Kids Fun Food Week – Meatloaf Cupcakes

Want to get your kids to eat?

Grab them and get in the kitchen and make these fun recipes together!

Back by popular demand…

Here is the recipe that started it all!

I couldn’t get the boys to eat meatloaf and mashed potatoes!

So foolish considering that they like everything in that dish.

But they wouldn’t actually put it in their mouth sooooo….

We came up with a fun way to make them together.

Meatloaf Cupcakes were born!

kid favorite recipes getting kids to eat featured dinner crafts    Kids Fun Food Week   Meatloaf Cupcakes

Here’s a lighter turkey meatloaf version…we’re slimming down for summer!

WHAT YOU NEED:

1 ½ lbs ground turkey

1 egg, beaten

1 clove garlic, chopped

½ c bread crumbs

2 T Worcestershire sauce

¾ c chili sauce (you can use ketchup too)

½ c onions, finely chopped

½ c carrots, finely chopped

½ c mushrooms, finely chopped

½ c red pepper, finely chopped

½ c canned fried onion strips

S&P

1 lb russet potatoes peeled and cubed

½ c milk

3 T sour  cream

2 T butter

S&P

WHAT TO DO:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Place your peeled cubed potatoes in large pot of cold water over high heat.  Bring to a boil and cook until fork tender (about 8-10 minutes after water boils depending on the size of your cubes).

In a large bowl combine ground turkey, egg, bread crumbs, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, chili sauce, onions, carrots, mushrooms, red pepper, fried onions and S&P.  Mix together with your hands until combined.  Spray a muffin pan with cooking spray.  Mold your meatloaf mixture into cupcake sized balls and place in muffin pan.  You’ll get about 8-10 cupcakes.  Place in oven and cook at 375 for about 25-30 minutes.

Drain your potatoes and return to pan.  Pour in your milk, sour cream and butter, and season with S&P.  Using a hand mixer whip your potatoes until smooth and set aside to cool a bit.  Take a large plastic Ziploc bag (or a pastry bag if you have one) and cut a small hole in the bottom corner.  Spoon your mashed potatoes into the bag then pipe out the potato on top of the meatloaves to look like frosting on a cupcake.   Serve ‘em up hot, who doesn’t love cupcakes?  Especially for dinner!

Meaty Morsel:  Decorate the tops of your cupcakes with BBQ sauce, ketchup, mustard, cheese, shredded lettuce, chopped tomato, anything you or your kids can think of.  Let them have fun with this, they’ll have more fun eating it!

Keegan’s Mashed Potatoes

You know that I’m a huge fan of mashed potatoes, well who isn’t, but I was shocked to hear from so many of your about how your kids wouldn’t try them.

WHAT????

What kid in their right mind would not want mashed potatoes and all that yummy creamy goodness?

Then I stopped to think for a second and I realized that for quite some time my boys wouldn’t try mashed potatoes?

WHAT????

How dare you scoff at a potato! A mashed potato!

You are Fitzpatricks for the love of all that is holy.

Your people have survived against all odds with the help of the magical pratties!

WHAT????

So I tried to remember how I got them to eat them for the first time, and I realized it’s the magical practice that I have leaned on time and time again…

I called the boys into the kitchen when those little beauties came out of the water and asked them to make them with me and decide what goes in them.

vegetarian veggies recipes for kids kid favorite recipes side dishes    Keegans Mashed Potatoes

Now they are “their” mashed potatoes.

Now they take ownership and pride in their potatoes.

Now they will actually try them and realize that mashed potatoes are nothing but GOOD.

Here is Keegan’s recipe. Keep in mind that these measurements are an estimate. He got a little crazy with the parmesan cheese.

1 lb baby red potatoes, mashed (You could use any kind of potato, I just don’t like to peel them.)
2 T chicken stock
2 T cream
2 T sour cream
2 T unsalted butter
1/4 cup parmesan cheese (though something tells me Keegan threw in closer to a 1/2 cup, he kept saying, I think it needs more cheese, mommy.)
S&P

Toss all ingredients into a large bowl. Let the kids have fun mashing those potatoes! Mix well, let the kids get creative about what they’d like to add. Dish it out and let them enjoy trying their delicious masterpiece!

MMMashed Potatoes

We love love love our potatoes in this house.  We like ‘em baked, roasted, grilled and especially mashed!  I threw a bunch of stuff from the fridge together for these babies and all anyone could say was MMMMMMM.  So here they are, MMMMMMahsed Potatoes!

vegetarian veggies recipes for kids side dishes    MMMashed Potatoes

Serves 6  Prep Time: 5 minutes  Cook time: 20 minutes

1 1/2 lbs baby red potatoes

3 cloves garlic, peeled

S&P

splash of cream

1/4 cup chicken stock

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

2 T butter

vegetarian veggies recipes for kids side dishes    MMMashed PotatoesCut your potatoes into quarters and toss them in a medium sized pot with the garlic cloves.  Fill with cold water.  Set over high heat and bring to a boil.  Once the water is boiling season the water with salt.  Cook until fork tender about 8-10 minutes.  Drain well and transfer to a bowl.  Toss in remaining ingredients and mix with hand mixer or smash with a potato smasher.  Serve with a bit of sauce from chicken marsala.

vegetarian veggies recipes for kids side dishes    MMMashed Potatoes

Oh oh oh, guess what? I’m guest posting today over at my girl Katie’s at Sassy Silly Spunky Momma She is just awesome and you should go on over and check her out.

Potato Pizza Pizzaz

In college I used to LOVE Pizzeria Uno’s mashed potato pizza. This is an ode to the days of old….

veggies recipes for kids kids lunch ideas kid favorite recipes dinner    Potato Pizza Pizzaz

Serves:  Up to 8  Prep time:  20 minutes  Cook time:  25 minutes

1 store bought pizza crust

1 bag frozen Ore-Ida potatoes

1/2 cup milk

2 T butter

2 T parmesan cheese

S&P

1 pound bacon, chopped

1 onion, diced

8 oz mushrooms, sliced

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

chopped parsley, for garnish

chopped scallions, for garnish

sour cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Unroll your pizza dough and stretch it out over a large baking pan, or you can roll it out into a ball and make a round pizza if you like.  Poke a couple of holes into the dough with a fork and bake the uncovered dough for 10 minutes.  While your dough cooks place your potatoes in the microwave and cook on high for 10 minutes.  Pour potatoes into a bowl and add milk, butter, parmesan cheese, and season with S&P.  Mash well and set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and brown your bacon until just crispy.  Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  In the bacon drippings saute onion, mushrooms and garlic until soft, about 7 minutes.

Remove crust from oven and spread out your potato mixture to cover leaving a one inch border for your crust.  Top potatoes with mushrooms onion and garlic mixture.  Then sprinkle on cheese to cover well.  Top with bacon.

veggies recipes for kids kids lunch ideas kid favorite recipes dinner    Potato Pizza PizzazReturn pizza to oven and cook for an additional 10 minutes.  Slice it up and top with sour cream and parsley or chopped scallions.  Serve as an appetizer or with a salad for a main meal.

Meatloaf Cupcakes

Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes

FOR THE MEATLOAF CUPCAKES:
1 ½ lbs    Ground beef
1                Egg, bean
1 clove     Garlic, chopped
½ cup      Bread crumbs
2 T            Worcestershire sauce
¾ cup      Chili sauce (you can use ketchup too)
½ cup      Onions, finely chopped
½ cup      Carrots, finely chopped
½ cup      Mushrooms, finely chopped
½ cup      Red pepper, finely chopped
½ cup      Canned fried onion strips

FOR THE MASHED POTATO FROSTING
1 lb            Russet potatoes peeled and cubed
½ cup       Milk
3 T.           Sour cream
2 T            Butter

Cooking Instructions

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Place your peeled cubed potatoes in large pot of cold water over high heat. Bring to a boil and cook until fork tender (about 8-10 minutes after water boils depending on the size of your cubes).

In a large bowl combine ground beef, egg, bread crumbs, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, chili sauce, onions, carrots, mushrooms, red pepper, fried onions and S&P. Mix together with your hands until combined. Spray a muffin pan with cooking spray. Mold your meatloaf mixture into cupcake sized balls and place in muffin pan. You’ll get about 8-10 cupcakes. Place in oven and cook at 375 for about 25-30 minutes.

Drain your potatoes and return to pan. Pour in your milk, sour cream and butter, and season with S&P. Using a hand mixer whip your potatoes until smooth and set aside to cool a bit. Take a large plastic Ziploc bag (or a pastry bag if you have one) and cut a small hole in the bottom corner. Spoon your mashed potatoes into the bag then pipe out the potato on top of the meatloaves to look like frosting on a cupcake. Serve ‘em up hot, who doesn’t love cupcakes? Especially for dinner!

Meaty Morsel: Decorate the tops of your cupcakes with BBQ sauce, ketchup, mustard, cheese, shredded lettuce, chopped tomato, anything you or your kids can think of. Let them have fun with this, they’ll have more fun eating it!

webisodes veggies kid favorite recipes dinner    Meatloaf Cupcakes

Improve Your Life, Go The myEASY Way™