bunching friendly bites

Dinner time around our house is a three-ring circus.  I love to cook and my husband loves to eat, but my Bunch pretty much ensures that we can do neither one in peace and quiet.  Hubby and I are both firm believers in the family dinner, so I cook a hot, balanced meal most nights and we sit down together when he gets home from work.  

My kids used to eat anything I put in front of them, but the older they get the pickier, they get, so I have really dumbed down my cooking.  Ingredients like feta cheese, pesto, porcini mushrooms, and sun dried tomatoes have been replaced by more kid-friendly ones like shredded cheese, cream of mushroom soup, and peanut butter (think chicken satay).  

 

Still, getting vegetables into my oldest is a battle and most nights he will refuse to touch anything else on the plate either.  His reason - "everything you make is sickening and you never make my favorite food (which was cited as hot dog on that particular occasion).  Middle does well with fruits and vegetables but is pretty much a vegetarian.  Oh yeah - and HIS favorite "food" is butter.  Baby doesn't care what the food is, as long as it is shoveled into his mouth as quickly as possible over his grunts of anticipation.  All in all, it's a pleasure dining with them.

 

Occasionally I stumble upon a recipe that keeps everyone happy because it is healthy (me), easy (me), has basic ingredients preferably one of which is a flavoring to disguise vegetables (the kids), but a little sophistication (my husband).  I lucked out tonight.  Here's one that everyone gobbled up - I was even able to mash the sweet potatoes for Baby and slide him tiny shreds of chicken.  As a bonus, whole chickens frequently go on sale and it's easy on the wallet.  

 

If you've got one that's a winner with your crew, please share - I'm always on the lookout for new ideas!

 

Maple Roasted Chicken with Sweet Potatoes - 

• 1 3 1/2- to 4-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
• 1 yellow onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
• 2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme

Directions

 

• 1Heat oven to 400° F.
• 2Rinse the chicken and pat it dry. Arrange the chicken, onion, and sweet potatoes in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Drizzle the oil over the chicken and vegetables and season with the salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Drizzle with the maple syrup and top with the sprigs of thyme.
• 3Roast, stirring the vegetables once, until the chicken is cooked through, about 1 hour, 15 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Comments

[Emily]

Ok, that was hilarious...I actually cried I laughed so hard. And I'm totally trying the recipe.

[MommyNamedApril]

Our trick is to add pureed veggies to everything... waffles, pancakes, bread, pizza, spaghetti, you name it there's a veggie hiding. we also offer the full size thing, but since those don't go over too well, we mostly rely on the hidden stuff.

[Carol Amie]

Having made the recipe, would you think I can substitute bone in chicken breasts or something similar instead of a whole chicken? I don't know about the rest of you but wielding the knife necessary to piece a whole chicken with the baby hog-tying my ankles and trying to climb me like a tree, the 2 year old trying to "help" with the cooking and putting her hands where they ought not be and the 3 year old launching whatever toy he's got his hands on over all of us in the latest efforts to defeat gravity makes the whole process more likely to result in an family ER visit than a family dinner.

[Cara Fox]

It's funny you should ask that, Carol Amie, because I was wondering the same thing as I was hacking the chicken apart while keeping my crew at bay - it was definitely a little bit of a hassle. Additionally, when I questioned my husband as to why he wasn't eating the leftovers when he had devoured the dish the night it was served, he said, "I liked it - I just don't like to work for my food." RIGHT. And I totally see how after I butchered the damn thing while nursing one of his children and keeping the other two from killing each other, it would really put him out to extend himself enough to pick the meat off the bone and eat it. He's really not an asshole, but he sure sounds like one sometimes.

As it turns out, the natural fat in the chicken provides quite a bit of flavoring, which is probably why it calls for a whole chicken. It would definitely not be as good with boneless skinless breasts, but other fattier substitutions might work? Will you let me know how it turns out if you try the alternative? This was a big hit, but I'd love to see it simplified even further...

[Alecia]

This recipe is actually one of my staples. I make it at least once every 2 weeks. I do substitute with chicken breasts, and I think it tastes just fine, though it probably would be better the original way. I've just never tried it! :)

Oh, and I too hide veggies in everything. Though my kids are far past the age of babyfood, I still buy jars of it to keep in the pantry. Carrots sneak their way into spaghettios or spaghetti sauce, etc. etc. A couple of times they've seen it and asked me about it and I always say that we keep it around for their friends' baby siblings.

[jenni]

I'm also a veggie hider. My favorite way is in turkey meatloaf - I shread carrots, onions, green peppers, and celary in the food processor and mix them in. Oscar gobbles it up.

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