Back to school - tea time help?

Tink_04

Ok kids are going back to school soon and I'm looking for some things I can freeze for after school teas - this is for my DD 5 and DS 2. We already cook from scratch and batch cook but once the kids are back at school they have tea before us at 4pm due to hubby working hours.

DD is always starving when she comes in as I pick her up from school straight from work then get DS from nursery so I need to have prep done the night before I like stuff I can have on the table in 15 - 30 mins of coming home to stop the riots.

I already have frozen in portions,

Fishcakes
Spaghetti Bolognese (just need to make pasta)
Curry sauce (need to cook rice)
Soup
Tomato pasta sauce (need to add pasta)

I also sometimes do

Jackets spuds with various fillings (cheese and beans is favourite)
Toasties

And other ideas would be great, or two-way other working families do as I homecoming in with 2 starving kids & usually a bag of shopping and having to make something when I have just walked through the door from work myself.

I can make most things and my kids will eat everything and are quite easily pleased.

Thanks

Motherof4

I will be keeping an eye on this thread as I too struggle when getting in from work /school I have 4 children who literally can't wait for food as they walk through the door. I have Started meal planning and joined the grocery challenge to try and be more organised, if I give them beans on toast one more time I may have a revolt on my hands, I will offer up omelette though quick and easy and can be adapted to use up bits or incorporate healthy filling?
Mof4 x

Tink_04

Mo4 when mine were smaller I used to be able to get away with scrambled eggs and things but my DD has just shot up and now I can't fill her and if she doesn't have a meal she is sniffing around the kitchen 10 mins later! I like to have a good tea and small supper for them especially when the weather gets colder.

t14cy_t

must confess my kids are 23 and 26 years old now. brought them up on my own physically and financially, so money was tight. I used to save all my potato , carrot and parsnip veg peelings in the freezer then bake them in the oven until crisp, served with lots of vinegar, pepper and salt!! took 10 mins and usually had 6 or more kids round to play and scoff!! cost pence....they even speak about it now!! they loved these straight after school and before going out to play.x

Teddi

I don't have kids but quick meals for us:


stir frys
Curries
Chilli
Fajitas


These also all handily freeze really well.

Islandmaid

When my 3 kids were younger, I used to feed from the night before for them, ie if I made a lasagne for us on Monday, it would be kids 'tea' on Tuesday, also would let them have a glass (cup) of milk and one HM biscuit when we got straight in the house, which would buy me a half hour to heat up the tea, and give them time to hang up their school uniform, and wash their hands.

Due to hyperactivity issues (eldest ADHD) I wouldn't,t give the kids anything pre prepared, so make some HM chicken nuggets, burgers etc and freeze yourself these and some carrot sticks, bit of pasta or some pre prepped HM chips are a quick meal with some salad (mine dislike lettuce, so salad meant cucumber sticks, radishes, sliced peppers etc)

Dessert would be a banana, or fruit and Greek yoghurt, once a week they were allowed sweets, 20p,s worth on a Friday after school (this was 10 years ago) and homemade popcorn for Movie Night on Saturday nights.

It was hectic, and things do get easier - promise

Tink_04

Thanks - I try to batch cook as wedding always have something suitable for tea the night before but I might try to keep something to 're heat the next day. I might get the slow cooker out too again.

jackyann

Lots of good ideas here, but I think the main secret is to have everything prepped or to hand.
Even a "quick" meal can take too long if you're rummaging for stuff and clearing space.
My tips were:
always have jacket potatoes, baked beans, cheese, eggs & bread on standby
also popping corn - set the older kids to making popcorn if they need to wait whilst I cook
and I had enough tucked away in my bag for an emergency trip to the chippie when desperate!


I'd also add that if your kids are active & hungry, don't get too upset if you give them the odd filling meal that isn't too healthy - it really won't hurt.

Tink_04

Thanks - they love jackets cheese and beans it's a favorite & I used to do the jackets in the slow cooker and brown under the grill - I always have pizzas in as it's easy and cheap but the little one doesn't really like pizza too much so it's generally wasted - toasties go down well but the toastie machine broke, I might invest in one again. Think the meal plan is a definite answer to my problems as some times if I have no idea what we are having its a nightmare & usually where the chippie comes in to play I love hm ready meal ideas as I can just bung in the microwave and a home cooked meal is ready in minutes!

Tink

jackyann

Have just remembered that another good standby was home made coleslaw - much cheaper than salad leaves. I would make a big batch with lemon juice & oil to stop it going off. My kids liked it that way, but easy to stir in some cheap mayo or dressing to make it more like shop-bought.
It was also useful to put out as a "starter" whilst I was making the main meal.

*~Zephyr~*

I don't have kids of my own, but I know that when I was 5 and brother was 9 money was very tight but Mum had a few tricks to keep our bellies from grumbling while we waited for our tea

A slice of bread and HM jam
A small bowl of yoghurt (a couple of tablespoons each taken from a big tub of sometimes HM yoghurt, sometimes bought)
A glass of milk and a HM biscuit
An apple/banana/pear

Her best trick cost nothing and was to give us a couple of chores each to do before dinner was ready. Just little chores like watering the houseplants, pairing socks or tidying our toybox etc. That would keep us busy enough that we didn't notice rumbly tums. If we were sat infront of the telly (Blue Peter and Newsround anyone?) we felt more hungry than if we were doing our 'jobs' quickly before tea

Often though, there would be a pot of vegetable soup on the stove (made from leftover veggies and peelings and lots of black pepper - sounds awful but it was so tasty!) and we would be given a small bowl as a 'starter' while she finished off the meal.

With hindsight, it was such a humble existence, but most of the families in the local area were in the same boat, so it was just normal to us.