Family Dinner Make
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KIDS— Special MAKE Yep, tacos at the counter counts as family dinner. FAMILY DINNER HAPPEN A SOUP-TO-SWEETS GUIDE! Like it or not, eating dinner with your kids may be the single most important thing you do as a parent. Research shows that children who sit for regular family meals are less likely to have behavioral problems, and that the ritual may also protect against future eating disorders, substance abuse, obesity, and depression. But in this era of packed schedules and working moms and dads, communal dining can feel close to impossible. Whether you’ve got a picky kid, are intimidated by your oven, or have zero time to cook (or eat!), we’re here to revamp your routine so you can serve delicious suppers and get your crew to linger at the table longer. Pull up a chair! by ERIN ZAMMETT RUDDY / photographs by PRISCILLA GRAGG PARENTS 38 OCTOBER 2019 KIDS— Special YOUR DINNER CHALLENGE: Another way to keep kids busy and out And don’t discount breakfast of the kitchen is to play restaurant. Have for dinner. “Scrambled eggs, toast, and You work, then pick up from them make paper menus (with drawings something green is a great meal—and you day care (or shuttle the kids or written descriptions, depending on can have it on the table in ten minutes to afternoon activities), their age) and place cards. They can flat,” says Jenna Helwig, Parents’ food and there’s no time to cook. name the restaurant and set the table if director and author of Baby-Led Feeding. And you’re all starving they’re old enough. Then let them take “Dinner doesn’t have to be fancy. I always as soon as you get home. everyone’s order. (There’s one thing on keep a good jarred pasta sauce around, the menu, folks—hope you like it!) too, because that can save the day.” And To make cooking less stressful, plan hey, she has a culinary degree. Remind yourself that you’ve just got for the craziness. Think ahead about to make it through 15 or 20 minutes of which weeknights will be hectic so you YOUR DINNER CHALLENGE: hangry whining. While you’re boiling can decide when to make something the pasta water, appease your kids with simple, when to get take-out, and when Either you or your partner—or vegetables. Parents contributing editor to sit down as a family for homemade both of you—gets home Sally Kuzemchak, R.D., author of The 101 fare, says Caroline Campion, a mother from work on the late side, and Healthiest Foods for Kids, has a “veggies of two and coauthor of The Dinner Plan. the kids are hungry earlier. only” rule the hour before dinner. “The Do as much dinner prep over the kids can pick something out of the weekend as you can. “Cook six chicken produce drawer or even eat the veggie breasts in the multicooker and shred You don’t need everyone together at that I’m serving, but there’s no other them up for quesadillas, BBQ chicken every meal to make it count, says Anne snacking.” Molly Janik Gulati, a mom sandwiches, or to toss in a quick soup Fishel, Ph.D., director and cofounder of two in Summit, New Jersey, has a using canned broth,” says Kuzemchak. of The Family Dinner Project, an “crunch contest.” She fills a plate with “And brown taco meat ahead of time to initiative that provides families with raw vegetables and challenges her kids use for last-minute tacos.” When her online resources to get them to the table. to see who can make the louder crunch children were younger, she was in a “All you need is one adult and one child to when they bite into them. Or they can freezer-meal group in which friends call it a family dinner, and there’s nothing decide which veggie (peppers, carrots, shared extra portions of whatever they wrong with making it a moveable feast cukes) sounds the loudest. Plate them cooked so each of them always had where you sit twice.” Meredith Shanley, up in the morning before work. something to pull out in a pinch. a mother of two from Baltimore, sits with her kids while they eat, and then when her Cloth napkins husband gets home, the make a meal feel kids sit again—bathed and special. ready for bed—and snack on fruit while she and her husband eat. When Meg Cevey, a mother of three in San Diego, works late, her stay-at-home husband eats with the kids and saves her a plate. “I’m a big advocate of feeding kids early, when they’re hungry,” says Hey, it’s a cleanup Kuzemchak. “They’re time-saver when more receptive to what the dog gobbles the you’re serving, and if you broccoli that falls on the floor. let them get too hungry, they’ll pass that window and go into meltdown mode. They can have a snack before bed if they’re hungry again later.” Campion suggests putting some “staggered meals” in your repertoire. WARDROBE STYLING BY JENN BONNETT. HAIR AND MAKEUP BY DONNA GAST. PROP STYLING BY MICAH BISHOP.FOOD STYLING BY FANNY PAN FOR LULU ARTISTS COLLECTIVE. STUDIO TEACHING BY SHARON FLANNERY. PARENTS 40 OCTOBER 2019 KIDS— Special “These are easy meals that steak can be sliced up can be served at room for today’s fajitas or temperature or reheated salad—the possibilities as diners trickle in.” Her are endless.” favorites: tortilla soup with Go ahead and steal lots of DIY toppings, Helwig’s hack: Use frozen Asian chicken salad, and fish sticks for fish tacos, slow-cooker pulled pork. or heat up frozen Asian Still, aiming for one or dumplings to serve with two all-hands-on-deck rice and roasted broccoli. meals a week is a solid goal. Pashman always keeps “Even one dinner a week is frozen vegetables on hand better than none,” says for hectic nights. “They’re Dr. Fishel, coauthor of Eat, just as healthy as fresh Laugh, Talk: The Family veggies, they don’t go bad, Dinner Playbook. And and you can defrost them in here’s the best news: All the seconds,” he says. “Throw research shows that some corn or peas on the breakfast counts too. “In side of anything, even a slice many ways breakfast is of pizza, and you’re killing it better than dinner because Pizza and on the parenting front.” it takes place when the kids salad is a Fortunately, the benefits are rested, as opposed to in well-rounded of family dinner are exactly the evening when they arrive meal! the same whether you at the table on the verge of spend four hours cooking mental breakdowns,” says or you churn something out Dan Pashman, a father of two in ten minutes. and host of the James Beard Award–winning podcast The YOUR DINNER CHALLENGE: Sporkful. Your family meal can even That said, if serving the same old be an intentional snack that you sit dishes on repeat feels, well, repetitive, Your baby makes a huge mess. and have together later in the evening, kick your weekly staples up a notch. “I Your preschooler keeps pushing back from computers and love using all the taco components as the dropping his fork and asking homework, adds Dr. Fishel. “You table runner,” says Mary Giuliani, a for water. You can want to incorporate food, fun, and celebrity caterer and author of Tiny Hot barely sit down for a second. conversation about things that matter, Dogs: A Memoir in Small Bites. “Set the but the meal itself is going to look entire meal on the center of the table, different for different families.” with all the sides in little bowls. I call it a First, know this: You’re not doomed to be snacktivity—an interactive way to serve eating at 5 P.M. in a puddle of spilled milk YOUR DINNER CHALLENGE: food that also serves as décor! That way for the rest of your adult life. As with all you can build your tacos without leaving parenting challenges, this is a stage and You’re not a great cook the table, and it also looks pretty.” it will pass. “Of course, dinner five years and end up getting take-out Another idea: Turn a boring potato down the road won’t look the same as or fixing the same side into the star of a baked-potato bar. when your kids are in their high chairs few things all the time. “Set it up buffet-style with the potatoes throwing chicken on the floor,” says first, followed by bowls of butter, Dr. Fishel. (It gets way better—hang in cheese, bacon, sour cream, tomatoes, there.) In the meantime, continue to You’re in luck: Kids thrive on routine. and chives,” says Teri Kindelmann, a lay the groundwork for the future. Having theme nights is a great way to mother of two in Pittsburgh. “You can “Research shows that it’s good for parents simplify. “Say pasta every Monday, even turn it into the whole meal with of young kids to develop a family-dinner tacos every Tuesday, and always build chili or chopped chicken on top.” practice early on,” explains Dr. Fishel. in a clean-out-the-fridge night when Got leftovers? “Don’t think of them “It’s a commitment to your family that everyone may get something different,” as the same dish you ate before—think becomes part of your identity.” says Kuzemchak.