Meals for New Moms

She might be getting slammed with meals right now but might need one down the road some time, so you might try a bag meal that she can put together easily at her convenience. A bag meal consists of a recipe for a meal that uses all canned or dried foods, and all of the canned and dried food necessary for the meal rounded up and put into the bag. When she needs the meal, it is all together. All she has to do is open, dump, and heat up.

One idea is spaghetti. The bag meal consists of spaghetti noodles, canned sauce, canned ground beef or chicken, canned mushrooms, and canned olives. Add a side of canned green beans and another of canned peaches, throw them in a bag, and she can heat, eat, and enjoy at her convenience.

Hi T.,

Our family's favorite is Tortillini soup.
Tortillini Soup

2 cups reduced fat or lean Italian turkey sausage
1/2 cup finely diced onion
1/2 Tbsp dried basil
1/2 Tbsp dried oregano
1 - 15 oz can diced tomatoes with juice
3 - 14.5 oz cans chicken broth
2 1/2 cups uncooked three cheese tortellini
1/2 tsp ground black pepper

In large pot, cook sausage and onion over medium high heat for 7 minutes or until sausage begins to brown. Add basil and oregano and cook for 1 more minute. Add tomatoes and broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add tortellini and pepper. Cook for another 10 minutes.

If freezing - add tortellini but do not cook - freeze immediately.

I serve it with rolls and fresh parmesian cheese on top.
Very to make and everyone loves it.
I hope your family and friend like it too.

Chicken Roll-ups are a favorite easy meal here, and I have taken them to several new moms. (double the recipe if there are more than the two adults and the babies :) )

1 can cresent rolls
1-2 Cups chopped chicken (I use the canned stuff, 1 large can per can of cresent rolls)
1/2 package of Cream cheese
Bread crumbs
Cream of Chicken or Cheese soup

mix chicken and cream cheese. Place a spoon full in each cresent roll and roll tighly. I then roll them in bread crumbs, I just like the added texture, but its optional. Then I heat up a can of cream of chicken soup with about half a can of water and use it as a gravy. My family loves it.

I've been on bed rest for 6 1/2 weeks and the lovely ladies at our church have been taking very good care of us. Here are some of the meals we've received:
-Spaghetti (sauce in a ziploc bag so we could use it or freeze it and a box of pasta)
-Papa Murphy's Take and Bake pizza
-Chicken Lasagna, Salad, Fruit salad, bread
-Pot roast, potatoes, and carrots in a crockpot
-French Dip sandwiches, salad, peach cake
-Pork chops baked with cranberry sauce and stuffing, carrot salad, pineapple-coconut potatoes, chocolate milkshakes
-Baked ham, mashed potatoes
-Turkey sandwiches, cole slaw, grapes, OJ (a nice light meal)
-Pork roast, mashed tatoes, gravy, green beans, carrots, lettuce salad, rhubarb pie
-Fried chicken, jo-jos, pasta salad, rolls, brownies, muffins from a deli/grocery store
-Fish, shrimp, cole slaw, peas, Jell-O, watermelon, fried potatoes, chocolate covered strawberries
-Taco salad, cut up fresh fruit and melon, cheesecake
-Crescent roll/pizza casserole, Jell-O, coffee cake
-Fajitas, veggie tray with Ranch dressing, ice cream pie
-Steak, new potatoes, fresh green beans, watermelon
-Tacos
-Tortilla soup in a crock pot
-BBQ'd Bratwurst, garden lettuce salad, baked beans, fresh peach pie
-Roast cooked on a BBQ, new potatoes, fried garden zucchini, carrots from the garden, raspberry pie
-rice-a-roni/chicken casserole, bread, Jell-O salad
-Cheeseburgers, cheesy bacony potatoes (the best in the world!), garden beets, swiss chard
-Enchilada bake/casserole, corn on the cob, watermelon, plums, choc. chip cookies, salad
-Raw chicken coated in shake and bake on a disposable cookie sheet (so we could cook it at our convenience), cans of veggies and fruits, cans of soups (for future lunches), french bread, chocolate cake, and a box of instant mashed potatoes.
We've been spoiled, haven't we? Hope this gives you a few ideas!

I had a gal bring me over Tortilla soup it was great! Also had a family bring us over a breakfast bake with muffins for a Saturday or Sunday morning as well. I thought that was the best idea.

If she is breastfeeding I would get her something really easy to eat... I loved chicken strips after my son was born, because I could eat them while I fed him. I would also call her and ask her what she wants and is craving.. that would mean the most to her I think!
S.
p.s. my husband said the simpler the better!

Hi T.,

As a mother of 18 month old twins, I have to tell you how wonderful it was to have friends bring meals to us! Especially if you friend is breastfeeding - she'll be hungry frequently, and obviously too busy to cook. I'll paste in one very easy and delicious meal, and also wanted to say that meals that she can freeze are nice, too. I recall freezing a lazagna and being so happy when I found it later! ;)

Mushroom-sherry chicken

You’ll need:

1 can cream of mushroom soup
Sour cream
1/4 C. sherry
Parsley, paprika
4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
About 4 oz. sliced fresh mushrooms

Heat oven to 350.
In mixing bowl add soup, then fill soup can with sour cream and add to bowl. Add sherry and mushrooms and combine.

Spread a little of the mixture on the bottom of a baking dish (square works well) and lay chicken breasts on top. Then pour the rest of the mixture oven the chicken. Sprinkle with parsley and paprika.

Bake 1 to 1 ½ hours

Serve with wild rice or rice pilaf, asparagus

You are a great friend to do this... I am a consultant for a company called Homemade Gourmet. We are basicaly a meal planning company. We have mixes that you can make into meals and put in the freezer for when then are needed. You can check my website and give me a call if you have any questions or if you would like to make up some meals for your friends.

A. Hood
www.homemadegourmet.com/AllisonHood

After many years, I have finally settled on honey-baked ham as the food I bring to new moms, sick people, and people in mourning. (Yes, I know it's expensive. But it's yummy.) I cut off the amount I need to bring, put it on a plate, and include lots of cut up raw vegetables, sometimes a loaf of bread, or cookies if I've baked.

My family loves this, because they know we get to eat the rest, and then make ham and pea soup, which they also love. Win-win situation.

Hey T.,
This is one of my favorites. Its creamy chicken. Okay defrost the chicken put in a crock pot with dry Italian dressing packet. Let sit for 4 hrs. Then shred the chiken add cream of chicken soup(no milk) and a packet of cream cheese. Serve over rice. Its easy and yummy.(You don;t have to add the whole 8oz cream cheese bar, half would be plenty). Oh don't drain the chicken juices.
M.

I bring all of my friends with new babies tator tot hot dish! Where I am everyone eats meat and potatos so it's always a hit.
Everyone loves it!
~B.

Your favorite soup. Bring fresh bread and a sweet treat, makes a great and easy meal.

What a nice mom-friend you are! When my son came home from the NICU he was on Oxygen and all sorts of monitors. It made cooking incredibly difficult because he had all sorts of wires attached to him. I couldn't pick him up and just walk with him, or go in the kitchen to make food. If this is the case with your friends kids, make her some casseroles that she can freeze and just put in the oven. This way she doesn't have to stand over a stove to make the food. Just put it in and you're done!
FYI, our neighborhood did this for us and we ended up with five trays of lasgna. Which is great, if you like that food -which we did not. hehe. You may want to just ask her, WHat would you like? Can I bring a frozen pizza? Our favorite meal was KFC one night. It was like heaven for a busy mom. Good luck!

Taco salad:

2 heads of romaine lettuce,
1 lb of hamburger, cooked and seasoned with taco seasoning
1 can of corn, drained
1 can of olives slices
1 or 2 tomatoes chopped
1 to 2 cups of grated cheese
1 bag of Frito chips
Ranch dressing

Cut up your lettuce and add to a bowl. Layer with hamburger, corn, olives, tomatoes, and cheese. Take that to them with the bag of chips, and a small bottle of ranch dressing to serve with. (This was done for me just after having my second and it was wonderful to not have pasta).

I just had a baby about a month ago and we received several meals. Over half the meals we received were chicken enchiladas!

I suggest calling the mom and ask her what she's already had, so you don't duplicate. :)

It's also really nice to take some freezer meals. That way when the help stops coming, she'll have some backup meals.

Hi T. - loved reading these posts because now I have lots of great dinner ideas to serve my family.

All these dishes sound really yummy. My input would be to try out a new recipe before you make it for someone else.

We had two WONDERFUL cooks bring meals who used first-time recipes and well, they didnt turn out the way they were expecting. Basically, the dishes were downright awful. They would be mortified if they knew so ff course we never spoke a word of it except complete gratitude for taking the time to help.

The only other thing I would recommend is to avoid the "gassy" foods that might irritate the little ones if they are breast feeding - onions, nightshades, chocolate, etc. If you ask the new mom what she doesnt agree with her, she'll let you know.

This is a lot, but after I had my twins, my favorite meal that was brought to me was steak and twice baked potatoes with a peanut butter pie. It was full of protein and wasn't so much the pasta gig.

I will never, never forget right after my second son was born, a lady I hardly knew in our church brought us dinner. Her husband had grilled us steak! She brought over fresh salad and baked potatoes and all the trimmings. What a treat! She made sure it was a night that we would be home and warned us that she would bring it right when we wanted to eat. It was fantastic!

I've found that, esp in summer, something like chicken salad with a side of green salad or tomatoes/mozarella and bread works great and is different than the usual..... You can use a rotisserie or pre-cooked chicken to make it quick, and dress it up with grapes, apples, nuts (pecans or walnuts if no allergies), celery, and even a little curry powder. I like to use a mixture of mayo and plain yogurt to make it a little healthier and not so mayo-ish.

It's pretty hard to go wrong with chili or pizza.

Another casserole that is one of my favorites is a chicken-rice recipe from Cooking Light. Kids love it! You can freeze this, it keeps in the fridge for a few days, and you can also add some peas or broccoli if you want some 'green':

Creamy Chicken-and-Rice Casserole
Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 1/3 cups)
Ingredients
* 1 (6.9-ounce) package one-third-less-salt chicken-flavored rice-and-vermicelli mix with chicken broth and herbs
* 1 tablespoon butter or margarine
* 2 1/4 cups hot water
* Vegetable cooking spray
* 1 1/2 pounds skinned, boned chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
* 1 cup presliced fresh mushrooms
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 3/4 cup nonfat sour cream
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper
* 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can reduced-fat, reduced-sodium condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
* 1/4 cup crushed multigrain crackers (about 6 crackers)
* 1 tablespoon margarine, melted
* 1/2 teaspoon poppy seeds

Cook rice mix in a large nonstick skillet according to package directions, using 1 tablespoon margarine and 2 1/4 cups hot water. Remove mixture from skillet; set aside. Wipe skillet with a paper towel.

Coat the skillet with cooking spray, and place over high heat until hot. Add chicken, mushrooms, and garlic powder; sauté 6 minutes or until chicken loses its pink color. Combine rice mixture, chicken mixture, sour cream, pepper, and soup in a bowl; stir well. Spoon mixture into a 2-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Combine cracker crumbs, margarine, and poppy seeds; stir well, and sprinkle over chicken mixture. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Make-Ahead Tips: You can assemble the casserole ahead of time, omitting the cracker-crumb mixture; cover and chill in the refrigerator or freeze (thaw frozen casserole overnight in refrigerator). Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes; top with cracker-crumb mixture, and bake as directed.

Recently for a new mom I made a bacon and cheddar quiche, fruit salad and croissants if you want to gear it toward breakfast or a crusty bread and a spinach salad to gear it toward a dinner. It was so simple and worked out well, they really appreciated it.

Hi T.,

That is very thoughtful of you! There are great casserole recipes all over the internet. Of course, my favorite is lasagne (back to the pasta dishes), but it keeps in the fridge nicely for up to a week... also, enchiladas are grea. There's a great recipe on tastytuesdays.com called broccoli divan that is a favorite of our family (if you like broccoli). Also, a fruit salad or cut up fruit is great just for munching on. I hope some of these ideas help..
Take care
J.

When my son was born my brother-in-law made a big batch of burritos. He individually wrapped each one in plastic wrap and we put them in the freezer. When we wanted one we just threw it in the microwave for a couple minutes. It was really convienent for a quick bite during the day.

Hi T.,
What a wonderful thing to do for a new mom. When my husband and I brought our son home from the hospital our neighbor brought over an amazing homemade meal of vegetable beef soup, freshly baked bread and apple tart. I nearly wept with gratitude. However, I was equally grateful for the take-out pizza and fried chicken that people brought over. It really is the thought that counts, but here are some suggestions. Pork shoulder is inexpensive and easy to make in the crock pot. You can cook it for 10 hours or so in the crock pot with your favorite bbq sauce and then shred it and bring over buns, extra sauce and coleslaw for pulled pork sandwiches, or cook it with taco seasonings and bring pork tacos, with tortillas, sour cream, tomatoes, whatever. There are more involved recipes available for each--try foodtv.com. Most grocery stores do rotisserie chickens, which could be served as is, or made into enchiladas, soup, sandwiches, etc. I guess I am trying to help with ideas for multiple meals that would be easy for you. Also, don't forget breakfast (banana bread, your favorite muffin batter that can be scooped and baked as required) and lunch (sandwiches etc.) I'm sure you will do a great job, good luck!

I always call and make sure there are no food allergies, foods their kids won't eat etc. and ask if there is anything they have been wanting or absolutely don't want because it's been brought in several times already.
If they don't give a specific idea then I have a couple of suggestions on hand and ask which they would prefer.
if they say whatever I go for what I have time for.

when I was super stressed with caring for my kids and my dh deployed someone left popeye's chicken meal on my porch for us. it was really thoughtful and I have no idea who it was but just having anything brought in when you are stressed is so great.

it's sweet of you to do that for your friend

Meals in a bag such as bertolli are really tasty. They also have other varrieties too. If you go the homemade route tuna caserole is good , soups hold up well in the freezer, fried chicken from the deli freezes well and then bakes good. Sounds like you are a really good friend. So i suggest to offer to come and help clean house , watch babies so she could get a real shower in or even a nap. If you dont want to do it hire some one for her. Also give her a mini/ pedi that comes to her home. Frsh fruit is a good gift too... Good luck and god bless!!

Mexican casserole is great, and simple.

needed:
3 chicken breasts
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cheese soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
small onion (optional)
bell pepper (optional)
1 package of shredded mexican cheese
8 to 10 small flour tortillas

Start by cooking chicken breasts,(however you like,grilled, pan-fried, baked, whatevs) and slice up.

Combine soups, and set aside.

(Optional) saute onion and green peppers and set aside

Layer flour tortillas on the bottom of a casserole dish(make sure to grease the pan first) then layer sauce, chicken, onions and peppers, and mexican shredded cheese blend.

Add another layer of tortilla, and repeat process.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350.

I also ad frozen spinach that has been thawed and drained to the mix, it adds nutrients and is a good way to get kids to eat the stuff.

Soup may not be the best option for August ;-) But I love, love this recipe and it's been floated around my mom's group so many times I know I'm not the only one!

2c. chopped onion (I just use a whole onion)
1/2c. chopped red bell pepper (again, I usually just use the whole pepper)
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
3 garlic cloves, minced
2c. chopped spinach
2/3c. water
1 16oz. can navy beans, drained
2c. or 1 can vegetable stock (this makes it much more like a stew. For a more soupy texture, use more broth)
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, undrained (I usually use the Italian style ones)
1 14oz. can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1 9oz. package fresh tortellini (I use the dried stuff and it works fine)
Parmesan cheese

Heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, seasoning and garlic, saute 5 minutes until tender. Add spinach through artichokes, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer 2 minutes. Add tortellini, cook until totally heated. Sprinkle with cheese.

Crock pot preparation (my preferred method!):
Combine everything in crock pot except tortellini. Cook 5-6 hours on low or 2.5-3 hours on high. Stir in tortellini and cook for another hour. Serve sprinkled with parmesan.

Enjoy! :)

Soup in bread bowls? Make some good homemade chicken noodle or potato soup. THen buy bread bowls. IT's easy and hardy. OR soft shell tacos. keep everything in it's own container like the cheese, tomatoes, sour cream etc. All you have to do in cook the hamburger meat and then they can put them together the way they like them.

Perhaps a breakfast type of casserole? We found one that we like that was on the back of the Jimmy Dean sausage package and it's pretty simple.

I know this is more along the pasta route, but it's still a little different. We call it casserole italiano. Cook a bag of noodles (we do the spiral kind) and 1 lb. of hamburger. To the hamburger add 2 cans of tomato soup and 1-2 soup cans of water. Throw in some oregano to taste. Then add the noodles and mix. Pour the mixture into a glass baking dish cover with some mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

A Mexican lasagna would be a little different. That is something that they could just throw in the oven as well. Burritos all ready to go in a pan would work too.

Good luck! I hope I helped a little bit.