Quick, Kid Friendly

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  • Corn Chowder
  • Huevos Rancheros
  • Shrimp and Angel Hair Pasta

Corn Chowder

Vegetarian, not vegan.  Really yummy.  Obviously, great with a cheese and pepper corn bread.

  • russet potato
  • 1 T butter
  • dash olive oil
  • chopped sweet onion
  • crushed garlic
  • chopped green pepper
  • chopped red pepper or jarred pimento
  • chopped celery
  • 2 T flour
  • 3 c vegetable broth
  • 1 can corn
  • 1 c milk, half and half or 1/2 c cream

Scrub the potato and cook in microwave until tender.  Meanwhile, melt the butter.  Add vegetables and cook until they brighten.  Dice potato. Stir in the flour.  Pour in 1 c broth and stir until it is uniformly thickened.  Add the rest of the broth and the corn and heat to simmer.  Turn down heat and stir in the dairy.  Heat through but do not boil as this will cause the chowder to separate.

Huevos Rancheros

Vegetarian but not vegan, build your own, good mid-week

  • cooking spray
  • 6 free range eggs
  • chopped fresh cilantro
  • grated monterey jack cheese
  • pinch cumin
  • black beans
  • chipotle salsa
  • mild salsa
  • flour tortillas

Spray pan.  Scramble eggs.  Stir in chopped cilantro.  Heat pan.  Pour in eggs and stir while cooking.  When the eggs are almost cooked through (they’ll look slightly shiny) grate over with cheese.  Stir scraping the bottom of the pan while the cheese melts.  Take off heat.  Sprinkle with cumin.

Heat the tortillas so they are pliable.

Let each person fill their tortilla as they like.  The key is not the individual flavors but how they taste in combination.  I like the eggs with chipotle and black beans.  The kids prefer a milder salsa.

Shrimp and Angel Hair Pasta

This is one of my favorite quick meals for the boys.  I have reservations about shrimp and recommend never to support shrimp farming or peel-and-eat varieties (you can look that one up).  If you live in an area where you can get wild caught then this may be an option for you.

  • 1 lb fresh local wild caught shrimp
  • 2 T butter
  • 3 T olive oil, divided
  • 1 medium sweet onion, small diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 can diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 lb angel hair pasta
  • grated Parmesan cheese
  • fresh chopped parsley

Put on a large pot of water to boil for the pasta.

Clean shrimp.  Melt butter and 2 T olive oil in an iron saute pan.  Saute shrimp being careful not to over cook.  Remove from pan.  Add onion and garlic and saute until translucent.  Chop 3/4 of the shrimp leaving 1/4 whole.  Add diced tomato pan and let simmer.

Add pasta to boiling water and stir until it returns to a boil.  Do not overcook!  It only takes a couple of minutes.  Drain.  I do not rinse pasta because the starch helps the sauce to coat the strands.  Toss with the remaining olive oil and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Remove the sauce from the heat.  Add the chopped shrimp and stir.  Dish the pasta and sauce, tossing to coat.  Garnish with remaining whole shrimp and parsley.

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