from age 6. I  was making traditional Polish soups and stews from age 10; my sister got into fancy quiches, flans, pancakes and fritters and international cuisines around 15/16; and when we hosted international students, everyone had a day for their home cuisine even if it was the equivalent of burgers or mac and cheese. Everyone helps in cleaning up.

My mum always said Prima donnas don't eat: they starve for their art ( in other words, if you're not helping, and not entertaining, you can't complain or be fussy).

It is pretty much impossible for me to devote any significant time to dinner at dinner time itself.  Anything remotely time consuming has to be prepped ahead or come from the freezer.  I don't usually freeze entire meals as I never have enough freezer space.  I freeze sauces and parts of meals. 

Some of our favorites are nutritious sauces for pasta/gnocci that freeze well:

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/sweet_potato_red_pepper_pasta.html

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/gnocchi_with_zucchini_ribbons_parsley_brown_butter.html

Vegetable pancakes (kids dip in catsup when feeling picky/adults eat salad on side):

http://justhungry.com/zucchini-and-chickpea-pancakes

http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2012/06/broccoli-parmesan-fritters/

I also make and freeze meatballs that have finely grated vegetables mixed in and serve with some pasta and jarred red sauce.  Quiche/fritata can be made ahead and frozen.  I also recently discovered that I can freeze roasted veggies and thaw for sandwiches or throw into red sauce for pasta or eat with a chicken breast or piece of fish.  Pizza dough is also really easy to make head and freeze in portions (http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-homemade-thin-crust-pizza-recipes-from-the-kitchn-45499) and I mix storebought pizza sauce with pureed veggies and freeze in small portions.  Makes for a quick weeknight meal that my kids never say no to.  

Here you go, four recipes from one chook! Thanks, Guardian recipe section!

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/may/02/roast-chicken-recipe-leftover-meals-get-ahead