The following might sound familiar: You promise to start whipping up nutritious, homemade dinner ideas for the kids and adults in your household. However, the workload quickly becomes overwhelming.
You probably rely on specialized experts to help with other essential areas of life. Why hesitate to call on mealtime pros?
Fitlife Foods offers healthy, delicious, convenient prepared food options that take the work out of cooking so you can get dinner on the table and focus on the important things in life. Here are some family-friendly, practical tips for taking the worry out of dinnertime with lots of meal solutions so you can decide what works for you and your family. (Even your picky eaters!)
Creating a Food-Positive, Warm Atmosphere
Before settling on a meal plan, ensure pleasant dinners by creating an enjoyable environment. Studies prove that food tastes better when you eat with people you love. Work out a time to dine together, even if you can only do it a few times a week. Make it a rule to put away your devices to be truly present during the meal so you can genuinely connect with one another. And know that because you’re already putting a nutritious and delicious dinner on the table, nobody needs to be hounded about what they are eating and why (other than to point out how delicious it is).
The surroundings help, too. Consider setting the table with decorative themes to fit different meals and using real flatware and decorative plates to make the meal feel important. Let the kids pick their favorite utensils or placemats to improve their mood.
Even with tiny ones in the house, the family can still enjoy more sophisticated fare. For heartier and kid-friendly recipes, cut or mash those dishes to include smaller kids and enrich their palates.
How To Get the Kids Involved
Other dinner ideas for kids and adults involve letting everyone have a share in the food preparation. Your children will take pride in helping and enjoy meals more.
This is where a food delivery service saves so much time and anxiety. Instead of worrying about monitoring the children while cooking, the family can set the table together.
You can also allow the kids to do some simple plating, microwaving, and maybe a bit of stirring, seasoning, or drizzling. Create assignments that fit each age group.
Kids love to be involved and take an active role – let them have ownership over age-appropriate, easy dinner activities. They’ll love it!
How To Pick the Right Ingredients
You can face an uphill battle picking dinner ideas for kids and adults when you have many mouths with individual preferences. Finding a quick meal that’s a kid-pleaser can be challenging, especially during busy weeknights. Crowd-pleasing staples like chicken, pasta, pizza, and rice are classic dishes that cater to diverse tastes and don’t have to include bold flavors.
Of course, incorporating more veggies is important, but kids (and many adults) can be notoriously finicky with anything green. Kid-friendly recipes often use cheese or dressing to help even the pickiest eaters enjoy their greens. Additionally, grilled or roasted options popular in Mediterranean dishes can enhance the flavor of veggies, making them a more appealing choice.
Meals Kids and Adults Will Love
Fitlife Foods understands that mealtimes can be stressful – but they don’t have to be! We’ve got over a dozen excellent possibilities for tasty and quick dinner ideas that both kids and adults will love eating. Check it out!
Classic Faves
Try some of our tried-and-true takes on classic menu items that are sure to bring your family to the dinner table.
Macaroni and Cheese
It’s hard to go wrong with mac and cheese as a standby for parents, and with us, it doesn’t come out of a box! We have multiple healthy mac and cheese options that you can feel good about:
Different size options also mean you’ll find the right portion for everyone in your family.
Smoked Brisket Taco
Smoked Brisket Taco is a flavorful, allergy-friendly option perfect for the whole family. This easy weeknight dinner features tender beef brisket slowly braised to perfection and wrapped in soft flour tortillas. Complemented by fire-roasted corn, melted cheese, and peppers, this dish is both satisfying and convenient. It’s a food choice that everyone will enjoy eating together.
Chicken-Based Meals
Chicken is usually something everyone can agree on – but you don’t want your chicken dinners getting boring, tasting dry, or being served as weekly chicken fingers. We have chicken recipes that will definitely feel exciting but also satisfy many palates.
Chicken Pesto Tortellini
This Chicken Pesto Tortellini has 36 grams of carbs and a ton of flavor. Natural ingredients mean you can enjoy pasta dinner with none of the guilt while still indulging in a delicious chicken dish.
Orange Chicken & Broccoli
The Orange Chicken & Broccoli dish offers a healthier twist, baked whole-wheat air-fried “popcorn” chicken tossed in a house-made orange-ginger sauce that’s sweetened with honey. Paired with fresh broccoli, this chicken dish is a delicious and balanced option for a quick and flavorful dinner.
Pork Barbecue Delights
BBQed anything always sounds like a good idea. For more choices in barbecue, these dinner ideas for kids and adults give you robust flavor with the freshest ingredients.
Carolina Pulled Pork
This favorite Southern comfort food uses savory smoked pork shoulder and tangy Carolina mustard sauce. A side of green beans with bacon, herbs, and spices complements this entree perfectly.
Pulled Pork Carnitas
Add some excitement with the Yucatan-inspired flavors of slow-cooked smoked pork with homemade pico. Fire-roasted veggies might have the kiddies finally craving their greens.
Latin Dishes
Fitlife Foods has cultural options as well – and the home-cooked, family atmosphere of the Latin culture makes food all the more special and yummy! Give these Latin dishes a shot.
Chicken Quesadilla
Chicken Quesadillas check all the right boxes: chicken, cheese, and a convenient tortilla. Roasted onions, sautéed peppers, and low-sodium pinto beans with roasted salsa rioja make this a savory treat.
Popular Meats
Carnivores rejoice! Fitlife Foods provides many healthy meat-focused dinner ideas to get that protein in for growing kids and refuel adults after a long day at work.
Mama’s Turkey Meatloaf
There’s nothing as comforting as a hot traditional meatloaf, cooked like grandma used to make but with a healthy spin. This turkey version has cauliflower mash and green beans for delicious sides.
Grass Fed Bison Burger
Lean bison burger patties eliminate the fat but ultimately boost the flavor. A side of sweet potato fries will delight everyone.
Breakfast for Dinner
Switch things up and thrill the family with breakfast-for-dinner ideas for kids and adults! Fresh, all-natural ingredients ensure you don’t have trans fats and unnecessary sugars.
Sweet Potato Pancakes
Your family might not believe these are potato pancakes when they see how fluffy and tasty they are. Savory chicken bacon completes the meal.
Blueberry French Toast
Dig into brioche bread griddled to perfection with coconut milk. Top it with antioxidant-rich blueberry compote and enjoy it with a side of chicken apple sausage.
Andrew’s Scramble
Get all your breakfast favorites in one dish with this scramble. Eggs, sausage, bacon, hash browns, and cheddar cheese will satisfy the whole gang!
Healthy Dessert Ideas
“Mo-om, what’s for dessert?”
End your evening with healthy desserts from the Fitlife Foods kitchens without feeling deprived. Check out our delicious sweets, including:
- Fit brownie
- Peanut butter cookies
- Chocolate chip cookies
- Cookie dough balls
These treats are sure to conclude the night on a high note! (Watch out – you might become everyone’s favorite and be hosting other kids more often!)
Fitlife Foods: Your Source for the Easy Dinner Ideas
Fitlife Foods is proud to offer many options for tasty and healthy dinner ideas for kids and adults, and we are constantly in our test kitchen trying out new recipes that will delight the whole family.
If you’re short on the time you need for shopping and meal prep and need a last-minute dinner, let the team at Fitlife Foods help. Check out our easily prepared and home-delivered meals that make guilt-free dinnertime a breeze!