when the family does not eat the same food

[Zoe Girl]

My children made what they consider an epic meal the other night. They made homemade mac and cheese, and then cooked bacon and ham steak in bacon grease. They did not know that ham is already cooked and treated it more like raw pork so they learned that. However I am vegetarian, and they were were very polite and saved some of the macaroni and cheese before the meat was added. It is a big stretch right now! They love meat and I have been cooking meat for them yet it seems either they have almost nothing they can eat or I have almost nothing I can eat.

I realized that I have not been eating enough and so I got several Amy's meals from the store. That may be the answer, a cooked meal and backup frozen food. I don't know too many vegetarian meals that freeze well, I have meat lasagna and chili in the freezer right now at least.

Anyone else in this situation. I guess it is good that no one criticizes each other and we all make an effort but some easier ways to handle it would be good also.

[Tussiemussies]

Hi Zoe Girl, there might be more that you can freeze for yourself. Chili, homemade soups, buriritos, spaghetti sauce. You can make up pasta dishes and freeze them also. Lasagna, vegetable lasagna. I'm sure others will have some more suggestions. :). Christine

Oops almost left out, homemade pierogies...

[Rosemary]

I eat almost no meat but cook small amounts for DD and DH. Learn to cook meals that can be flexed. I cook up lots of veggies for myself and when DD and DH have something with meat, I have that something with veggies (this week it was roasted asparagus and sauteed mushrooms).

What do you like to eat? Start with that. Most things freeze well.

Meals that are easily made for everyone, then assembled on plates:
- stir-fry (cook the meat in a separate pan)
- burritos or tacos
- pasta dishes
- meat-as-a-side-dish meals (e.g. meat and potatoes and veg - you just have more veg with it)

I freeze all sorts of soups, chilis, burrito fillings, etc. I eat a lot of salad, also - but not wimpy side dish salads - I mean beautiful, veggie-filled salads with all sorts of color, plus some fruit and either nuts, feta, or olives on top.

[redfox]

I always told our kids that there are no short order cooks in the household, and if they want something different from what I or their DF was cooking, they'd need to fix it & clean up for themselves.

[SteveinMN]

Cook for the least common denominator. It's easy to add meat to a dish; harder to remove it. It's easy to add hot sauce or peppers to a meal; harder to remove them.

Think discretely. Making mac-n-cheese? Make sure some remains without meat for the vegetarians among you. Making pizza? Some of it should be just cheese or cheese and vegetables, not sausage or hamburger. Someone doesn't like tomatoes? Prepare the pasta or tacos or salad either with tomatoes on the side or at least in chunks big enough to remove easily from the dish.

Think of add-ons. I cannot make a meal out of just mac-n-cheese. DW can. I'll make myself a simple salad or cook some frozen vegetables as a side for me.

And be a little flexible (I'm not saying you're not). Having a severe food allergy is one thing. Being a vegetarian is another (it's not so much a health issue as it is for the allergic). Having a food preference ... well, the cook should not center the meal on the disliked item ("Tofu surprise, anyone?"); nor should the minority preference-holder grumble too much about picking the mushrooms out of the gravy or the salad.

And I will note that, if Annie's or Swanson or Stouffer's can freeze a particular meal, so can you. :)

[redfox]

We always served our meals buffet style, on the kitchen counter, so everyone could take what they wanted & leave the rest. I remember many meals of plain pasta for the little ones & more complex combos for the grown-ups.

[larknm]

I love buffet-style when eating at other people's homes. Not enough food choices for that here. DH and I eat mostly different stuff, so he buys and cooks his and I buy and cook mine. We offer each other some of our stuff, but it's not usually what the other wants.