No, I am not looking for advice on my love life. I do, however, need help from my fellow foodies.
My nephew comes for a week every summer, and I need ideas on what to make for an 11 year old boy. Last year, I made sloppy joes from scratch, which he ate, but I think he prefers the manwich sauce version.
He’s a pretty open minded kid, but I think my food is a little over the top for kids. He might be coming up for Easter, and we can then go over any ideas that come up.
Help a sister out!
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Comments: 41
I'm not sure what you mean when you say your food is "over the top" for him because I think you've posted plenty of foods an adventurous kid would eat. In my experience kids shy away from most seafood unless it's mild or fish sticks with catsup, they hate liver, and some actually love spicy foods. If you could tell me more about your nephew and where he lives, I might be able to offer more suggestions. Tuna is usually a big hit with kids--in a sandwich, not hot. Fruit salad usually works well. Let me know more, and I might be able to narrow things down, Shannon.
About Cal:
excellent student
very athletic, plays all sports
likes to read !!!!
just a NICE kid
If I could custom design a child, I would use him as the mold. But alas they don't let you do that, so I just get to "borrow" him for a week.
I didn't even think of shrimp!
And I know Matt would like the spagetti and shrimp ideas too.
Thank you ALL!!!!!!!!! I have some starters now, but I might do some searching on Rachel Ray and Alton Brown.
Trish, I didn't think about steak- it'll probably be warm so we could fire up the grill.
ice cream, fruit popsicles, and cereal, and kale soup!
Sounds delish, Julie!
Amanda, I think you are right. He doesn't eat onions if I remember correctly. And I was thinking about that too, I bet he would love to help.
I always take the visiting kids shopping for the food they are going to eat and they help cook. Problem solved.
tater tot casserole- tots, cream of chicken mixed with half a can of milk, grated chedder or velveeta, and hambruger browned. Mix it all together and bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees. As a time saver I deep fry the tots first.
beef enchiladas- 1/2 lb. hamburger with a large can of La Victoria enchilada sauce added after browning. I layer corn tortillas, grated chedder, and sauce mix 3 layers deep and bake until the cheese starts to brown on top at 350 degrees.
Homemade mac n cheese. Sometimes I add ground beef or tuna to mix things up.
sausage gravy and biscuits. I also use hashbrowns in place of biscuits.
beef tacos with all the trimmings. I make browned hamburger and heat up the tortillas, put shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes and grated cheese on the table and let the older ones assemble their own. We usually have refried beans with these, some of the kids like it on their taco and Hubby eats it on the side.
mini pizzas, or homemade pizzas are ALWAYS a hit. We serve salad as a side here.
baked pork chops with the BBQ shake and bake on them is a new love in my house. I serve stovetop or homemade stuffing, mashed potatoes, and frozen corn with them. leftovers we slice up and make fried rice with, another thing the kids love.
BLT's are always great because they can assemble their own.
We all love when Dad makes chicken enchiladas. He boils a whole chicken (cut up to fit in pot) for a couple hours, saves the broth and debones and shreds the chicken. Than he adds a can of chicken broth to the natural broth and heats it and adds just a little corn starch (mixed with a couple Tbsp of water). after it is all mixed and thickens some he adds one can of enchilada sauce. I recently talked him into layering his stuff instead of rolling them because it is such a great time saver. Layer in pan: corn tortillas, grated chedder cheese, chicken meat, and sauce. Do two full layers and cover with tortillas and than add some more sauce and cheese. Bake at 350 until browned slightly on top. We serve with a salad side and refried beans. This is a GREAT reheatable leftover for next days lunch or snack.
This is so delicious, I eat myself sick. For a variation he has added green peppers a few times, and onions once, until he found out I am allergic to them and I was sick like I had flu for 3 days.
Yeah right, Rob. None of my family members get junk when I can cook!
Mage, you think I haven't tried asking? He will say "whatever you cook is fine" like he said last year. I want some great ideas, then I can surprise him with faves, the week is all about him. I don't have my own kids to spoil....
french fries,
chicken noodle soup
grilled cheese sandwiches
pancakes
jello
yogourt , pudin pops
Grilled ham and cheese sandwiches, fruit salad is a favorite with all my nieces and nephew who are that age.
Pizza Subs (made like pizza but on hoagie bread)
Chicken Spaghetti
Teriyaki Pork Chops and Rice is really good too. 1 can of pineapple slices, 1 bottle of teriyaki sauce and pork chops. Add all these ingredience (including the juice from the pineapple) into a crockpot and cook on high for 5 hours. You can put soy sauce on the rice if you like or you can just do butter.
Angelica, I am for sure going to do chicken strips. Matt and I like them, and I think Cal will too. We'll whip up something to order for him. BBQ or whatever.
Fortunately, the other couple of dozen people here have suggestions you will find more useful. Have fun!
White chicken meat cut up in alfredo sauce over noodles usually does not leave leftovers around my house either.
A snack my kids LOVE that we do in the summer is yogurt icees. 1/2 c yogurt, 1/2 a drinking glass full of ice, anywhere from 1/4 to 1 whole banana, sometimes strawberries or other fresh berry, blend in a blender for a few seconds until ice is crushed. Yum. So much better for you than a snowcone with all that syrup.
Mostly I find with kids, they do not like overy "busy" dishes. Things that have more ingredients than stir fry have never gone over well with my children anyway.
But I still love my Shanny.