Any recipe I make in the slow cooker has to follow two simple golden rules:
I was a bit hesitant the first time I made lasagna in my slow cooker. Would the noodles be too mushy? Would it stand up to the oven baked lasagna that my family knows and loves?
I'm happy to say that this has now become our go-to lasagna recipe and my kids insist it makes it onto our meal plan each and every week. Give it a try and see what your family thinks!
Heat olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the fennel, give it a stir to flavour the oil then add the beef, salt and pepper and cook, until the meat is browned, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and water and bring to a simmer. In another bowl combine the ricotta, parsley, salt and pepper. Set aside. Spread a thin layer of the sauce on the bottom of the slow-cooker. Cover the sauce with a single layer of uncooked lasagna noodles, breaking the noodles as needed to fit. Spread about 1/4 of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Top with a thin layer of the sauce, then sprinkle with about 1/4 of the mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Cover and cook on low until cooked through, about 4 hours.
We were obliviously blessed with a first child who wasn't fussy. She took her bottles cold and she ate every flavour of baby food we put in front of her. When she was a toddler I said "Emily, if you never tasted sushi (her favourite food at the time), you'd never know you liked it. If there is a new food you are given to try, taste it. Then decide if you like or don't like it. If you don't like it we will never make you eat it again." And Emily has since used this as her mantra in life. She'll eat pickled herring, and smoked salmon, and beef tartare, and chopped liver, and tons of other foods you may not expect a child to eat. She will try almost anything—and absolutely everything her dad cooks for her. She may not always like it, but she will always try it and will rarely kick up a fuss about what's for dinner on any given night.
"Oh, we are so wise! " said Emily's parents (you can talk about yourself in the third person when you are about to show what a jackass you can be).
"Oh, surely we know the secret to having kids who aren't fussy!" they thought smugly.
Alas, along came children two and three.
"I am NOT tasting that!" cried one.
"WHAT smells like dirty feet?!" screamed the the other. "I am NOT trying THAT!"
And all those theories of having kids who were not fussy came crashing right down. I do not have any magical answers nor do I have a magic wand you can wave to cure your own picky eaters.
Sure with a dad who is a chef my kids all tend to eat many more foods than other kids, but my younger two are still fussy at times and can cross their arms and close their mouths with the best of them.
Recently we've started making our weekly meal plans along with all three children. That way they all get a say in what we eat each night for dinner. We don't always follow their suggestions (or we'd be eating beef ribs and sushi on alternating nights from here to eternity), but we do take them into consideration. It not only helps us learn what the kids like to eat, it also allows them to understand what goes into choosing meals for the week. Is it healthy? Is it costly? How long will it take to make? All important questions that will help them down the road when they are stocking their own fridges and pantries.
The other thing it does is prepares them with an outlook of what to expect. I find this really helps deal with the fussiness. For example, while they may not love the dinner they are being served EVERY night, they know what is being served over the course of the weeks and each child has his or her own 'highs' and 'lows' to look forward to.
What tricks or secrets do you have to deal with fussy eaters in your home?
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