Monday 15 January 2018

MEAL PLANNING: A week on a toddlers plate #2

A while ago now I put together a meal planning post featuring lots of Isabella's meals, which you can see here. It went down really well, so I thought I'd put together another one to help meal planning and ideas. It can be tricky thinking of new, interesting meals, so I hope this inspires you to try something new with your little one. All of these recipes are easy to put together and I will often make a batch of something and then give it to Isabella in different forms throughout the week, in an attempt to keep her discovering new foods, flavours and tastes. 

Day 1
Breakfast
Homemade Granola with Natural Yogurt
To make the granola - preheat the oven to 180'C. Combine porridge oats and mixed chopped nuts (I used pistachios, almonds, pecans, cashews) with a splash of maple syrup on a lined baking tray. Bake for 5 minutes. Then stir in dried tropical fruit, raisins and cranberries, bake for a further 2 minutes. It can catch and burn very quickly, so keep a very close eye on it. Stir in coconut and leave to cool. Serve with a dollop of natural yogurt. 
Lunch
Homemade Salmon, Broccoli and Pea Risotto
To make the risotto place a splash of oil into a pan over a medium heat. Add chopped onions and fry gently until almost cooked through. Add chopped garlic and black pepper, cook for a further 2 minutes. Add Arborio rice, stir and cook for 2 minutes. Gradually add low or no salt vegetable stock to the cooking rice, so that it thickens and cooks the rice through. Separately boil broccoli for 15 minutes, add the peas for the final few minutes. You could either boil a fresh fillet of salmon in milk and flake the flesh into the risotto or you can use canned salmon. Once the risotto has thickened and the rice is cooked through add some cheddar cheese, the cooked vegetable and flaked salmon. Stir in some fresh parsley and serve.
Dinner
Carrot, Cauliflower and Potato Frittata 
To make the soup for tomorrow's lunch I cooked some diced cauliflower, onion, potato and carrots. Before finishing the soup off I kept a portion of the cooked vegetables back. This was then added to a small frying pan with a little oil, then pour over beaten eggs mixed with a splash of milk. Move around the pan until it starts to cook through, then leave it to cook on a low/medium heat. Once cooked through add on some cheddar cheese and pop under the grill for a few minutes. 

Day 2
Breakfast
Apple slices with peanut butter and homemade granola
Using some of the leftover granola from yesterday spread some apple slices with 100% peanut butter (we love the Meridian smooth one) and sprinkle over some granola. Serve it with berries and natural yogurt for dipping.

Lunch
Homemade Vegetable Soup with Toast
To make the soup cook carrots, potato, onions and cauliflower in a saucepan with a splash of oil. You could use whatever vegetables you have. Add Italian herbs, black pepper and crumble in a low salt/no salt vegetable stock cube. Pour over boiled water from the kettle then blitz with a hand blender. You can add more water as you go to create the consistency you like.
Dinner
Tarka Dal with Roasted Aubergine and Soured Cream
To make the Tarka Dal fry chopped onions with garam masala, garlic, ground coriander and ground cumin in a little butter. Once cooked remove from the saucepan and add in rinsed dried red lentils with enough water to cover them by 2 inches. Bring to the boil and add in a knob of butter and turmeric. Leave to simmer until cooked through. Stir in the cooked onions and remove from the heat. To roast the aubergine cut in half, score with a criss-cross, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with garam masala. Roast in the oven for 20-30 minutes. Serve the Tarka dal on the roasted aubergine.

Day 3
Breakfast
Porridge with Kiwi, Coconut and Chia Seeds
To make the porridge I use 1 cup of porridge oats, 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of water. Add to a pan and cook until thickened. Add kiwi, coconut and chia seeds and serve.
Lunch
Homemade Cheese Scone with Organix Cheese Puffs, Satsuma and Berry Flapjack
Dinner
Vegetable Pasta with Homemade Garlic Bread
Cook whole-wheat pasta in boiling water, according to the packet instructions. Pour over some of the leftover vegetable soup (it makes a delicious, healthy pasta sauce) and heat through. Add some cooked mixed vegetables (microwave frozen mixed vegetables for 3 minutes in a bowl of water covered in cling film). To make the garlic bread pop a slice of bread into the toast, once toasted rub a halved garlic clove over the toast then spread with margarine/butter. It makes a quick garlic bread and means there isn't lots of leftovers! Top the pasta with grated cheese and serve with some of the garlic bread.

Day 4
Breakfast
Pancakes with Natural Yogurt, Banana and Strawberries
To make the pancakes I used this recipe from the GoodFood website.
Lunch
Cheese on Toast with Apple, Dried Fruit and Organix Biscuits 
Dinner
Vegetarian Chilli with Homemade Tortilla Chips and Soured Cream
To make the vegetarian chilli fry off onions, garlic, peppers, mushrooms, herbs/spices and Quorn mince. Add canned tomatoes and canned kidney beans. Cook until the chilli has thickened and the flavour has developed.

Day 5
Breakfast
Cornflakes with Banana, Raisins and Coconut
Another quick breakfast - cheap and filling. I've found that the value range of cornflakes are the best for sugar/salt content too.
Lunch
Cheese and Grape Sandwich Thin with Sweetcorn/Carrot, Grapes and ASDA Tomato & Basil Lion 'Crisps' 
Dinner
Homemade chilli pasty with Organix Cheese & Herb Puffs and Apple Slices
To make the chilli pasty cut a square of ready rolled puff pastry out, place a large spoonful of homemade mild chilli con carne in the middle. Brush milk all the way around the outside and fold over, corner to corner. Press around the edge with a fork and bake for 15-20 minutes  at 180'C. 

Day 6
Breakfast
Carrot, Apple and Raisin Breakfast Cookies with Peanut Butter and Berries
The recipe for these breakfast cookies are here.
Lunch
Hummus and Grated Carrot Open Sandwich with Cheese Chunks and Avocado Slices 
To make the open sandwich I used a Wholemeal Sandwich Thin, spread with hummus and topped with grated carrot. 
Dinner

Chilli con Carne on a Mini Toasted Tortilla Wrap with Grated Cheese

Day 7
Breakfast
Carrot Cake Porridge with Seed Mix
To make the porridge add 1 cup porridge oats, 1 cup water and 1 cup milk to a saucepan. Grate in a peeled carrot or two, small handful of raisins and a sprinkling of cinnamon and ground ginger. Cook until the oats have thickened top with a seed/nut/dried fruit mix.Lunch
Homemade Potato Cakes with Scrambled Egg and Mushrooms 
To make the potato cakes mix mashed potato with plain flour, baking powder, black pepper and any herbs you'd like. Mould it into a circle (or your desired shape), place in a buttered frying pan over a medium heat. Fry on one side until golden brown, then flip and do the same on the other side. Serve with scrambled egg and mushrooms. It would also work well with homemade baked beans. 
Dinner
Carrot and Lentil Soup with Naan Bread

To make the soup fry onions, carrots , cumin, ground coriander and turmeric together for 10 minutes, or until the onions are cooked. Add red lentils and enough water to cook the lentils (refer to packet for instructions on how to cook). Crumble in a stock cube and simmer until the carrots and lentils are cooked. Blitz until desired consistency. 


What is your little ones favourite meal?

Feel free to leave a comment - I love reading every single one :)


Helen x

I've linked this post up with #ablogginggoodtime and Blogger Club UK
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23 comments

  1. So many lovely ideas here! I love how healthy and nutritious they all are. I miss making my daughter these kind of meals at lunch now she is out at school most days.

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  2. These look like great kids options! I also love that they are meal options you can make for the whole family too. Only thing I'm not keen on are the kiwis in the porridge (I'm allergic to kiwi!). x

    Victoria | www.spokenreveries.co.uk

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  3. I don't have a toddler but even I can see that this kiddie meal options are great! I would even opt for a few as healthy snack during the work day

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  4. These look great and thankyou for the inspiration, I'm not the most imaginative chef!!

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  5. These look great choices. Both my girls eat what we eat and it makes life a lot easier!

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  6. Wow you have some amazing ideas there. I used to really struggle with lunches for my son when he was younger. A plan like this will come in so handy for any mums wondering what to serve their toddlers at meal times!

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  7. Some great ideas for small people. I love the variety of food on offer

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  8. The fact that your little one eats these meals is amazing! I couldn't get my kids to eat these foods if I paid them. They are great healthy meals for your little one:)

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  9. Can I come and live with you? These all look so delicious! However I'm not sure my children would eat any of them, they are just so picky :-( Except for the pancakes, pancakes and fruit is one of their favourites. And they will eat risotto if they're in the mood for it! I must be more adventurous though and try some of your ideas, if they don't like them I know I would enjoy them!

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  10. Oh wow you're so lucky that your little one eats all of these! My kids are so fussy!!

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  11. These all look and sound great! My kids tend to prefer raw vegetables over cooked ones, and they won't touch broccoli unless it's blended in to a soup. Then they'll ask for seconds. Lol.

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  12. Wow, these meals look amazing. Despite trying raw or cooked veg and still giving it to my girls every night, my 6 year old abhors anything veggie so good on you for pushing the healthy stuff!


    #BloggerClubUK
    Shevy
    http://moonsomnia.com

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  13. All the meals look and sound amazing. My boys are big fans of raw vegetables but luckily will eat cooked also. I’m definitely going to give the Salmon, Broccoli and pea Risotto a try, I think this would be a great family meal.

    www.mummytofiveboys.com

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  14. Some great healthy and tasty meals here and we'd love to explore more flavour combinations. At the moment all I seem to be eating is soup in the winter!

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  15. Great ideas thanks for sharing. Although little J isn't a toddler (he's almost 5) he has suddenly become very very fuses some new ideas may help us get through this tricky stage.

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  16. These look all so good, so varied and look great fun too

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  17. Fab meals here. Bookmarked the post to try with my kids.

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  18. I love, love, love your blog. I always get inspiration from your posts; from what diy projects to do, to what to food to make, to what gifts to buy. I loved your Dolmio post so much. I got lots of inspiration from it of new dinners to make and now you've done it again! Evie always eats so healthy (I'm so lucky she isn't too fussy), but I'm always making the same few meals for her over and over. I really LOVE some of the ideas here, especially the different breakfasts. I think the more variety that's offered the better, but I'm rubbish at coming up with new ideas. I am bookmarking this page and I'm going to look at it all the time for inspiration! :D Thank you! xxx

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  19. I loved your previous 'A week on my toddler's plate' & this one was no different - such creativity with the meals too. Oh, I remember the days when my little one would eat such meals... Now he kicks up a fuss about anything & everything, unfortunately!

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  20. Oh my goodness! This is such a perfect post! I have a 11 month old and am forever trying to come up with new recipes so she isn’t bored of her food, this is so useful thank you x

    Soffy // themumaffairs.blogspot.com

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  21. Our own breakfasts are quite uninspiring due to an allergy to fruit, yours look so delicious and so bright and vibrant! #bloggerclubuk

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  22. Oh I want to come over on day 4 please!? Great blog idea, so good to see the choices with the photographs too, and that last soup sounds so yummy! Thank you for linking up #abloggingggodtime Also Catie from Spectrum Mum will no longer be hosting with Katie and I, we have a new co-host starting this week. So pop by on Thursday and join us xx You can still link up through me at reflectionsfromme.com

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  23. These are some great meal options! I'd love to have some chilli con carne right now! It all looks so good, and not too complicated to make either!

    Victoria | www.spokenreveries.co.uk

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