The coronavirus pandemic sweeping the world has caused everyone to change their daily lives. Instead of driving your kids to school, sports or music lessons, everyone’s hanging out at home to stay healthy and safe. Kids may love this at first because they get more time with their toys, but eventually, they’ll need something else to capture their attention. Fun family recipes are a great option.
When you’re not working from your living room or playing in the backyard with your children, you’re probably wondering what to cook for everyone. Don’t worry about providing everything on your own. Make cooking a group activity so it’s a fun way to spend time together.
Read on to discover 10 recipes to make as a family while social distancing. You’ll get to bond over fun, delicious food that you can keep baking or cooking together well after everyone gets back to their regular routines.
1. Simple Chicken Spaghetti
Chicken and spaghetti are staple foods for most families. Give your usual dinner a twist by making chicken spaghetti with your kids. All you need is your favorite pasta, cream of chicken soup, chicken, and whatever spices or add-ins you prefer. After only 20 minutes, everyone can sit down and enjoy a tasty meal they helped make.
2. Peanut Butter Cup Blondies
There’s no better time for some comfort food than when everyone’s getting used to a new routine. After working hard on their online classes, get your children to help bake peanut butter cup blondies. Use the standard blondie ingredients to make the base of the recipe and let your kids top them with mini Reese’s cups. When they cool after baking, you’ll wonder why your family hasn’t tried this family recipe before.
3. Fresh Strawberry Salad
The best part about making a strawberry salad is washing and snacking on the strawberries while everyone adds their favorite toppings. Slice up the strawberries and drizzle each bowl with homemade poppy seed dressing. It’s a sweet, refreshing salad even the kids will love.
4. Classic Lasagna With Meat Sauce
Lasagna may take a while to make by yourself, but getting your children involved will speed up the process for this family recipe. Everyone can take turns layering the dish with pasta, meat sauce, and cheese until you fill the baking dish. Serve with extra meat sauce on top or garlic bread on the side.
5. Tasty Fruit Skewers
Support your local farmers by making fresh fruit skewer snacks. You can find fruit like watermelon, strawberries, and more for the kids to slide onto skewer sticks. Serve with cheese dip or let the children enjoy them on their own as you watch a movie together or sit by your backyard pool.
6. Mini Pancake Muffins
Kids love having breakfast for lunch or dinner because it’s a fun way to serve a meal. Make things even more fun with mini pancake muffins. Use standard pancake ingredients as the recipe base and add your favorite sausage, chocolate chips, or more. Your young children can dip them in maple syrup and enjoy a full breakfast in mini portions.
7. Traditional Popcorn Balls
Young children like to help, but may not be able to handle kitchen utensils or appliances on their own. Instead, serve a fresh bowl of popcorn and invite everyone to roll it into popcorn balls. A little corn syrup, salt and butter go a long way in making a sticky, delicious treat that will have your family giggling the entire time they make them.
8. Homemade Mini Pizzas
Get even more creative with your lunch options by baking homemade mini pizzas. Let your family top their personal pizzas with whatever they like and have fun arranging everything. Olives and pepperoni could make a smiley face or broccoli florets could line up into a heart. They’ll only need a few minutes to cook and last a while if you want to save them in the fridge.
9. No-Bake Cereal Bars
If you made a run to the grocery store to stock up your pantry items, you may have more than a few boxes of cereal waiting for your children. They might get bored of eating it out of bowls, so create no-bake cereal bars instead. Honey and peanut butter hold Cheerio bars together well, much like with oatmeal or granola bars. Keep them in the fridge to maintain their shape and enjoy them in the days ahead.
10. Blueberry Yogurt Swirl Popsicles
Your family might not be able to go to an ice cream shop and sit inside for a sweet treat, but you can still enjoy some at home. If you have a popsicle mold, frozen berries, and Greek yogurt, you have everything you need for this frozen dessert. Add in your favorite healthy sweetener and freeze overnight before letting your kids try them.
Plan Out New Recipes
Cooking or baking new family recipes is an easy way to switch up a stay-at-home routine that kids might find boring. Plan out each recipe you want to try so you can find ways for your children to help. They can mix ingredients, top pizzas, or pour pancake batter into muffin tins. Whatever you decide to make, everyone will love the food even more because they got to be part of the baking process.