Odd question, I know. I am part of a volunteer group that provides, among other things, dinners to families under duress. The family I am helping out this week has a young mom with two broken wrists, a husband, a 3 year old and a 2 year old. No allergies or dietary restrictions. Of the following, what do you think would be the easiest to a) get the kids to eat and b) have the mom eat and c) serve with minimal effort. I had a broken wrist years ago and think that I had no problems with grip and could hold sandwiches and utensils without issue but if anyone with a past broken wrist recalls differently, please let me know.
Garlic-lime chicken: lightly seasoned grilled chicken breast (I would pre-cut the kids' portions) with a garlic lime pan sauce (on the side), rice pilaf, lightly steamed veggie medley (carrot coins, broccoli - soft enough for little eaters but firm enough for them to dip).
Cheeseburger sliders with oven-baked fries and steamed veggies (as above) - I usually do 2-oz sliders. How many each for the adults? I'm thinking 8 total. I would probably melt cheese on top and lightly toast the buns but would keep burgers and buns separate so they don't get soggy.
Luau pork - diced center-cut boneless pork chops lightly marinated in a garlic soy sauce and grilled on skewers with pineapple, peppers and onion. I would assume that the kids wouldn't eat the grilled veggies (mine never did at that age) and would provide extra pineapple on the side for them. Served with basmati or jasmine rice.
Each meal will be left in a cooler on the porch close to dinner time and I'll include something simple for dessert.
So...would any of the meals above appeal to you? Any other suggestions? Other meals already provided to the family include things like spaghetti and meatballs and lasagne so I want to stay away from pasta.
Thanks everyone! Sliders it is...I'll provide one small foil baking pan with the burgers (no toppings), another foil pan with the fries and buns, some toppings like cheese and cooked bacon and a microwaveable container for the veggies. The husband is home for dinner time so he can warm things up if needed. What a nightmare for this poor family - I don't know them, but I guess that husband is a firefighter so he's on desk duty for a while and the kids are in daycare. I think they have family nearby to help so this group has just been asked to help out with meals a few times a week to give everyone a break. Thanks for your feedback!
Sedatives! Sorry just answering the title. Enough for the whole family.
Thing is with two broken wrists I would want something I could eat by myself. You know how the mom mind works, you hate having people do things for you.
Chicken drumsticks - my kids love anything that is finger food and it means no cutting even for adults, just pick up and eat. I've never had a broken wrist so I don't know if this would work or not but if so...
My kids won't eat cheeseburgers so maybe do them as hamburger sliders and provide cheese that could be melted on in a microwave?
Thank you for doing this for this family. C.
We had an employee who broke both of his wrists right before Christmas! Feel off the ladder hanging up lights!
He had to have surgery on one of them because he shattered it. Has she had surgery on any of the wrists? If she broke both her grip is going to be very bad. I would keep it simple. The cheeseburger slider isn't a bad idea but do they like cheese? I don't so that would not be appealing to me! Stew would be a good thought as well.
I think for dessert for my major drugs would be in order! Can you imagine having two little ones and two broken wrists?! Yikes! Poor Mom!!!
You are fabulous for doing this! What a great endeavor to be a part of!
Whatever you decide, if you'd have to cut it up for the toddlers...cut it up for their mom too. I can't imagine trying to cut up food with broken wrists!
Considering the ages of the children, I would go with the sliders. My 3 yr old LOVES cheeseburgers and would love this meal. While the others sound really delicious, if mom doesn't regularly cook with spices, these may be too much.
You could also make chicken tenders and freeze a portion for them to have later. The EASIEST recipe I have tried involves thinkly sliced chicken, dip in egg wash, roll in breading that is 1/2 panko and 1/2 crushed Ritz crackers. You bake at 350 for 10 minutes, flip and bake another 10-15. They freeze very well and just nned to pop them in the oven for 25 minutes to have them out of the freezer!
I think the sliders would be a good choice for all.
Im sure the parents would love to have either one of the other two, but with little kids taste buds and how they can be some what picky on new things I think I would go with the burgers.
Or give one of the other two for the parents ( the chicken sounds so good!) and include the sliders for the children if you wanted to go through that much extra cooking.
So nice of you to do this for them!
Anything would be appreciated! I had casts on for 1 week, and no kids at the time...pre-cut her food too. No strength to cut. Best to have everything accessible by spoon :) If you have the time it would be helpful to bring it inside too. Not sure how much lifting and prep she can do. I was just on crutches for 8 weeks and my husband works nights...relied on the 3 and 4 y/o more than I thought possible! You are a good person for helping.
rice can be difficult to manuveur! Make sure the foods will stay easily on the utensils....
Can you call the family and ask or is something you have/want to do without them knowing (I forgot the right word here, when you do something without wanting something back)
If so, I vote for the chicken but would rather without garlic. I love garlic but my 3 year no so much. I love you add the veggies, when I am sick for some reason what it worries me the most is that they are well feed and good sleep.
I admire you are doing this, so no matter what you pick I think you are doing a amazing thing for this family.
If I broke both of my wrists, I would just want someone else to cook and clean up after meals for me ;-). Definitely easy-to-eat meals that don't need to be cut up with a knife, at least for myself. Nothing that requires a lot of manipulation with the fork either... like no spaghetti that needs to be twirled. No lo mein.
Things like lasagne and spaghetti would require a lot of cutting and fork/knife manipulation and are messy to boot so I wouldn't do those at all. Substitute them with a casserole instead using ziti or penne or even elbows in a "lazy lasagne" and macaroni and cheese. If someone makes soups, make sure they're thick and chunky but the chunks are small bite sizes with small pastas like orzo or ditalini.
As long as its already prepaired hot ready to go. I would hate to have to tangle with trying to pull something out of a hot oven knot knowing the strenght of my broken wrists. i would assume the husband was there to help but in case not. i would go with the sliders option.
