Our family was out of town over the weekend so I wasn’t able to get my weekly meal plan up.  I’ve been keeping my old meal plans and picked a low maintenance one for this week.  It’s amazing how meal planning saves time.  For more details check out my meal planning series.

Our getaway weekend was with an amazing group of friends and their kids. We rented a big house in Lake Arrowhead. There were 9 kids ranging in age from 5 months to almost 4 years.  Each of the 5 families was responsible for one of the meals.  We had egg sandwiches, pancakes, casserole, lasagna and sandwiches.

The sandwiches stood out because the kids loved them.  I feel like some people just have that touch when it comes to making a meal extra good.  And my friend Dan is definitely one of them.  

When I saw him cooking the onions and carefully cutting the bread I asked him if he does this at home and he said “yes.”  He told me that the secret to a great sandwich isn’t what’s on the inside, it’s what’s on the outside.  “The bread has to be awesome.”

He made two types of sandwiches.  The first was turkey and avocado, which the kids mostly ate.  And the second was mozzarella sandwiches, which the adults seemed to fancy.  After we were all full, Dan provided me with ingredients and instructions for eating.

Turkey & Avocado:  Honey mustard, tomato, turkey, avocado, caramelized onions, and black pepper on a nice French or sourdough baguette.  Devour.

Cheese Sandwich:  Drizzle balsamic vinaigrette on a nice French or sourdough baguette, put tomato slices, fresh mozzarella cheese, and fresh basil leaves. Black pepper to taste. Scarf down.

I waited too long to take pictures.  I wasn’t in blogging mode until I started eating so I grabbed my camera and took some quick shots.  The picture above is of the cheese sandwich.  We served the kids the sandwiches with a variety of other foods like veggies and fruit.  It was fun to see each of the kids’ eating style.

Later on when the kids were in bed we talked about feeding, my favorite subject.  Dan, the sandwich guy, said that the key message he’s gotten from my blog is to keep meals pleasant and totally absent of negativity.  His wife Bethany agreed.  Their daughter is almost two and is having fun exploring all the different foods out there.

When you think about pleasurable meals as the goal it changes your perspective.  A good meal is no longer about little ones eating their veggies or trying something new — it’s that they enjoyed coming to the table and left feeling good.  This pleasure principle will encourage them to try new foods and eat a more well rounded diet. 

Another friend talked about how hard it is to let her kids have something sweet when they barely touch their meal.  I understand this is a tough one for many parents.  I touched on this in my last picky eating article but plan to discuss it more in my upcoming managing sweets series.

Right as I got home I received an email from a mom who said she had just got back from vacation with her family.  She felt guilty because her kids weren’t as adventurous eaters as the other kids on the trip.  It’s important for parents not be hard on themselves when it comes to feeding.  All kids can learn to like a variety of foods if given the opportunity.

And I had my embarrassing moment of the trip.  The second night we decided to do a quick and easy meal for the kids so the adults could have dinner together. So the kids got chicken nuggets and fries.  When my daughter sat down to eat she said, “This is the best dinner ever!”

She sure did make her dietitian-mom proud.

I love cooking with eggs. They are easy, satisfying and nutritious. Eggs contain high quality protein and 13 essential nutrients (in varying amounts) including choline and riboflavin.

During the week I make scrambled and hard boiled eggs but I like something different on the weekend. Last weekend I got picture happy making fried egg sandwiches. So I just had to share.

I choose eggs that contain DHA. Trader Joes’ omega-3 eggs contain 75mg DHA per egg (for more on DHA see this article).

I spray a nonstick pan with canola spray. If I’m making sandwiches for everyone I make three at a time.

While the eggs are cooking I put the english muffins in the toaster oven. I use Orowheat 100% whole grain.

Once the eggs are formed I flip them over half way and keep turning them over until the yolk is cooked through. Once done, I turn off the stove and add the cheddar cheese slices.

Then I butter the english muffins. For everyday spreads like this I use Brummel and Brown (yogurt butter).

By now the cheese has melted so I put the sandwich together. I serve with apple slices.

I’m curious. Am I the only one making fried egg sandwiches?

Grilled cheese has become a staple at our house since my daughter started eating solids over two years ago. It’s a great beginner food because it’s soft – and extremely kid friendly. After making grilled cheese a few times I started to get creative with it – and discovered a variety of ways to prepare it. So I’m sharing with you several variations of the grilled cheese meal.

Standard Grilled Cheese: I start with my favorite whole grain bread, Orowheat 100% Whole Wheat, which has 3 grams of fiber per slice (for more info see Everything You Need to Know About Whole Grains article). For my everyday spread I use Brummel & Brown, which is made with yogurt and is lower in saturated fat than butter. I butter one side of the bread, place the buttered side down on a nonstick pan, top it with a cheddar cheese slice then butter the second piece of bread and place the non buttered side over the cheese. I cook one side over medium heat until browned and then flip it over until the second side is done. I serve with fruit, carrot sticks and dip, or Sun Chips. This meal contains 6 grams of fiber, 5 grams protein and 15% DV for calcium.

Grilled Cheese & Avocado: The only difference with this sandwich is I add sliced avocado to the cheese. This is personally how I like it best – and my daughter loves avocado, which is rich in monounsaturated fats and vitamin E.

Grilled Cheese, Vegetable & Avocado:I take the above combo and add thin slices of zucchini or yellow squash. If I have time I’ll saute the slices in olive oil first. The zucchini adds more fiber and is a good source of vitamin C.

Turkey or Ham & Cheese: With this sandwich I add either turkey or ham slices to the cheese. Sometimes I’ll add avocado to the turkey. The turkey and ham add protein and some extra iron.

Tuna Melt: This sandwich contains tuna salad and Swiss cheese. To make the tuna salad I add some mayo, olive oil, chopped celery, chopped red onion, squeeze of lemon and Dijon mustard. Tuna contains omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA which are essential for brain development.

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