Monday, November 7, 2011

love me two times

I love to cook, but my time to do so is seriously limited these days now that I have two kids under two.  So when I plan out our menus for the week, I always make sure my meals last for two nights. One night I cook, the next I reheat leftovers. This way I still get to enjoy cooking, but I get to stay sane too.

They key is finding dishes that will not only reheat well, but that my carnivore and little man will look forward to eating again. My go to is always pasta. Its a crowd pleaser and it can easily be adjusted for the two types of diets we have in our house.


Recently, I made these dishes. I took the two time theme even further by using two different kinds of pasta - whole grain penne and regular bow tie. The different textures and tastes are fun for the kid if nothing else. To make your own you need the following:

3/4 box of whole grain penne
1/4 box of bow tie pasta
2 tblsp of olive oil
kosher salt
pre-made alfredo sauce
frozen meatballs
1 head of broccoli
1 portabella mushroom


Start by boiling the pasta for about 10-12 minutes. Then chop the broccoli and mushroom, after cleaning thoroughly. Toss with oil and salt in a large pan. Saute until soft. When pasta is ready, toss with alfredo sauce. In the meantime, heat the meatballs according to package instructions. Then plate. In out house we had one pasta bowl with pasta and veggies, one with pasta and meatballs, and one with all of the above!


By taking advantage of pre-made options at the grocery, like the sauce and meatballs, I am able to save even more time. You can, of course, make these from scratch too. But with two babies, I am just happy to have a meal to serve everyone...twice.

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