Summer holiday is over, the kids are back to school. It was hard getting back into the routine again, but now that I am meal planning again, I’m back on track! #iloveroutine #ilovemealplanning And I am here to spread the love: here are my 10 favorite family weekday meals.
These favorite weekday meals are all:
- nutritious
- made with wholesome ingredients
- quick and easy to make; mostly within 30 minutes
- tested on kids and adults; ‘sophisticated food’ (aka food that doesn’t look like mashed baby food) that both kids and adults enjoy
My 10 favorite family weekday meals
Ok, here is the current list of my 10 favorite family friendly weekday meals:
- Oven roasted tomato sauce over (zucchini) noodles
- Sweet and sour shrimp over brown rice
- Family friendly tortilla soup with all the garnishing
- 1-skillet Thai lentil curry
- Vegan meatballs and mashed potatoes
- 1-skillet chicken cherry tomato orzo
- Easy, family friendly tikka masala
- Balsamic cherry tomato tagliatelle
- 1-pot coconut curry noodle soup
- Lentil bolognese
1. Oven roasted tomato sauce over (zucchini) noodles
This is by far the most popular, most made recipe in this household. I use it for so many things. It is not ready in half an hour though, but it will only cost you 5 minutes of your time to get the tomatoes in the oven and another 5 minutes to blend them into a sauce. I usually make a big batch ahead of time and either freeze or refrigerate it in small batches.
Use the sauce over (zucchini) noodles and serve it with some parmesan and fresh herbs, pour it over vegan meatballs with mashed potatoes or make soup out of it; this sauce is SO versatile! Hands down the best thing I ever came up with.
2. Sweet and sour shrimp
This quick, easy and healthy Asian inspired dish was a big hit the first time I made it for my boys. The great thing is, the sweetness of the sauce comes entirely from pineapple, not sugar! I serve it with broccoli and carrots over brown rice. Such a nutritious and delicious family weekday meal!
3. Family friendly tortilla soup with all kinds of garnishing
This one-pot soup is so flavorful. If you really like it to be spicy (but your kids don’t), you could divide the soup in 2 and add some heat to one batch. This way everyone gets what they want and you are still basically eating the same meal.
I serve the soup with an array of garnishing: baked tortilla strips, cubes of avocado, cheese, jalapeños, some salsa and fresh cilantro. Serving this meal always feels like a party!
4. 1-skillet Thai lentil curry
My favorite: 1 skillet, easy to prepare meals. I love to have dinner on the table in half an hour and not end up with tons of pots and pans to wash up. This Thai lentil curry is all that and more! A flavorful curry made with coconut milk, lentils, lots of veggies and red curry paste. Serve it over cauliflower/brown rice or even noodles and top it with fresh cilantro and (Thai) basil.
If your kids aren’t fond of spicy food, you can start with adding just a tiny bit of curry paste and/or add more coconut milk to their batch of lentil curry. And I used to blend their sauce with a submergible blender to create a smooth sauce (what is it with kids and ‘chunky sauces’!? ‘Help, there are ‘things’ in my sauce mom!’).
5. Vegan meatballs and mashed potatoes
My boys love meatballs. But we don’t eat meat often and if we do, always in small portions. So I came up with these vegan meatballs. They have great texture, depth of flavor and are as tasty as the OG!
Whenever I have leftover beans and quinoa I make these yummy ‘meatballs’. I usually plan them when I am also making oven roasted tomato sauce over pasta that week, because I use exactly the same sauce for these vegan meatballs. That’s what I call a 2-in-1 meal!
6. 1-skillet chicken cherry tomato orzo
A dish full of flavor and wholesome ingredients prepared in one skillet, on the table in 30 minutes and hardly any dishes after dinner! It is easily adjustable to picky eaters and, even though it is a 1 skillet meal, it looks super festive.
7. Easy family friendly tikka masala
This meal is on the table in no time and it’s so flavorful. Just keep in mind this is not an authentic Tikka Masala recipe. The flavors and the creaminess are there though. Homemade yellow curry paste and coconut milk are key ingredients in this Tikka Masala. You can either make this with chicken or keep it vegetarian by using cauliflower instead.
I usually make a big amount of curry paste at once and freeze it (it is totally freezable YAY!) in family size batches so when I plan to make Tikka Masala again, I only have to thaw a batch.
This easy Tikka Masala is perfect for picky eaters; it is a smooth, creamy sauce already. The heat is adjustable (more or less curry paste). I leave off any garnishing for my kids and they gobble this up like it is dessert! WIN!
8. Balsamic cherry tomato tagliatelle
Yet another quick, easy and nutritious weekday meal that the whole family loves! I make this balsamic cherry tomato tagliatelle all the time. It’s my go-to dinner for when we come back late from our afternoon-family-surf-session; by the time the boys have showered, I have dinner on the table. SWOON!
Only 9 ingredients (7 if you don’t count salt and pepper), 1 pot, 1 deep skillet and 20 minutes of your time is all it takes to make this balsamic cherry tomato tagliatelle. It is vegan and easily made gluten free as well.
For picky eaters: after the balsamic cherry tomato sauce is ready, (divide it in 2 batches and) blend it with an immersion blender into a smooth sauce. Everybody happy!
9. One-pot coconut curry noodle soup
Thai food, it’s so fragrant; it always gives a good flavor punch. This one-pot coconut curry noodle soup is all that and more. It’s cozy and comforting. It is the perfect quick and easy family weekday meal.
Thai take-out made at home; ready within 30 minutes! And the bonus? The kids love it. So you understand I make this coconut curry soup all the time, right!?
10. Lentil bolognese
This lentil quinoa bolognese hits the spot. A meatless spaghetti sauce that truly resembles bolognese. This pasta sauce has great texture, is so flavorful, comforting and my kids love it!
Lentil bolognese has become a staple in our weekday meals. It is so good. I am sure you will enjoy it as well.
Meal planning
All these meals are quick and easy to make. That said, I almost always meal plan all my weekday meals; in the weekend I come up with all the meals I want to make for the week. I make sure it isn’t too complicated; I prep what I can ahead of time, use sauces, for example, in several meals and I sometimes even make double portions (no harm in eating the same meal twice in one week). For a detailed 101 on meal planning, continue reading here + sign up for our newsletter and you will receive our family favorite weekday meal plan in your inbox.
We are serious about healthy family food and meal planning! Will you give meal planning and/or these healthy family weekday meals a try? Let me know how you do or if you have any questions. Leave a comment and I will answer your question.
DID YOU MAKE ANY OF THESE RECIPES?
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