gift food help??? for 2 adults and toddler

thelovelygirl

One of my very good friends is suffering from PND and has an 9 week old and a 22 month old. I work full time and have quite a busy life so i thought i could make her some dinners for her and hubby and 22 month old (they are eating out lots - costing them a small fortune and money is getting very tight) - but not sure what is the best things to cook that are not going to cost a fortune? I know J does not have dairy and they don't have a mircowave. So looking for ideas that won't dry out recooking on the stove or oven.

all suggestions very welcome!

ragz_2

Cottage pie can be frozen/kept in the fridge, reheated in the oven and won't dry out. Stew (use fatty enough cuts that it won't dry out, bolognese, chili (mild), soups are great too.
By the way, that's lovely of you xx

HappyMJ

No wonder money is tight if they eat out a lot.

Gettin them a second hand microwave is probably the easiest and cooking easy food that they are used to such as curry's and similar to takeaway type things that they can keep frozen and then can microwave.

and...if you have the patience teaching them to cook food really quickly. Pizza's take no time at all to actually cook. They are actually quicker to cook than ringing up a takeaway and waiting 30 minutes or so for a delivery. They just need to be pre-prepared.

MandM90

What about jarring a couple of homemade pasta sauces with chunky veg and gifting them with a posh pack of multicoloured pasta?

Chillis freeze well too. And all you need to do is add rice, a baked potato or some wraps and salad.

This Vegetable Jambalaya is freezable and looks nice. I think any tomato based rice casserole might do nicely.

Spanish Chicken Pie

Bean and Bangers One Pot

Chicken and White Bean Stew

Pot pies can be made and frozen (if you aren't using dairy you can use a couple of cups of decent stock, plenty of herbs and some dairy free marg for a flavourful filling, or add a dash of soya milk to make it 'creamy')

What about some frozen hearty soups?

There are some good ideas here:
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/recipes/favourites/freezable/

thelovelygirl

thanks for all the speedy replies - it is not a case she can't cook but her depression being so bad that she can't cope with much more than looking after the kids

They don't like microwaves - I love mine! hence confusion on what will reheat well plus i have a love affair with cheese in dishes...

will try and make some stew with everything in so all she has to do is reheat - do i need to use low salt stock cubes for toddlers???

OrkneyStar

Stew
Mince (both the above with tatties and veg in)
Chicken pie (topped with mash)
Sausage Casserole
Pasta Bake/Mac Cheese
Home made pizza (they could heat up some oven chips to go it if needed)
Soup

Ideally a low salt stock cube can be used, just tell them less salt than normal so they can add a little more to taste if they need to.

All can be heated easily in oven/on hob

Could also bake some muffins or a fruit loaf as a treat

You are being kind and this will surely make life a little easier for them while mum is struggling.....you are a good friend.

BitterAndTwisted

Everything reheats well, some just need to be covered for some or all of the heating-up time in the oven. Just make sure they're not dry to start with.

Quite honestly, if I had PND I'd be grateful that someone cared enough to go to the trouble. I wouldn't care much what it was.

The other kind and thoughtful thing you could do is to encourage her to go and talk to someone about the PND. And get someone take the littlies off her hands for half an hour now and then so she could get out of that nightie she's been wearing all day and take a nice, relaxing bath and have a little pamper in peace.

valk_scot

You could always buy her a basic microwave to go with the food, if finances permit? Tell her it's a long term loan, just while she gets past the rough patch. If not any sort of meal that you can just bung in the oven would be good, or defrosted in advance and heated in a pot.

S-I_am

TLG that's so kind of you. I don't like microwaves either so I can see where your friend is coming from. Although we don't have a microwave we don't have any problem reheating food. I just put it in the oven +/- foil until it is hot in the centre.
To save you time what about just making double of whatever your having for dinner - on the days it doesn't include diary obviously.

I agree with the other posters your friend is going to be so touched that you care so much to do this for her that she probably isn't going to really care what you serve up.

Sx

babyshoes

Anything in a sauce will re-heat well - stews, curry, casseroles, pasta sauces etc.

Also, try roast meat sliced and put in gravy. You can roast the veg including some baby potatoes at the same time and also mix it with gravy so it can be heated all in one go.

Pies would also be good filled with leftover stew and served with easy veg.

A few treats for mum would also be a nice touch - baked goods, hot chocolate, bubble bath etc.

supki

What about? putting a few chicken pcs (thighs seem to work out much better) with largish chunks of onions, peppers, mushrooms, whole cloves garlic with skin on, large pinch of chilli flakes, mixed herbs. S&P to taste. Cover with 2tbsp olive oil mixed with quarter pint chicken stock. i usually prep this in small foil trays and freeze portions uncooked and i usually bung em in oven 190. 20 mins with foil & then baste if poss. then 25 - 30 mins w/o foil. works really well with any veg you have lying in fridge and u can always swap mixed herbs for harissa and do chicken seperately and veg seperately unless u like your veg spicy too. i also do - butternut squash, sweet potato, onions, fennel - all chopped in chunks, lotsa whole cloves garlic skin on, 1tbsp mixed herbs, S&P to taste, olive oil with a splash of white wine if u can afford it or stock works well too (or both if ur like my hubby). Bake 45 mins on 190 and its a completely veggie main course. i hope this is of some help.