Cassandra Fenaughty, author of Wholesome Food For Busy Parents ($30 New Holland Publishers Australia) , is an expert when it comes to preparing quick and healthy meals for children.
In an interview with us, Cassandra advised parents (and everyone else) create a fortnightly meal plan. This enables a more organised approach toward grocery shopping and meal prepping. Planning meals is a key tactic in saving money and time.
In this blog we share three simple and delicious recipes from Cassandra’s cookbook that can be added to your fortnightly meal rotation.
Pancakes
Makes 12-18 pancakes
Ingredients
2 eggs
250 ml (8 fl oz) milk
75 g (21⁄2 oz) pear, peeled and mashed or grated (use a zester grater)
1 red apple peeled, cored and grated (use a zester grater)
300 g (91⁄2 oz) wholemeal self-raising flour
1 teaspoon butter
Step 1.
In a large mixing bowl whisk eggs well, add in milk, pear and apple. Mix until thoroughly combined.
Step 2.
Add flour and mix until there are no lumps.
Step 3.
Melt butter in non-stick frying pan on a medium heat.
Ladle in first pancake. Once bubbles form around sides flip pancake and cook other side until golden.
Step 4 .
Continue to cook pancakes with the remaining mixture.
Step 5.
Serve with cream and strawberries.
Healthy Nacho Cups
Serves two adults and two toddlers
Chip Cups
3 large wholemeal pita or Lebanese breads
Guacamole
1 large avocado
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 heaped dessertspoon Greek style yogurt
Salsa
2 large ripe tomatoes 1⁄4 red capsicum (pepper) (optional)
Mince
1 onion, finely diced
1 clove of garlic, minced or finely chopped
250 g (8 oz) beef mince
2 teaspoons of ground cumin seeds
125 g (4 oz) of chopped frozen spinach (defrosted in the fridge the night before)
125 ml (4 fl oz) passata
1 teaspoon vegetable spread(yeast extract)
260 g (8 1⁄4 oz) Greek style yogurt
80 g (2 1⁄2 oz) cheese, grated
Chip Cups
Step 1.
Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan forced (350°F/gas 4). Line a large muffin tray with baking paper or muffin papers.
Step 2.
Cut wholemeal pita or Lebanese breads into quarters with kitchen scissors. Press firmly into lined muffin tray to form individual cups and bake for 5-10 minutes until crunchy but not brown. Set aside.
Step 3.
If the bread pops out of tray simply weigh down with pastry weights or small ramekins.
Guacamole
Step 1.
Mash all ingredients together and store in fridge until serving.
Salsa
Step 1.
Dice tomatoes and capsicum and place in a small bowl and store in fridge until serving.
Mince and Nachos
Step 1.
In a large deep non-stick fry pan, fry onion until transparent.
Step 2.
Add garlic, mince and spices, stir and fry over a high heat until mince is well browned.
Step 3.
Add spinach, half of passata and vegetable spread, bring to boil, then simmer for 5-10 minutes uncovered until sauce has reduced.
Step 4.
Spoon mince mixture into chip cups in muffin tray.
Step 5.
Pour balance of passata over mince, followed by half of yogurt and top with cheese. Place under grill or at the top of hot oven until cheese is melted and golden. Serve with remaining cold yogurt, salsa and guacamole.
Easy Cheesy Quiche
Serves three adults and two toddlers
Ingredients
250 g (8 oz) packet of chopped frozen spinach (defrosted in the fridge the night before)
1/2 small onion, finely diced 100 g (31/3 oz) raw pumpkin, grated
5 eggs
80 g (2 1⁄2 oz) cheese, grated
80 g (2 1⁄2 oz) Danish fetta cheese, crumbled roughly
125 ml (4 fl oz) milk
Step 1.
Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan forced (350°F/gas 4) and line a pie dish with baking paper.
Step 2.
Snip the corner off the spinach bag and squeeze out excess moisture.
Step 3.
Mix all ingredients, pour into lined pie dish and bake for approximately 1 hour or until firm and golden.
Step 4.
Allow to cool slightly before serving.