I’ve never been much of a DIY kind of gal.
Making my own, well, anything? So not up my alley. Getting all crafty? No thank you.
I save my creativity for the kitchen. And this is one of my favourite ways to get the creative juices flowing.
What The Heck is a Do-It-Yourself Dinner?
It’s exactly like it sounds. Every family member or guest at your dinner table, from the little ones to older folks, takes a hands on approach and assembles their own dinner plate. It’s kind of like if you taking our deconstructed dinner idea and putting it back together.
Let’s take pasta for example. If you tend to normally make a giant batch of pasta salad or pasta with good ‘ol tomato sauce and cheese, just leave all the ingredients separate and that way everyone can assemble their own pasta special. You set out the pasta, veg of choice, sauce or two, some cheese, meat, whatever you like. Everyone gets their own bowl and can pick or choose what they want in their own personal pasta.
You can do this with a salad bar, taco bar, pizza bar – really the possibilities our endless. It’s no more work to lay out the ingredients than to put everything together ahead of time. Perhaps a little extra chopping and dicing, but a lot less stirring and cooking.
One of my favourites is the DIY grain bowl. You cook up some quinoa or brown rice, roast some vegetables, drain a can of beans or chickpeas, add some fresh veg, some cheese, maybe some toasted nuts, and a dressing of some kind. Everyone gets to personalize their own dinner and make it just the way they like it. Extra cheese on mine please!
Kids in The Kitchen!
These DIY dinners are a great way to get everyone involved in the process, especially the little people. They get to have a sense of control over their food and feel proud of their creations. Bonus – having them pick and choose what they want in their dish makes them more excited about their food, and in turn, more likely to eat it.
And the DIY meal isn’t exclusive to dinner. Breakfast, lunch, snacks can fit the bill too. How delicious would a make your own oatmeal bowl be for breakfast? You can watch this in action over on our Facebook page where my daughter and I whipped up a do-it-yourself batch of overnight oatmeal. Another great way to put this DIY meal idea into action and get kids involved in the process.
Now if only there was a way to get everyone involved in the clean up. Suggestions welcome!
Dara
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