Cooking Tips
for Work@Home Parents
Yes it's true that you
have easy access to the kitchen... but you're still a working
parent and don't have much time to cook! How do you make the
most of your flexible schedule when it comes to mealtime?
© 1997,
by Lisa M. Roberts
Here are the "Top
10 Cooking Tips" for Entrepreneurial
Parents:
1. Shop in
the morning. Take advantage
of your time flexibility by shopping for groceries when your
kids are at school and most of your neighbors are working.
2. Shop weekly.
Avoid frequent (and time-consuming)
trips to the food store by developing a weekly ritual. And keep
up with your housework at the same time by cleaning your fridge
once a week, preferably right before you shop!
3. Prepare
home-made soups, roasts and stews. Since
you work at home, you and your family can indulge in slow-cooking,
warm and nutritious meals any time. Choose a day when your workload
is light and/or you're feeling more organized than usual.
4. Cook &
eat early. Start preparing dinner around 3:00-3:30 p.m. and plan
to eat around 5:00-5:30.
This will give you plenty of room for after-dinner bedtime routine,
including baths/showers, homework checks and reading time.
5. Rotate
dinner chores. Teach
your children early on how to set and clear the table so they
can help out as they grow. Alternate chores among them.
6. Stock up. Stock up on canned goods and paper products with
a monthly trip to your local warehouse store, such as Price Club
or BJs. Make sure you have some soup cans and box of crackers
for a last-minute, no-fuss winter meal when you need one.
7. Stock up
on frozen meats and veggies.
Prepare and freeze hamburger patties, buy frozen french fries
and frozen green veggies. This will come in handy when you're
sitting in your home office and suddenly it's 5:00 and you forgot
to make dinner!
8. Take Friday
nights off.
Give yourself a break from
cooking at least once a week. You don't have to spend extra money
eating out, but clip those pizza, chicken and Chinese food coupons
you get in the mail and order in!
9. Save the
big dinners for the weekends.
Treat your family to traditional, home-cooked meals on the weekends,
when your spouse can ease your child care workload. Make plenty
and freeze leftovers for mid-week, quick-fix dinners.
10. Make cooking
dates with your kids.
You don't have to bake cookies every day to build those cozy,
recipe-making memories with your children. Make a date once a
week -- or once a month -- with each of your children to prepare
a treat for the whole family. (Remember, you work at home,
so celebrate that fact every now and then!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RECIPES
Franks & Beans Hawaiin-style. A quick & easy casserole that kids
love (and older kids can make!). Stock the ingredients so you
can use this recipe on one of those hectic, can't-do-it-all days
(freeze the franks).
Mix the following ingredients
and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
10-12 franks, cut up in bite
size pieces
1 large can baked beans
1 can crushed pineapple
? cup maple syrup OR brown sugar
Grandma Millie's Italian Sauce. Adopt
the handy, nutritious and tasty Italian-American tradition of
serving macaroni and tomato sauce twice a week. Prepare sauce
and serve with meat and fresh macaroni on a Sunday, then heat
up leftover sauce and serve with fresh macaroni on a Wednesday
or Thursday. Sauce can be frozen in jars. Simple to make; wonderful
to eat.
One large onion, chopped
1 small piece of beef
1 small piece of pork
? - ? cup red wine
3 28-oz. cans of crushed tomatoes
4 6-oz. cans tomato paste
raisins & spices
Saute onion in olive oil in a
large pot. Add beef and pork, fry lightly on both sides. Pour
in wine and let simmer. Blend (in blender or food processor)
1 can of tomatoes with 2-3 cloves of garlic, 1 tsp. fresh basil,
1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. pepper, a handful of raisins. Pour into pot
with the 2 other cans of crushed tomatoes. Bring to boil. Stir
in tomato paste (add a few cans of water to thin sauce if desired),
cover pot and simmer slowly 2-3 hours. Stir occasionally, but
thoroughly.
Variations: Fry and drain 1 lb. chopped meat and
add to sauce. Also boil 6 Italian-style pork sausages and add
to sauce.
- © 1997 Lisa M. Roberts, all rights reserved. The above article
is an excerpt from How
to Raise A Family & A Career Under One Roof: A Parent's Guide
to Home Business, a title highly recommended by La Leche
League, Home Office Computing and the Family Christian
Bookclub. Order
your own copy today!
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