The first day of school started off at a run, literally. My son slept through his alarm.  Thirty-five minutes of a loud beeping alarm, he slept through. Of course we also overslept until 6:30 am. Oops. He needs to be at the bus stop by 7:05. This is a kid who needs at least an hour to get moving and motivated in the morning. He had 30 minutes to eat, shower, dress, brush teeth and hair and be out the door with all his stuff. Thankfully we prepare the night before with laying out clothes for the next day, bags packed and next to the door to grab and go. He made it without being too grumpy. That is good for the first day of school.

My daughter started her day with a friend texting her 2 hours before she needed to be up. It was actually good in the end because she was able to finish 2 or 3 of her virtual lessons before she even had her first class.

The one good thing about having a bad knee that I am supposed to rest, (really how do you rest your knee?) is my children are helping more with dinner. They have always helped some but my daughter actually said tonight that she could now saute’ garlic, spinach, mushrooms and olive oil to put over pasta for lunch. She has never had that confidence to start creating in the kitchen. All around this is really helping both kids become more independent in the kitchen.

As we have just started back to school the juggling of after school activities begin again. I pulled out my To-Go containers and plastic silverware which has mostly been away for the summer. We have 2 days during the week without any after school classes or rehearsals. Tuesday is the worst. I must have dinner ready to eat between 4:15 pm and 4:45 pm or it needs to be ready in our To-Go containers to eat in the car. Most other days I have a bit of leeway and can have either dinner ready to eat by 5:00 or ready in To-Go containers by 6:00 pm.

I have learned quite a bit over the years about what works well as To-Go meals. Hearty salads with a bit of meat or seafood work well in a To-Go container. Soup is not easy to eat in the car. It tends to always get spilled either down the front of the person eating it or all over the car floor. Casseroles are good especially if they are chunky like baked macaroni and cheese or potato based casseroles. Red sauced casseroles are iffy. My motto is always have a change of clothes no matter how old they are. We have gotten out of the car an hour away to have one of my kids covered in sauce. Have a change of clothes? No problem.

This was my first run at a new year of To-Go meals.

Verdict:

I liked the quesadilla quite a bit. My daughter not so much. She didn’t like the onions in it. That is the number one food she doesn’t like, onions. I tried to limit the amount on her quesadilla but I didn’t do a good job in the end. The best part of the meal was it was easy to eat in the car.

I served this with a hearty green salad in our divided dishes.

For my mostly gluten-free son I used corn gluten-free tortillas. The rest of the ingredients were gluten-free.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. shrimp, thawed and chopped – tails removed
• 8 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (best to use freshly shredded not packaged shredded cheese)
• Morton Nature’s Seasons Seasoning Blend
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 2 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 8 tortillas
• butter, softened

Directions:

1. In a medium skillet over medium heat saute’ the red pepper and onion in the olive oil until the onions become translucent.
2. Add the chopped shrimp to the pan and season to taste with Morton Seasoning Blend. Saute for 2-3 minutes until shrimp is just warmed through.
3. Remove pan from heat.
4. Butter one side of a tortilla. Place buttered side down in medium skillet or griddle over medium heat. Add 1/4 of the shrimp mixture, spread evenly over the tortilla. Sprinkle 1/4 of the cheese over the shrimp mixture and place a second tortilla on top buttered side up.
5. After 2-4 minutes, when bottom is golden brown, carefully flip tortillas to finish cooking. After 1-2 minutes check for color on bottom of tortilla. If done remove from heat and transfer to a plate. Keep warm in oven until all are cooked and ready to serve. Use a pizza cutter to help cut the tortillas into 1/4s. Serve with a hearty salad or bowl of soup if desired.