I’ve officially hit a meal rut. With a husband who travels often and a busy schedule, not to mention two grandparents who love to feed us, I’ve fallen into the same old foods over and over at home. While my girls don’t seem to complain, I definitely think a little kitchen shake-up is in order. So, I went digging and found some websites and services I hope will inspire you as well.

What’s Cooking Weekly is a newsletter and menu planning service from the San Francisco-based cooking school and education site. Check out their sample menu; the shopping lists and recipes are both practical and manageable - I’ve tried a couple of recipes that my girls actually enjoyed and asked for again! A subscription to What’s Cooking Weekly is $10 a month, $35 for six months, and $66 for the year (with one month free). You can also give a six or yearly gift subscription - great for mom friends, and totally paperless! Even if you don’t pay for a subscription, What’s Cooking offers a tremendous amount of resources about organic food and cooking, as well as a great green kid’s shop for a healthy lunchbox, birthday party ideas, cookbooks, and other occasions. Here’s an excellent article from Michelle Stern, founder of What’s Cooking, about how to incorporate kids into the kitchen for a truly rewarding, and nutritious, food experience for your family.

Spatulatta is an adorable website and cookbook companion, where kid-hosts (and sisters!) Belle and Liv teach kids via short and sweet videos about cooking meals, snacks, and special occasions. A James Beard-award winning webcast for 2006, Spatualatta’s recipes are healthy, simple, and feature a ton of vegetarian and vegan options. Check out their “Back 2 School” page for a good start for lunches! My five year-old especially loved the fact that Mom was behind the camera, and not helping the kids cook - seems she has her own ideas about who runs the kitchen! Note - You need the Quicktime Player to view videos.

Food Allergy Kitchen is also a great recipe resource for families who need to avoid certain ingredients. Search by category or food allergy for accurate substitutions. Food Allergy Kitchen also has an amazing list of allergy-related food links, including gluten-free diets, allergy and asthma, and celiac’s disease, and keeps a running update of food recalls due to allergens.