I am so excited to finally bring this post to fruition, y’all! Mainly because it’s easy and won’t take up an extreme amount of my time (#bloggerlife). Haha! But another reason is that I enjoy sharing Muffin Tin Meals with you all on Instagram and Facebook, so I figured it was time to share in a bit more detail here on the blog. This will also provide a longer shelf-life for my followers. 🙂
Feeding my kids has become one of my “One Good Mom Things” (go learn about OGMT from Amy at House of Eilers here) that I didn’t really expect in my SAHM journey. As it turns out, I enjoy feeding my family. The challenge of establishing healthy food boundaries and habits for my children is something I take pride in.
Am I perfect? No. Do I follow ALL the rules? No. Are my meals from scratch? Rarely.
Do I make eating fun and enjoyable? Yep. Do I enjoy eating with my kids? It’s a favorite part of my day. Am I setting my kids up to have a healthy relationship with food? I hope so!
Creating Healthy eating Habits for Life
I love food. I simply enjoy eating. And I especially enjoy the luxury of being served a meal that I didn’t have to cook or clean up after. I hope that my service in cooking and preparing meals for my kids is something they will one day appreciate and learn to do (and enjoy) for their families, too.
These Muffin Tin Meals are one of my best tricks for switching things up and reimagining meal time. #momhack I thought it would be helpful to break down the construction of a Muffin Tin Meal for you all. If you’re short on time or in a meal rut, give Muffin Tin Meals a try! It’s so easy, you guys!
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What You’ll Need:
You’ll obviously need a muffin tin, but any kind will do! If you want to make clean-up even simpler, you can use cupcake liners (I have these silicone ones!). Then, the only other thing you’ll need to complete this is…yep, you guessed it… food!
How to Construct a Muffin Tin Meal:
I find that the easiest way to break down a Muffin Tin Meal is to think about each of the food groups you want to provide for. Protein, Grain, Veggie, and Fruit are my go-to’s to get a well-balanced meal.
There are endless possibilities when it comes to the food you use for your muffin tin meal. To keep it easy and quick, I usually use foods that are mess-free finger-foods. I don’t typically include anything liquidy (maybe a sauce for dipping) or sticky.
Here’s a graphic I created to give you ideas to jump-start on filling your muffin tin. Pin the graphic for later for easy reference! The more you make muffin tin meals, the easier it gets!
Why Muffin Tin Meals Work:
Part of the fun of this type of meal is that it exposes kids to foods in a new way. I often find that my kids will eat more of the food simply because it’s in a new vessel.
Because the food is presented in a new way, they tend to try things that they typically wouldn’t in a normal meal setting. This is a great way to expose kids to new foods, so think outside the box!
Another great reason a Muffin Tin Meal just works is that it separates each food group, and it also gives clear boundaries for portion size (which is helpful as a parent, I think).
Other Thoughts and Ideas for Muffin Tin Meals
One of our favorite ways to amp up the fun when using muffin tin meals is to make a picnic of it – either inside or outside! We especially love to make the most of a sunny day, and taking a muffin tin meal outside is so easy.
Tip: when you have a picnic inside, use a cheap vinyl tablecloth or blanket to put under the food and kiddos. This will make spills and clean-up a breeze!
Another great way to use a muffin tin is for a snack time smorgasbord, especially if you have multiple kiddos. It could also be fun as a “S’more’s” themed snack tray, or anything you want really. Just load it up and set it out!
When I make a muffin tin meal, I usually just take what’s used and make my own plate of the same food. This means less thinking for me, and I love a good snack lunch. Here’s what my plate looks like when I do this (right).
I try to do a Muffin Tin Monday each week to work this into our meal times regularly (and to take the thinking out of meal planning a bit). It’s also really easy to whip these up towards the end of the month when we’re low on food (I only shop once a month, you can read about that here!).
As if you needed another reason to love muffin tin meals, I will say that only having one dish to clean afterwards (and bonus, no silverware!) is a cherry on top!
I hope this was helpful for you! I know being the primary meal manager of a home can get a bit redundant and you can easily burn out. When you’re feeling in a rut, give a muffin tin meal a try. They are so easy you’ll be adding them into your meal rotation regularly and the kids will love it!
To the Chaos!
-MG
Other Posts You May Like:
- Master Shopping List – The Key to Household management!
- MONTHLY SHOPPING 101
- Monthly Shopping Trip – Fave Five Favorites, November 2020
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