Family dinners are becoming a thing of the past. How can you make some east and fast dinners for your family? Why is it so important that we make time time to cook at home, come together, and connect as a family? Aviva Goldfarb, the CEO at The Six O’Clock Scramble, is a family dinner expert who helps busy parents let go of all the stress at 6:00 and bring joy and good nutrition back to the dinner table. Join CJ as she gets some yummy recipes for fast dinner that your friends will love when you bring for potlucks, and your families will appreciate at dinner. Get some tips for planning out meals for crazy jammed pack days.
Show Highlight:
Segment 1: What are the healthy benefits of eating at home versus eating at a restaurant? Aviva’s key discoveries in making healthier versions of recipes.
Segment 2: Quick recipes that will take 30 minutes or less to prepare and cook in really busy days when you feel like there is NO time to cook at home. Aviva shares her favorite meal that takes 10 minutes to make. Simple meals to make when you are on the run, or the days where you are eating in the car between appointments.
Segment 3: Great meals to cook and bring during potlucks and fast, easy recipes for holiday meals. An entree, side dish, and a 3 ingredient dessert dish to bring to a holiday party that are fast to make but offer a WOW factor on a buffet table.
Segment 4: Kid-tested recipes that your kids will like and can cook themselves. 3 simple desserts to try out that are kid-approved.
Recipes Mentioned on Air
- 10 minutes: Shrimp and Grits – http://www.pbs.org/parents/kitchenexplorers/2013/02/12/try-shrimp-and-grits-for-black-history-month/
- Fast Lasagna: http://www.recipelink.com/cookbooks/2007/031233642X_1.html
- Smoothies: http://nl.pinterest.com/thescramble/healthy-smoothies/
- Potluck Hits
- Stacked Pumpkin Enchiladas: http://www.thescramble.com/family-dinner/fall-pumpkin-recipe-stacked-pumpkin-enchiladas/
- Wheat Berry Salad: http://www.thescramble.com/family-dinner/healthy-wheat-berry-salad-with-grapes-and-feta/
- Choc Marshmallow Clusters: http://www.pbs.org/parents/kitchenexplorers/2013/03/12/celias-chocolate-and-marshmallow-clusters/
- Avocado Garlic Toast: http://www.pbs.org/parents/kitchenexplorers/2013/08/06/avocado-garlic-toasts/
- Healthy Holiday Desserts:
- Granola Bars: http://www.thescramble.com/recipes-blog/healthy-snack-chewy-protein-packed-peanut-butter-granola-squares/
- Healthy Desserts:http://www.pinterest.com/thescramble/healthy-desserts/
- Edible Gift Ideas: http://www.pinterest.com/thescramble/edible-gift-ideas/
- Queso dip and family favorites: http://www.pbs.org/parents/kitchenexplorers/2011/01/18/solomon%E2%80%99s-quintessential-queso-dip/
- Choc. Banana Icecream: http://www.pbs.org/food/recipes/chocolate-banana-ice-cream/
Blog Post by our Guest
Kid Friendly Dinner Recipes: The Scramble Suggests Recipes the Whole Family will Love – Aviva’s Blog > Family Dinner >
My Seven, Four and Two-year-olds Love Scramble Meals!
Dear Aviva, My family loved the Baked Flounder with Parmesan Crust! During dinner, my husband asked our 7-year-old what the best part about the day was and he answered “This fish!” My 2-year old then piped in with the same answer. I’m pretty sure our 4-year-old would have, too, but his mouth was full of food.
A.S., Merion Station, PA
Dear Amy, Thanks for sending a note, I love hearing about Scramble successes with our kid friendly dinner recipes!
Baked Flounder with Parmesan Crust
Prep + Cook = 25 minutes
4 servings
This simple dish, adapted from The Washington Post, is easy enough for a weeknight dinner, but good enough for company. Serve it with Whipped Butternut Squash with Pomegranate Seeds.
1 1/2 lbs. flounder fillets (or other white fish fillets)
2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup bread crumbs or panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 lemon, juice only, about 2 Tbsp.
10 fresh basil leaves, cut into thin strips (optional)
(Start the squash first, if you are serving it.) Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place the fillets in a flat baking dish or on a baking sheet lined with foil.
Melt the butter in the microwave or on the stove. In a small bowl, mix it with the bread crumbs or panko, cheese and oil, and combine them thoroughly with a fork or your fingers. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the fillets.
Bake the flounder until it is cooked through and the topping is golden, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle the fillets with lemon juice and basil (optional), and serve immediately.
Do Ahead or Delegate: Juice the lemon.
Tip: Fish should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees. If you don’t own a meat thermometer, you can determine if your fish is fully cooked by slipping the tines of a fork or the edge of a sharp knife into the flesh and gently pulling it aside. The fish should be opaque and somewhat flaky.
Scramble Flavor Booster: Use the optional basil and sprinkle the fish with extra lemon juice and a little fresh lemon zest.
Side Dish suggestion: In a large saucepan or a stockpot, steam the squash in a couple inches of boiling water, covered, for 20 minutes or until it’s tender. (Alternatively, steam it in the microwave for 5 – 10 minutes.) Drain the squash. With an electric mixer, whip the squash with the butter, syrup, salt and cinnamon and transfer it to a serving bowl. Top it with the pomegranate seeds and serve it immediately.
Nutritional Information per serving (% based upon daily values):
Calories 480, Total Fat 29g, 45%, Saturated Fat 8g, 40%, Cholesterol 80mg, 27%, Sodium 490mg, 20%, Total Carbohydrate 29g, 10% Dietary Fiber 0g, 0% Sugar 5g, Protein 25g
As the mother of two very active teenagers with formerly picky palates, I know what a challenge it can be to get healthy homemade dinners on the table that everyone will eat, and at a reasonable hour of the night. And as the founder of the dinner planning service, The Six O’Clock Scramble (www.thescramble.com), I have learned not only how to serve up healthy meals for my own family (well, at least most nights…), but also help thousands of busy families make nightly dinners a reality.
Like many busy moms, I initially struggled to put a nutritious dinner on the table for my family amidst the chaos of daily life. Recalling my own mom’s simple weekly meal planning strategy, I developed a system that helps parents take the “Scramble” out of the dinner hour by giving them an easy, online meal planning and grocery shopping system, along with fail-proof family-friendly recipes.
My family dinner cookbooks, The Six O’Clock Scramble and SOS! The Six O’Clock Scramble to the Rescue (St. Martin’s Press) debuted in 2006 and 2010. Both the cookbooks and online meal planning service have won praise from reviewers at O Magazine, Working Mother, USA Today, Real Simple, The Washington Post, and many others. I also love helping parents lure their kids into the kitchen through my weekly posts on PBS Parents Kitchen Explorers.
Over the years, I have grown increasingly concerned with how to reduce our environmental impact while still enjoying the foods we love. We buy much of our food locally at farmer’s markets, we have reduced the amount of meat we eat, and the amount of food we waste, started composting, and each day, we pack our kids waste-free (or at least low-waste) lunches. I work these family- and eco-friendly practices into the Scramble’s recipes and seasonal meal plans.
Working with food and health, I also care deeply about hunger and nutrition, especially for children. I have been active in school lunch reform here in my home state of Maryland and often contribute to events and campaigns by great organizations such as Share Our Strength.
But at the end of the day, my greatest joy comes from the daily, simple pleasures of my own family table. My son Solomon recently said, “Mom, thank you so much for making us a delicious dinner every night.” That definitely makes the extra effort well worth it!
Contact me at aviva@thescramble.com.
