This week has range but most of it asks for real time. The fish and bratwurst are genuinely quick, but the meatloaf needs a couple hours, the cabbage wants a slow roast, and the koshari is a full afternoon project that pays off in layers of carbs and crunch. Plan around what kind of evening you're walking into.
This Week's Recipes
- Maple-Glazed Meatloaf
- Brothy Coconut-Mustard Fish
- Cabbage Steaks
- Sizzled Bratwurst With Mashed Potatoes
- Koshari (Egyptian Lentils, Rice, and Pasta)
1. Maple-Glazed Meatloaf
Meatloaf doesn't usually headline a dinner lineup, but this one earns it. A mix of beef, pork, and veal gets bound with milk-soaked crushed saltines, topped with a sticky maple-mustard glaze, and draped in bacon before a long, slow bake. Most of the two hours is hands-off oven time, which makes it less demanding than it sounds.
At step 3, when you're forming the meat mixture into a loaf on the sheet pan, let the kids shape their own mini loaves right alongside the big one. Their versions get brushed with plain maple syrup instead of the mustard-spiked glaze. The minis bake faster since they're smaller, but make sure they hit 160°F inside before serving — ground beef needs to be fully cooked through.
The full-size loaf gets the bacon and the maple-mustard treatment, sliced thick and served with pan juices pooled underneath. It tastes like something your grandmother would have made, just a touch more intentional.
The Split: Adults get bacon-draped loaf with maple-mustard glaze; kids get mini loaves with plain maple syrup.
Serves: 6-8 | Time: 2h | NYT Cooking →
2. Brothy Coconut-Mustard Fish
A fast one-pan situation where white fish poaches in coconut milk broth spiked with mustard, chile, and lime. Green beans cook right in the same liquid. The whole thing comes together quickly — you'd never guess it takes twenty minutes.
At step 2, before adding the chile and mustard to the coconut milk, ladle out a portion of the plain warm broth for the kids' fish. Their pieces simmer in that mild coconut base with green beans on the side and rice for dipping. If you have kids under four, cut the green beans into small pieces — nothing longer than a quarter inch. Make sure the fish hits 145°F before it goes on anyone's plate.
The adult broth keeps building from there — mustard and chile go in, the liquid reduces into something with real depth, and a squeeze of lime at the end pulls everything bright and sharp.
The Split: Adults get full coconut-mustard broth with chile and lime; kids get mild coconut broth with rice for dipping.
Serves: 4 | Time: 30m | Epicurious →
3. Cabbage Steaks
Cabbage steaks are a tough sell for most kids — thick slabs of roasted cabbage don't exactly scream dinner. But roasted long enough, cabbage goes sweet and buttery at the center with crispy caramelized edges, and the right toppings actually help close that gap.
At step 2, when you're mixing the paprika-garlic spiced oil, set aside a steak or two and brush them with plain olive oil, a pinch of salt, and a generous sprinkle of Parmesan instead. Both versions roast on the same pan for the same amount of time. Serve the kids' steaks with ranch or another familiar dip — the crispy browned edges do a lot of the work on their own.
The adult steaks get the full treatment: paprika-garlic oil before roasting, then topped with romesco, toasted walnuts, fresh dill, and a good squeeze of lemon. It's a vegetable dish that holds up as a main course.
The Split: Adults get paprika-garlic steaks with romesco and walnuts; kids get Parmesan-olive oil steaks with ranch.
Serves: 4-6 | Time: 1h | NYT Cooking →
4. Sizzled Bratwurst With Mashed Potatoes
This is the kind of dinner that barely feels like cooking. Bratwurst gets seared until the skin crackles, set over creamy mashed potatoes with a drizzle of pan drippings. It comes together fast and lands exactly where you want it on a weeknight.
At step 5, when you're plating with sauerkraut and mustard, the kids' portions take a different route. Cut each bratwurst lengthwise first, then into small pieces — don't slice into coin shapes, which are a choking hazard for young children. Lay them over buttery mashed potatoes with ketchup or mild mustard on the side. Make sure the sausage reaches 160°F before cutting.
The adult plate goes full German: whole seared bratwurst alongside warmed sauerkraut, a smear of hot mustard, and mashed potatoes glistening with pan drippings. It's a weeknight meal that feels like a beer hall in the best way.
The Split: Adults get whole bratwurst with sauerkraut and hot mustard; kids get small pieces over buttery mashed potatoes.
Serves: 2-4 | Time: 30m | NYT Cooking →
5. Koshari (Egyptian Lentils, Rice, and Pasta)
Koshari is a towering bowl of rice, lentils, pasta, and vermicelli topped with spiced tomato sauce, crispy fried shallots, and chickpeas. It's a project — budget a solid afternoon. But the payoff is a pantry-friendly, entirely vegetarian dish with more going on texturally than almost anything else you'll make this month.
At step 7, during assembly, the base koshari is carb-on-carb comfort that kids rarely turn down. Let them build their own bowls, adding chickpeas and crispy fried shallots while skipping the fiery shatta entirely. For kids under four, mash or finely chop the chickpeas before they go in. Make sure the fried shallots are more soft than crunchy — hard fried bits are a choking concern. Keep the mild tomato salsa on the side for dipping, with ingredients finely minced.
Adults get the full street food experience: tangy da'ah vinegar sauce, the spicy tomato salsa, a drizzle of shatta for real heat, and a generous pile of everything on top. Crunchy shallots, tender lentils, chewy pasta — the texture contrast is what makes this worth clearing your afternoon for.
The Split: Adults get full assembly with shatta and tangy da'ah; kids get base bowls with chickpeas and crispy shallots.
Serves: 4 | Time: 150m | Serious Eats →
Start with the bratwurst — it's the fastest win here and mashed potatoes never need convincing. Save the koshari for a weekend when you want a project with a big payoff.
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