Attacking Dinner

Getting dinner ready can be one of those special challenges, especially for a new stay-at-home dad who isn’t used to the chef role. The cupboards are bare and the hungry toddler starts thinking dinner should be instantaneous resulting in a massive fit when he finds out the food still needs to be cooked. Not that you can figure out what to cook.

So after some brainstorming, you decide on dino nuggets, instant macaroni and cheese and some tater tots.

Not the most glamorous of meals, and you sort of feel like you are cooking like a college student, but the kids are happy and you don’t have to worry about it again.

Until tomorrow.

With a little effort, though, dinner prep doesn’t have to be stressful. It’s not unthinkable that you can even develop a little niche cooking for your family.

Have a Plan

Make a menu for the week and try to stick with it. Without one, 5 o’clock will roll around, the kids will start getting fussy, you find you don’t have any of the ingredients for the casserole you had in mind and you’ll probably just opt for take out.

That might not be a bad thing on occasion and can help you keep your sanity. But if you start going out every night, the expenses will add up and eating out isn’t always the healthiest.

With that advance menu make a shopping list and stock that pantry with everything you need, so there are no surprises when you get to the stove.

Knowing what you are going to make ahead of time should also help you plan your day some and not freak out when stomachs start to growl.

Easy Cooking

Don’t over do it. There’s not enough time in the day or patience in your family to spend five hours cooking dinner every night.

Find recipes that don’t take a lot of time, or throw something in the slow cooker that you can forget about.

Check the Internet or look for quick-meal cookbooks at the bookstore. Also, look closer at labels of soups and other ingredients. They almost always have recipes and you might have glanced right past them. Those recipes are universally easy, and you might be surprised at how good they are.

Use the Internet

There are tons of cooking and recipe websites to help novice or expert chefs. You can sign up for newsletters sending dinner ideas to your inbox or fill out a profile at destinations like Epicurious.com to find recipes that fit your style, including meals kids love.

Look for fast meals, too. Food Network is just one stop that has some ideas (probably could find a few more on the TV). And there are plenty of recipe sites for kids or you can go a little advanced and try to find something catered more for you and your wife.

Just type “recipes” in that search bar and look at all the possibilities.

Family Recipes

If you aren’t already making the dishes you loved as a kid, don’t forget to ask Mom (or Dad) to provide some of the family secrets.

Your parents undoubtedly also had to deal with time crunch when you were young and those old recipes might not be as complex as you thought they were.

Once you get comfortable making those meals, make adjustments and add your own touches to the recipes. At some point you’ll be coming up with new family favorites.

Have an Out

Even with a plan full of good intentions, the way the day plays out doesn’t always allow for full execution. So have some rescue dinners ready to go.

They could be a frozen family-sized lasagna or take-and-bake pizza. You also could prepare and freeze dinners in advance that simply need to be warmed up and you are ready to go. Maybe your spouse can pick up a rotisserie chicken form the store on the way home from work and you can whip up a couple of good sides to with it.

Those options could save a little stress and time after a rough day but still keep dinner at home. On occasion, eating like a college student isn’t such a bad thing.