Sometimes as new parents we wonder what we did with our time before we had children. Time is quickly filled with nappy changes, washing, cuddle time, entertaining and catching up on sleep (hopefully!). We don’t have ages to spend in the kitchen. You are still aiming to have protein, starchy carb and 2 portions of veg in the meal but these take about 15 minutes to make.
Here are 5 quick pasta meals
Sardine pasta – tinned sardines in tomato sauce mixed in with pasta – with some frozen peas and tinned sweetcorn added (you can add extra herbs or some chilli if you need extra flavour – although careful how much chilli baby has!)
Cheesy pasta – cream cheese mixed in with pasta – with some frozen mixed veg added. A squeeze of tomato puree and some herbs adds another element
Homous pasta – homous stirred in with pasta – with some spinach (frozen is fine) stirred in.
Chicken pasta – cooked chicken with some olive oil and herbs stirred through pasta. I like to buy chicken breasts in bulk and cook them in the oven, slice them and freeze them in portions. This is cheaper than buying cooked chicken and saves time when you what chicken for sandwiches or salads.
Tuna pasta – drained tuna, a squeeze of tomato puree or passata and some mixed herbs – add some frozen veg or serve with veg.
* When using frozen veg, put them in with the pasta a couple of minutes before the pasta is cooked, this defrosts them but helps to preserve the vitamins in the veg and avoids them going soggy.