I love this meal. It’s simple. It’s quick. It’s hearty and affordable. You’ll spend about $15 and get a huge pasta meal that, unless you have 4 ravenous or 6 people total, will give you leftovers (yummy even cold). And, if you want to save a few bucks or keep it vegetarian, just skip the sausage. It’s still delicious.

If you’re like me and keep roasted cherry tomatoes in the fridge for when you need a quick meal, this will take 30 minutes max to throw together. Otherwise, start roasting the tomatoes about 45 minutes before dinnertime. Go back to whatever you were doing for 15 minutes, then take the last 30 to start putting dinner together. What more is there to say?

Penne with Roasted Tomatoes, Sausage & Ricotta
(can be served to kids 10+ mos)

2 pints organic cherry or grape tomatoes
1/3 c organic olive oil, plus more for sauteing sausage
1 lb organic penne
1 lb sweet italian sausage (turkey or pork), cut into 1″ pieces
7 oz ricotta (about 1/2 of a 15 oz container)
salt and pepper

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees and roast tomatoes: throw them in a roasting pan with 1/3 c olive oil and a healthy sprinkle of salt. Cook for 45 minutes, unattended.

2. 15 minutes into your roasting time, put a large pot of salted water on medium-high heat (about 6 qts water to 2 tbs salt). Bring to a boil. Add penne and cook until al dente. Drain, saving a mugful of cooking water. Set pasta aside.

3. Very lightly coat the bottom of the pot you cooked your pasta in with olive oil. When hot, add sausage and saute until cooked through, about 5-10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove cooked sausage from pot and drain remaining fat.

4. Return pasta to pot. Add sausage and roasted tomatoes, complete with oil and accumulated juices. Stir in ricotta and season with salt and pepper. The oil and juices from the tomatoes should thin the ricotta nicely. If not—if it’s too thick—use some of the reserved pasta cooking water to thin it to your desired consistency.

• Basil – has strong antioxidant properties and volatile oils that have antibacterial properties, and it may decrease the immune response to allergens.
• Cardamom – contains essential oils that have high antioxidant properties and could help alleviate ulcers and has anti-inflammatory properties.
• Celery – the leaves can substitute for parsley. Contains polyacetylenes, substances that are highly toxic against fungi and bacteria. Essential oils in celery seeds has been shown to have anticancer properties.
• Cilantro/Coriander – could help with diabetes, digestive health, heart health and contains dodecenal which in laboratory studies is effective at killing salmonella.
• Cinnamon – could reduce blood pressure and contribute to heart health.
• Cloves – contain eugenol, a substance that could be helpful for relieving pain, killing bacteria and reducing inflammation.
• Cumin – is rich in essential oils that have been associated with blood glucose-lowering effects. It is found to be highly effective at killing the H. pylori bacteria associated with stomach ulcers.
• Garlic – contains allicin, a bacteria killer, and saponin, a cholesterol soaker-upper. A study out of London found that garlic may help decrease preeclampsia complications at birth.
• Ginger – is rich in antioxidants and could protect against cancer. It’s also been shown to help with motion and morning sickness.
• Horseradish/Wasabi – contains glucosinolates, which are known cancer and bacteria fighters. Wasabi is known to prevent tooth decay
• Mint – contains phenolic compounds that have strong antioxidant activity and may prevent E. coli bacteria from forming.
• Oregano – a study showed that oregano oil caused damage to E. coli bacteria within one minute, and another study showed it to cause damage to a parasite that causes diarrhea and abdominal pain.
• Parsley – contains many volatile oils with cancer protective properties, and can lower blood sugar.
• Peppers – contain capsaicinoids which are inflammation reducing phytochemicals.
• Rosemary – contains polyphenolic compounds that could inhibit oxidation and bacterial growth of E. coli.
• Turmeric – contains curcumin which could be a cancer-fighter and have anti-inflammatory properties.

Super herb home-made baby food
According to Dave, a tablespoon of oregano packs the same antioxidant strength as an apple! Why not add some fresh herbs to your next batch of veggies and whiz some into the puree. Add flavor and boost baby’s antioxidant intake.   An herby puree the whole family will love is this spinach basil pesto, a great alternative to butter or oil on cooked pasta.

Dry works as well as fresh
I don’t know about your kiddos, but my boys usually find tiny green flecks of fresh herbs and pick them out of salads. Herbs do have a strong fresh flavor that probably doesn’t appeal to most kids who are learning to tolerate bitter flavors. I know eventually they’ll eat them raw, but for now, in addition to cooking fresh herbs down in sauces and using them to flavor stocks for soups, I try to include as many dry spices in our meals as possible. To make taco night a breeze I mixed up this home-made taco seasoning which contains six super spices. Our morning oatmeal — with cloves, ginger and cinnamon —reminds me of pumpkin pie.

Optimize your stalks
Unless you have an herb garden, buying fresh herbs can be pricey. Don’t waste the stalks, toss them in a zip lock back with other veggie scraps and collect in the freezer. Use your veggie scraps to flavor meat stocks or simmer in a pot of water, then strain. Use the vegetable broth for soup or to replace water when cooking grains.

Natural food dyes
Make food colorful without the toxins in commercial food coloring. Use turmeric to turn rice yellow, and try wilted pureed herbs to turn pizza, tortilla or pita dough green.

About Jenna
At Food with Kid Appeal, Jenna blogs about her journey to feed her family whole food and grow good eaters with the obstacles of high food costs, a demanding day job, and a barrage confusing nutrition  information in the news.  Follow her on her mission to nourish her carnivore Hubby, and two sons:  unfamiliar-food-protester 5 year old Big Boo and picky-palate 3 year old Little Boo.

Photo: Tofutti Break

Last week I left you with a taste of Canada while I was tasting New Orleans. Now that I’m back, you’re probably expecting a post about beignets (our first food stop was Cafe Du Monde!), gumbo (I enjoyed a version made with duck), boudin (I had some at Green Goddess, a wonderful off-the-beaten-path cafe) or some other delicious NOLA specialty. But, instead, I’ve come back with a Mediterranean-inspired quick dinner idea!

My sister and I had big plans to go shopping and out to dinner one night, but were thwarted by uncooperative children who kept me at the hotel way longer than expected. So, instead, she took me to a favorite local spot for a late dinner, some wine and catch up conversation. She did the ordering—I was just happy to be out with her!—and then out came our appetizer, a deliciously loaded hummus platter.

I didn’t think much of it until I started digging in. Creamy hummus topped with chopped cukes, tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, feta, roasted garlic (chunky whole cloves!) and shredded rotisserie chicken. Served with warm high-quality pita, the dish was hearty enough to be our main meal. And then it came to me—what a wonderful, healthy, QUICK family dinner (for everyone 8+ months). Why hadn’t I thought of this before?!

So there you have it. I come back to you from New Orleans not with a cajun treat, but with a Mediterranean dinner inspiration. Go figure! With beans, animal protein (optional!) and salad all rolled into one, it’s just too good an idea not to pass along to y’all. Have you made something like this before? Think you’ll try it? I’m going to this week. It’s a perfect just-back-from-vacation-there’s-nothing-in-the fridge meal!

Photo: Martha Stewart

It’s no secret that I don’t usually cook kid menu staples like mac and cheese, plain pasta with butter, hot dogs or chicken fingers. It’s not that I don’t like (some of) these foods when they are home made with whole ingredients—I do!–but only every once and a while, and it never seems the right time to make them. I’d much rather invest the same amount of time to make more interesting and healthier foods.

But now we’re talking kids party, and you can’t have a kids party without some reliable kid friendly food. Not only does my “everything in moderation” philosophy apply here, but so does my (our!) need for convenience. It’s super easy to turn up the health and sophistication of chicken fingers, plus you can make them ahead of time, which is especially important for party food (but also great for any weeknight meal or packed lunch food).

As you read in yesterday’s post, these chicken fingers can be prepped more than a week ahead of time. Simply make them as directed and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Slip the entire cookie sheet in your freezer for about an hour, until the strips are solid, then transfer to a heavy duty zip lock bag for storing. If you’re making more than fits on a single cookie sheet, freeze the chicken in batches (storing the strips waiting to be frozen in the fridge).

The adults liked these chicken fingers as much as the kids! I credit my (restrained) use of Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning, a staple in creole cooking according to my (soon to be!) brother-in-law, a New Orleans native. If you don’t have or can’t get your hands on some, make your own spice mix with a little cayenne, salt or celery salt, garlic and onion powder. I also offered the adults apricot mustard (dijon mixed with peach apricot jam; you can use any orange colored jam to sweeten the mustard), a slightly more refined accompaniment than ketchup.

Don’t forget to bookmark the entire menu and planning timeline for your next kids party!

ChowMama Baked Chicken Fingers, serves 4-6
(can be served to kids 8+ mos)

1 c plain organic breadcrumbs
1/4 c organic wheat germ
1/2 c organic corn flake cereal
2 tsp Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning (or see above to make your own spice mix)
6 large organic eggs
3 tbsp organic mustard
2 lbs organic chicken breast, cut into 1/2 – 3/4″ strips
vegetable oil cooking spray

1. If cooking these right away, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put breadcrumbs, wheat germ, cereal and seasoning in a food processor and process until you have an even crumb size throughout. Put in a wide, shallow bowl and set aside.

2. Lightly beat eggs with mustard.

3. Dip chicken strips in egg, allowing excess to drip off. Then coat both sides in breadcrumb mixture, pressing to make sure the coating stays on. Lay flat and set aside until you’re ready to cook or freeze.

4. If freezing: place chicken fingers in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Slip the entire cookie sheet in your freezer for about an hour, until the strips are solid, then transfer to a heavy duty zip lock bag for storing. If you’re making more than fits on a single cookie sheet, freeze strips in batches (storing the chicken waiting to be frozen in the fridge).

To cook (from fresh OR frozen): Place chicken strips in a single layer on a cookie sheet that’s been prepped with cooking oil spray. Spray the top of the chicken with more oil. Cook in preheated oven (400 degrees) until crisp and brown, about 12-14 minutes if cooking fresh or 18 minutes if cooking from frozen.

10-Minute Lemon Thyme Scallops

This week is all about the Best Of ChowMama 2009! To help ensure that you begin 2010 with a recipe box loaded with quick and healthy recipes that your whole family will love, I’ve hand selected my favorites (recipes that I return to over and over again) and the most popular recipes as measured by traffic and comments (ones that worked out well for me and you).

Today is all about main dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Tomorrow I’ll hit ya with veggie sides. Wednesday has snacks and apps covered. I’ll serve up healthy sweets and desserts on Thursday. And, on Friday, I’ll list the best parenting posts of 2009—because how we feed our families is most definitely a parenting issue.

Enjoy. Try a new recipe. Chime in with your favorite 2009 ChowMama posts or what you’d like to see more of in 2010.

And, of course, THANKS for a great year. Cheers!

Best ChowMama Main Dishes for Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

10-Minute Blueberry Almond Morning Polenta (10+ mos)
*selected by Amanda Hesser & Merrill Stubbs to be in the food52 cookbook! This is a seriously quick and amazingly delicious meal that earned 5 starts by the cooks on food52.

Moroccan Chicken with Green Olives & Artichockes (8+ mos)
*delicious slow cooked flavors accomplished in less than an hour thanks to a wonderfully aromatic combo of spices.

Turkey (or Chicken) Paprikash (10+ mos)
*an easy standby made with only 5 pantry staples. the kids especially love this. throw in some frozen peas to make a well-rounded one-dish meal.

Shepherd’s Pie (10+ mos)
*meat, potatoes and veggies in one dish easy to make from scratch or leftovers. this is made even easier if you pick up prepared mashed potatoes from your favorite market.

20 Minute Sesame Noodles (8+ mos)
*a delightful recipe from blogger darling (and now cookbook author!) ree drummond (aka the pioneer woman). i make this recipe at least once every other week. it’s my go-to when i haven’t planned ahead.

Zucchini Feta Burgers with Tzatziki (8+ mos)
*a healthier and greek-ier (no, not geekier, thank you very much!) take on burgers. i know, i know—this burger doesn’t call for kid favorite, ketchup, but tzatziki is made with yogurt, another kid fave. give it a try!

Ham, Spinach & Butter Crepes (10+ mos)
*crepes are easier than you think and can be made ahead. in fact, this recipe for one dish makes two meals! a sophisticated adult-approved dinner and a packed lunch the next day that is similar enough to a sandwich to earn the kid stamp of approval.

Quickest Curried Eggs (12+ mos)
*eggs for dinner is a great family cooking trick. but instead of scrambled eggs (nothing wrong with ‘em, but they don’t satisfy the adults in my family the same way when served for lunch or dinner), try these curried eggs served over rice. if you do like me and keep hard boiled eggies in the fridge during the week, this recipe literally takes no time at all.

10-Minute Lemon Thyme Scallops (10+ mos)
*one of my new years resolutions (yes, i know… snore) is to eat more fish. part of the challenge is that you have to cook fish within a day or two of buying it. oh the pressure! except for these scallops: made with nothing more than olive oil, butter, thyme and lemon—ingredients i always have on hand—they turn out a restaurant quality dish in all of 10-minutes cooking time.

Fig & Prosciutto Pizza (12+ mos)
*a fun twist on pizza that satisfies the kiddos while keeping things a bit more refined for mama and papa. (not that i scoff at a cheese pizza, but i live in NYC, folks. when i crave a traditional pie, it’s all about take out).

Savory Mushroom Leek Kugel (8+ mos)
*this way or that way? whatever way you want it! this versatile baked egg noodle dish serves as a great side or vegetarian entree (paired with a hearty spinach salad) for a special holiday meal or any-night dinner.

Butternut Squash & Avocado Quesadilla (8+ mos)
*these quesadillas have a fresh flavor that goes perfectly with kid-friendly fruit salsa made with avocado and mango or pineapple. so we’ve got veggies, fruit and a touch of dairy in one delectable, tortilla wrapped package. can you get better than that?

Easy Hand-Held Syrian Spinach Pies (12+ mos)
*i love that you don’t have to cook the spinach in these pies before baking them. talk about a time saver! and if you buy dough at your local pizzeria, you’re really cooking in no time. these healthy hand held’s make a perfect packed lunch or quick dinner (can you say finger food?!). the best part? they can be made in a big batch and stored in the freezer. handy dandy.