Marvelous Meals on the Go!

Marvelous Meals on the Go!


Are your kids in sports or other activities that happen during or near dinner time? I found my family in this situation this past little league season. Occasionally we picked up food on the way or (gulp) even ate at the snack bar, but we all know that this isn’t the healthiest or cheapest way to feed a family. I came up with meals that traveled well and were easy to prepare. Hopefully you can adapt some of these ideas for your family, too, even if it’s for an easy night at home!

My first discovery was a widened use of the Crock Pot. Throw in some bone-in, skin on chicken breasts with a jar of green salsa for 3-4 hours on low… chicken burrito filling. Make enough so that a few nights later you can use the filling for chicken enchiladas or tortilla soup. Or, add a roast beef cut or pot roast with a jar of any red salsa and you have beef burritos. Wrap the meat fillings with refried beans in foil and you’re good to go.

Next we ate fancier sandwiches than we ate for lunch. I copied salads and sandwiches that I had at restaurants. Chicken Caesar (grilled chicken with a Caesar salad on top on a French roll), Turkey Cobb with bacon and blue cheese (not on all my kids’!), French dip with little cups of beef broth enriched with a little garlic powder and sherry cooking wine, steak with grilled onions. Luncheon meats work great for the French dip roast beef, turkey cobb, and ham Panini’s. (Panini’s are great in the George Foreman grill.) In this sandwich category you can also include wraps. Take a large tortilla and add cream cheese, any meat, any vegetables. You can drizzle with different salad dressings for varying effects. Use chicken and coslaw mix and add a little sesame ginger dressing for asian, cilantro dressing for southwestern, or Italian dressing for an antipasto wrap.

After weeks of the above meals, I did sometimes just package up regular meals and it turned out great. I had a plastic container for each family member and added a base of rice or potatoes and added meat and a veggie for a “bowl”-type meal. The kids loved eating this way because it was different than how we normally ate the same ingredients at home.

It’s important that you have a couple of small ice chests that you can throw over your shoulder. One is for cold things like water bottles, fruit, and veggies. The other you can make cold for sandwiches are salads or hot with a heat pack for hot items. It is essential to have plenty of napkins and utensils and a bag for garbage.

Let me know if you have more ideas to share about eating on the go!!