Family Mealtime is IMPORTANT! 4 Yummy Recipe’s Included

Don’t you just love to gather your family at the Dinner table?  In our house this is just something we do..it always has been and always will be.  We don’t have the TV on..no cell phones or IPods are allowed..but sneaked sometimes ..

No radio..just face to face contact.  LOL  Because Family Mealtime is IMPORTANT!

It doesn’t matter if it’s for 5 minutes or a half hour..it’s what we do that connects us to one another …ALWAYS.

But I have to tell you that as my kids are getting older and they are busier than ever with Sports, School and friends,  coming and going at all different times,  it is harder to get everyone around the table..  Sometimes I can feel like, what’s the use.  I remember feeling this way with my older kids too.

However….it does matter.  It’s like a tradition..one that I have seen passed on even with my older kids.  Even when it is just them and their spouse..sitting at the table and having Dinner together is important to them.

Just a few reasons to eat as a family:

• Families that eat together four-to-five times a week produce kids who are dramatically less likely to be involved in illegal drugs, premarital sex, and other high risk behaviors – research has proven this.
• It is a time to talk and build relationships
• It is a time to continue to work on manners LOL
• It’s a time to laugh
• It’s a time to try new foods
• It’s a time to look at each other right in the face and see how everyone is doing
• Heartaches and Secrets leak out..really..
• Safety to be ourselves is assured as we bond…

Well you get the picture…Family mealtime is IMPORTANT!

So how do I get my family to the table on the busiest nights of the week…with no time for a scratch meal AND make it easy on myself??  I serve up some Tyson Chicken Fries with some special dipping sauces and some good Ol’ French Fries with a Yummy Smoothie! 

One thing my kids AND their friends can count on at our house,  DINNER! (Sometimes my son brings a large crew home after Track because we just live blocks from the High School!)

To go along with our Tyson Chicken Fries I made some Deelish Dipping Sauces! 

Here are the Recipes:

Shari’s Sweet and Sour Sauce

(I made this up because I didn’t have all the ingredients for the recipe and BOOM it was a total hit! Honestly it was Deelish!)

• 1/2 Cup Pineapple Juice
• 1/4 Cup distilled White vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar
• 2 Tablespoon White Sugar
• 1 1/2 Tablespoon Ketchup
• 1 1/8 Cornstarch dissolved in 2 tsp. water

Directions:  Combine Juice, vinegar, sugars, ketchup in a small pan.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat.  Add the Cornstarch/water mixture and cook.  Stirring while sauce boils for a bit and thickens.  It won’t be too thick..just right.  Let cool a little before serving.  YUM!  Big Hit!

Asian Peanut Sauce

• 1/3 Cup Smooth Peanut Butter
• 1 garlic clove – Pressed or minced
• 2 Tablespoon Fresh lime or Lemon
• 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp. Sugar
• 1/8 tsp. Cayenne, or to taste
• 1/3 Cup Water

Directions:  Heat until just simmering to meld flavors together..let cool to serve..it will thicken back up.  If you prefer you can just put all ingredients into a blender and serve cold.

Ranch Dressing and Salsa

• 1/2 Cup Ranch Dressing
• 1/4 – 1/2 Cup Salsa to taste

Stir and eat! YUM!

Good Ol’ Ketchup and Mayo

• Umm Ketchup and Mayo…any ratio amounts to taste

Enjoy!!

If you would like to print out these recipes..just click the PRINT button below.  It gives you the options of getting rid of pics and editing so the whole page is not printed 🙂  YAY!

So along with all of this Yumminess are you ready to enter for a chance to win Tickets to Six Flags for a fun Family Vacation?  Hop on over to Tysons Facebook page and enter to win!  Good Luck!

If you are interested in my shopping trip…hop on over to my Google + Album here

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias® and Tyson #cbias #SocialFabric.  All opinions are my own.