Three Fast Family Faves—Stuffed Potatoes, Wedding Soup, Macaroons

As much as I love to cook I just don't have as much time to spend on long complicated recipes as I used to in the pre-kids days.  I find myself gravitating toward recipes that are quick, healthy and family friendly. These are two nutritious meals you can throw together easily on a week night that are sure to be a hit with kids. And for dessert some coconut macaroons.


I found the first recipe for Twice Baked Potatoes in Cooking Light  a long while back—actually before having kids, when we were eating vegetarian meals more frequently. I have been pondering lately why we have shifted to meatier meals. I think it is a combination of things. First, we used to have considerable less money so we treated meat more like a luxury. Second, we had lots more vegetarian friends. Last, when I was pregnant and nursing I really craved meat. Given how we had the boys back to back that was about three and half consecutive years, long enough to get a meaty habit well formed. Well, now I am making a more concerted effort to feed the boys vegetarian meals regularly. In truth, they do not always love meat anyway. Meatless is surely healthier as well.

The recipe is a no-brainer, really. You don't really have to measure anything. Just toss in some fillings, taste, stuff, and heat. I generally put in broccoli rather than spinach because I really love it with cheesy things.

The second recipe is for Italian Wedding Soup. My kids love meatballs. My kids love chicken soup. Italian wedding soup is like a combination of the two so what is not to love? Jim found this recipe on the internet during a brief cooking phase he went through a year or two ago. At the time, he was smitten with the pressure cooker so he made the soup in it, although it is entirely unnecessary since the soup cooks up quickly without such measures. It was actually meant to be cooked in a slow cooker, but I do it on the stove. 

You could put whatever vegetables you like in the broth. Spinach, roasted garlic, and roasted red peppers would be a nice combo, I think. Sam and Ethan and their friends like just the carrots and celery.

We went to a pool party at our friends', Curtis and Michele, house over the summer. Other guests, who have a son with several food allergies, brought coconut macaroons to share. I probably could have eaten an entire plate so naturally I asked for the recipe. They are really coconut-y, moist and chewy. And with 4 ingredients, they take only minutes to make. Their two daughters, both under 10, I think, actually made them.

Twice Baked Potatoes
(Cooking Light, October 1998)
6 servings

• 3 large baking potatoes (about 12 ounces each)
• 1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
• 1/2 cup tub-style light cream cheese (about 4 ounces)
• 1 3/4 cups (7 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
• Sliced green onions (optional)

• Preheat oven to 400°.
• Pierce potatoes with a fork, and bake at 400° for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until tender. Cool. Cut each potato in half lengthwise; scoop out pulp, leaving a 1/4-inch-thick shell. Mash pulp with a potato masher. 
• Combine milk and cream cheese in a large bowl, and stir with a whisk. Add potato pulp, 1 cup cheddar cheese, onion, salt, pepper, and spinach; stir well. Spoon potato mixture into shells; sprinkle each half with 2 tablespoons cheddar cheese. Place stuffed potatoes on a baking sheet; bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Garnish with green onions, if desired.

Easy Italian Wedding Soup
8 Dinner Servings
The recipe is from 30 Day Gourmet—Slow Cooker Freezer Favorites, 2008.


12 cups chicken broth (I generally use a little more than this)

2 cups shredded carrots (about 4 medium)

3 cups sliced celery stalks

2 lbs. ground turkey

2 eggs

1 slice white bread

2 Tbs. milk

1/4 cup grated Romano cheese

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried parsley

Salt and pepper to taste

Acini de pepe (or other tiny pasta)

In large pot or slow cooker, add broth, carrots, and celery.  Stir.

In a large bowl, mix eggs, white bread, milk, cheese, herbs, salt and pepper to make a uniform mixture.  Add ground turkey and mix until just combined.  Form into small meatballs (1” or less) and place in pot/cooker carefully so they don’t lump together.  Place lid on and cook in a slow cooker 3-4 hours on high (8-10 on low).  On stove, bring to a boil and simmer about 15-20 minutes until everything is tender and cooked through.

Coconut Macaroons

USA Fire and Rescue video on You Tube. Weird, place to find cookie recipes, huh?

14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk 

14 oz. bag shredded sweetened coconut

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line baking sheets with parchment. Mix together all ingredients thoroughly. Drop by heaping tablespoons (I use a smaller scooper for this) onto parchment. Bake 10-15 minutes until golden. Slide parchment with all cookies from pan to cooling rack. Cool completely.

Optional: Melt some chocolate chips in the microwave and dip the bottoms of cookies into it. Place on waxed paper. The chocolate will harden upon cooling.

Cranberry-Buttermilk Muffins

I love muffins! Not the overly sweet, dense, and loaded-with-fat kind you can buy premade that everyone thinks are healthy, but are most often worse for you than donuts. I like a good old fashioned muffin (or scone)—not too sweet, warm, with a nice crust on the outside and a light crumb inside. I think they are best eaten warm, sometimes with a little butter, a nice cup of tea, a side of bacon or sausage for a little saltiness, and some fresh fruit. I have cooked many breakfast and brunch items, but that is just my all time favorite morning meal.


I have a few muffin cookbooks, but my favorite by far is The Ultimate Muffin Book by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough. I think I have made more recipes from that book than from most of the others cookbooks I have combined. Graham cracker muffins with a little core of peanut butter or jelly, fresh peach muffins (truly there has not been a peach worthy of making these since moving to VT), carrot and raisin, and peanut butter muffins are the ones we eat time and again. I can't recommend the cookbook more highly if you are a muffin lover like me. 


This recipe for Cranberry-Buttermilk Muffins is not actually in the book but it is of the same muffin genre. I just found it while reading the digital version of Better Homes and Gardens on my iPad. It caught my eye because I had some leftover buttermilk. These muffins are like a cross between a muffin and a scone. They have crunchy tops, tender insides with little bursts of tart cranberries throughout. The orange zest adds a nice touch also.


[BTW, can I just say how much I enjoy reading magazines on my iPad? Some mags have extra features for ipads like videos or other interactives. But even if they don't, I love being able to keep mags without any clutter or worries about environmental impact. You can bookmark recipes, email them, etc. LOVE IT!]

Cranberry Buttermilk Muffins
From Better Homes and Gardens, December 2011

1 cup fresh cranberries
2 Tbs. sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. finely shredded orange peel
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup butter, melted (I used a little less)
coarse sugar for topping


Preheat oven to 400° F. Grease twelve to fourteen 2 1/2-inch muffin cups. In a medium mixing bowl, toss cranberries with 2 Tbs. sugar; set aside.


In a large bowl, combine flour, 1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar, the baking powder, orange peel, and salt; stir well. 


In a small bowl, combine egg, buttermilk, and butter. Make a well in center of flour mixture; add egg mixture and cranberries. Stir just until moistened. 


Spoon into prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with coarse sugar. Bake muffins about 15 minutes or until golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Serve warm.