Meals for me...meals for my 15 year old son's raging metabol

Kelekat
Kelekat Posts: 174 Member
edited November 11 in Food and Nutrition
So, I've been told to:

A. Up my caloric intake (trying).
B. Eat more fruits and veggies (would love to).

Here's the problem.

I leave my house at 6 AM and most nights, I don't get home until 7 PM. The moment I walk through the door, my 15 year old son with the forest fire metabolism hits me with, "what's for dinner, Mom?"

I barely have time to shop, let alone prepare food that will do double duty for his calorie burning machine and my less than stellar metabolism. He won't touch most veggies and truthfully? I can't afford to feed us both something different every day. I have no help, either in the form of a hubby or child support--so finding something we can (will) both eat that I can afford is generally a challenge.

However, if anybody has any ideas as to how I can start getting more healthy foods into our diets (I'll have to sneak them into his) I am ALL ears!

Thank you in advance for your help.

Replies

  • crazycat80
    crazycat80 Posts: 121 Member
    I say start cooking for 2-3 days and let him feast on leftovers until you get home. Also, keep a bowl of fruit lying around as a healthy snack.

    It sounds like it's time for him to take some cooking lessons. At 15, my brothers and I were able to make basic meals for ourselves if the parents were out late for some reason. Actually, we rotated cooking the family meals to make sure we were self sufficient. This will be important to make sure when he moves out he can subsist on something other than fast food.
  • Kelekat
    Kelekat Posts: 174 Member
    Oh, he can cook....

    Grilled cheese, pizza, Ramen noodles, and scrambled eggs.

    I'm hoping for some recipes that may sneak veggies into meals :bigsmile:
  • MalDunc2012
    MalDunc2012 Posts: 170 Member
    Check out skinnytaste.com. Do you like chili? The turkey taco chili recipe is amazing, inexpensive, very filling, and lots of veggies!
  • lxmack
    lxmack Posts: 9
    15 is definitely old enough to start learning how to cook healthy! I know, more time on your part...but maybe on weekends? Have him fix some meals with supervision, they can be around for a few days.
  • catic
    catic Posts: 156
    He should know how to cook more than mac and cheese. If he wants to eat he should learn to cook. Also slow cookers are GREAT. toss everything it let it cook. It will be ready when you get home
  • Corryn78
    Corryn78 Posts: 215
    Soups or quiche are great ways to sneak vegetables in. Also green smoothies for a quick vegetable and fruit filled snack/meal. Lean meats that he can eat a couple servings of compared to you having one.

    I also second Skinnytaste.com. Great recipes, and lots of reviews.
  • Izanami66
    Izanami66 Posts: 181 Member
    Hungry Girl's Takes the Cake Ziti Bake is a great veggie recipe that doesn't feel like you're eating health food. Maybe just don't mention it's chock full of veggies; I usually chop them up pretty fine. I bet he won't even miss the meat!! It does take some time chopping, but I like to do that before hand so I can just throw it together and pop it in the oven. Hope that might help!
  • Mera_Mera
    Mera_Mera Posts: 153
    I'm glad my kids love their fruits and vegetables to the point that there is nothing left in the house once they get on their eating frenzy.
  • Pennapenguin
    Pennapenguin Posts: 33 Member
    crockpot
  • AmandaBroun
    AmandaBroun Posts: 126
    I keep seeing stuff about freezer-to-crockpot meals lately. You could make up a bunch on the weekend or whenever you have time, and then just drop them in a crockpot before you left for work in the morning.

    http://mamaandbabylove.com/2011/04/05/freezer-cooking-with-slow-cooker-recipes/
  • Candacesaulnier
    Candacesaulnier Posts: 3
    Its easy to sneak veggies into pizza sauce & pasta sauce!! Cook them up, run them through a blender & dump them on into the sauce. He will never know the difference ; )
  • mandiemma
    mandiemma Posts: 128 Member
    PIZZA:

    Most kids who won't eat broccoli or mushrooms, etc. dished up next to chicken will gobble it up served on a slice. If that won't do the trick, try making your own pizza at home with pre-made pizza dough and blend in the vegetables into the sauce... that helps "hide" the vegi's....
  • PamelaKeebler
    PamelaKeebler Posts: 38 Member
    Try making some crock pot meals? Hearty stews are easy and great. (With or without meat- think lentils, potatoes, root veggies, etc.- not sure if your son would be into that kind of thing, though) If he wants a really filling meal, he can eat it over some toasted bread or pasta (or top with a fried/ runny yolk egg) while you can have a smaller portion of the same thing- with or without the bread/ pasta/ egg. There are tons of cook books out there full of crock pot recipes. That, and if it's only two of you eating you'll have leftovers to eat for the week or freeze.
  • mandiemma
    mandiemma Posts: 128 Member
    Its easy to sneak veggies into pizza sauce & pasta sauce!! Cook them up, run them through a blender & dump them on into the sauce. He will never know the difference ; )

    hahaha looks like great minds think alike ;-)
  • Setof2Keys
    Setof2Keys Posts: 681 Member
    crock pots it the best invention ever. I feel like I did so much but did so little and it's nice to walk in the door after long days to the house smelling like a hot dinner...it's a hubby with a glass lid...LOL
  • Mom0fTwo
    Mom0fTwo Posts: 326 Member
    one of mycousins is like that she doesn't really know how to cook, so her and her mom have a cooking night once a week and she learns a new recipe every week, her mom writes it down for her after and it is also a great bonding idea, cant wait to do that with my kids when they are older, currently 5 and 2 hehe
  • ShellBelle6
    ShellBelle6 Posts: 105 Member
    Leftovers. Make bigger meals (like you're cooking for an army) when you do have the time to cook, then refrigerate or freeze the leftovers.

    I have a book called "once a month cooking" that basically keeps you busy for one day (or a few different ones if you choose), and the meals can be frozen. A few things might need to be added when started, but the meals are pretty self explanatory & easy enough for a 15 year old to get started when he gets home from school.

    Slow cooker meals.
  • Nickiii_123
    Nickiii_123 Posts: 134 Member
    Maybe add some tomato slices to the grilled cheese, top the pizza with tomatoes, sliced green pepper, onions and any other veggies you can thing of. Also, chopped up kale, chard, spinach or collard greens are a great addition to pasta dishes, ie: spaghetti or mac and cheese. You can also add some vegetables satueed in cooking spray to those scrambled eggs to make a breakfast scramble, or a "dinner for breakfast" scramble :) Goes great in corn of flour tortillas with some cheese on top for a quick, yummy meal. I hope this helps, good luck!
  • afrazier128
    afrazier128 Posts: 99 Member
    Check out skinnytaste.com. Do you like chili? The turkey taco chili recipe is amazing, inexpensive, very filling, and lots of veggies!

    ^^^^This! I found several recipes that my meat and potatoes & gravy husband and my active 14 year old daughter will eat, and they are GREAT for sneaking veggies into their unsuspecting tummies!
  • ahealthy4u
    ahealthy4u Posts: 442 Member
    If they are both home before you let them cook for themselves. Otherwise there some great thinks like cauliflower that you can turn into mashed potatoes. I do meat balls with veggies in them so they don’t know they are there and if you are just looking at ideas for yourself or the family someone told me about this site. http://www.skinnytaste.com/
    I love this site it has a lot of neat foods. Another thing if you don’t mind doing it spend your Saturday or Sunday make meals a head a time for the week or month and don’t be afraid to ask for help in the kitchen. Good Luck to you.
  • afrazier128
    afrazier128 Posts: 99 Member
    Leftovers. Make bigger meals (like you're cooking for an army) when you do have the time to cook, then refrigerate or freeze the leftovers.

    ^^^^And this! There are only 3 of us at home, but when I cook, I REALLY cook! That way there are leftovers!
  • sjtreely
    sjtreely Posts: 1,014 Member
    Crock pot.

    It's worth its weight in gold.
  • PurplePookie
    PurplePookie Posts: 85 Member
    I hear you on this one - I used to have to make quick dinners when I got home from work to feed my son which is why I am the pasta queen around here. LOL

    I used to spend one Sunday a month making a bunch of stuff for my freezer. Because I was doing it all at once I saved money buying bulk items to use rather than a little of this and a little of that. I found it easiest to make tomato-based stuff at the time since it was the most versatile, pretty cheap and fairly healthy. So, normally I would make a pasta sauce (with veggies), a tomato soup base (I use V8 juice or something for the starter which adds lots of veggies to it), and sometimes a pizza sauce (this was really a plain tomato sauce with blenderized veggies that could be put on mini pizza's really quick.)

    Grated carrots or zucchini are great thickeners in sauces. I've also found making some compromises with my son went a long way. For a while he hated peas and I have never enjoyed cooked carrots. So, every now and again I would make peas and he would have to eat one tablespoon of them. Then, another time I would make cooked carrots and I would eat a tablespoon of them.

    With sauces in the freezer and a bit of menu planning on the fridge, there is no reason why your son can't cook up some pasta, heat a sauce and have dinner on the table for you some nights.

    Good luck - I know it's not easy but I'm certain you can find some ideas that work for you.
  • afrazier128
    afrazier128 Posts: 99 Member
    Its easy to sneak veggies into pizza sauce & pasta sauce!! Cook them up, run them through a blender & dump them on into the sauce. He will never know the difference ; )

    hahaha looks like great minds think alike ;-)

    Any time I make pasta, spinach is a great sneaky add-in!
  • Shweedog
    Shweedog Posts: 883 Member
    Our kids eat what we cook for dinner. No separate dishes for them. If they don't like it then they go to bed hungry. They always eat it. ;)
  • paigemarie93
    paigemarie93 Posts: 778 Member
    My mum used to mash cauliflower in with my brother's mashed potato.
    He wouldn't touch veggies, now he only eats peas & carrots.
  • paigemarie93
    paigemarie93 Posts: 778 Member
    Our kids eat what we cook for dinner. No separate dishes for them. If they don't like it then they go to bed hungry. They always eat it. ;)

    This is exactly how I was brought up. Used to have the saying "Eat it or wear it on your head" (as a joke, obviously, if we didn't eat it then we didn't eat it.) the thought of having food in our hair always made us eat hahaha.
  • Kelekat
    Kelekat Posts: 174 Member
    Our kids eat what we cook for dinner. No separate dishes for them. If they don't like it then they go to bed hungry. They always eat it. ;)

    This is exactly how I was brought up. Used to have the saying "Eat it or wear it on your head" (as a joke, obviously, if we didn't eat it then we didn't eat it.) the thought of having food in our hair always made us eat hahaha.

    I was brought up that way too--and my son is good about eating what I cook sans veggies.

    I'm so lucky in every other way with him (excellent grades, polite, pleasant, kind to animals and less popular kids, no drugs) that I'm not going to make food into an issue. I just want to be able to have my veggies, while sneaking them into his diet! :smile:

    I've been perusing the skinnytaste.com website and I've already found several things he'd enjoy that allow me to slip in the veggies virtually unnoticed. Looks like I'll be spending my Sunday cooking and freezing.
  • Lanna74
    Lanna74 Posts: 203 Member
    I've got twin 15 year old boys and feel your pain. What I've been doing recently is making smoothies (for a late snack or breakfast) and putting spinach in them (along with a decent tasting protein powder and fruit). You cannot taste the spinach. Many people on MFP make these. MFP is where I got the idea!

    It's just another way to slip in the veggies! =)
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